how much do I need to drive my car to keep it alive?

[ozzynotwoodParticipant 44]

Hi All.

Recently unemployed and not needing to drive my car as much but still need to keep it going. I did some research and found a list of nasty things that can happen if I don’t use it……..

As a general rule of checking three things, Battery, anything that is rubber(serpentine belt, tires) and the fluids(oils, coolant).

Battery: Even if you disconnect the battery it cannot retain all the juice inside forever and it will drain eventually, this will reduce its life.

Engine: Your various belts and wires can get corroded if not used over a long period, the serpentine belt can get corroded, some animal can chew up the wire or do damage due to its resting.

Your valves and cylinder walls might get corroded due to lack of any oil or movement inside.

Brakes: This happened to me personally where they lose their grip over time.

The above things can go bad, additionally, your wheels can get jammed if not used for months and if near coastal area then your can be prone to corrosion faster.

Electrical: Sometimes the interior electricals tend to develop fault such as the power windows get jammed, electric seats.

AC Gas leak: Cars that are not used over a long time might cause ineffective cooling from the Air Conditioner and will need to be recharged.

Fluids: Most of the fluids like engine oil/brake fluid, break down, they lose their ability to lubricate eventually though this take much much longer like half a year or so but still you will need to replace them.

Since yours is a CNG vehicle, check if the hoses are fine and have not developed a leakage. I would also advise using petrol if it’s going to be intermittent usage since the gas does not lubricate the engine component as much as petrol such as valves, this will not cause any serious harm but it’s better to use petrol for a few miles initially and then switch to LPG.

A car is designed to be run like a horse, you cannot get a horse and make it stand all day, you don’t buy a horse to pet it, they are meant to be ridden else they will develop problems(or whatever horses become if not ridden).

That was a cut ‘n’ paste and I don’t know what a CNG vehicle is

My car is a 2010 Mazda 3 (Manual). Is there general time or distance I should drive each week to keep the car running?

If they didn't have pussies they'd have targets on their backs,

[Anonymous 54]

Mabey some one more knowlagable than me cant tell you, but I would run it twice a week. Go mabey 10 miles.
Dries out the exaust, charghes battery, rubber seals ect..

[KeymasterKeymaster]

Yeah “walk your car” once or twice a week is fine.

Some older cars +30 years NEED this.

If you keep doing what you've always done... you're gonna keep getting what you always got.

[Anonymous 43]

How long ya gonna keep it parked? 10-12 years?

I have owned a couple antique cars that I stored away for a few months every year.

use a garage or a storage facility…well worth the cost

Run the car for a half hour every week or so.

Wash and wax and vacuum and detail before storage!!!! before. Clean it before you store her.

wheel chocks, not parking brake. Avoid sun, bird s~~~, dust, rodents, insects, industrial air conditioner towers, electrical generators and equipment and asshole neighbors/car thieves

lock the storage unit/garage

Do not tell anyone where the car is. Do not show it off to your friends. Loose lips lose cars.

lock the car, arm the alarm, disable the car somehow…something you can easily reverse but will baffle some asshole who wants a quick score. Who wants to diagnose and fix the car you are trying to steal?

Take the f~~~ing keys with you. yes there are moron classic car dudes who leave the keys in the car in a garage with the same lock you used to secure your gym clothes in JR Hi.

https://www.edmunds.com/car-care/how-to-prep-your-car-for-long-term-storage.html

http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/how-to/a115/1272486/

FWIW I drilled into the garage floor and set some eye bolts in the floor with some bad ass cement and ran a cable around the axles and through the loops in the floor, also removed the starter fuse and wired the brake pedal to the horn. My baby was tied to the floor and inoperable. Full disclosure: cars were a customized mid 60’s Cadillac and Mustang.

Depending on the car…you may want to use the Russian Mafia security system. Jam a hand grenade under the gas pedal and tie the inside door handle to the pin. Obviously exit through the passenger door. Don’t forget about this when you go get your car!!!!!!!!!!

[Anonymous 43]

lol cng is compressed natural gas…common for school busses and forklifts

2010 mazdas, not so much

do not set the parking brake, use chocks.

[AttonParticipant]

In a controlled enviroment cars tend not to suffer corrosion problems. Also if your car is direct injected then fuel never comes into contact with the valves. As for the engine it will be fine as most of it is aluminum and the internals are more or less sealed. For the battery take it out and leave it on a charger, put it back after you are ready to use the car again. When you want to put the car back into service and change the fluids if you can. Then fix anything broken it shouldn’t cost a lot.

A MGTOW is a man who is not a woman's bitch!

[GregB0Participant]

All the advice I ever received was to drive secondary vehicles once a week for 20-30 miles, going through the gears over varied terrain. Ensure that you check all the fluid and air levels before driving, as well as looking for leaks from the undercarriage.

​"​My father didn't tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it.​" - Clarence Buddinton Kelland

[Anonymous 42]

heated storage means everything to any classic car, every morning the entire undercarriage is soaked with dew, it even seeps into the gas tank and motor oil during atmospheric pressure changes. leaving snow on a car causes water to physically accumulate under all the sheet-metal with snow on it. Tall grass from under accelerates the rust. Tree debris are acidic and will damage the paint if left untended. My classic car sits under an environmentally controlled atmosphere anything outside is under cover and kept running to boil off any condensation inside and out.

I’m so glad I’ve sold so much of my high maintenance collections and machinery, BABYSITTING SUCKS!

[Anonymous 3]

Temperature is the big thing. In warmer environments you barely have to touch them. In colder environments there is corrosion, especially for the battery. There are some tricks to that though.

I was in the Navy for awhile, I wouldn’t be able to access my car for months. Always started up just fine afterwards though. Lots of people also leave cars in long term parking in airports.

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