Yet another winterization question
 

Sorry guys but tis the season.

Getting ready to put the Nismo away for the winter. I am fortunate enough to be able to store it in a clean finished garage that is heated.

When I returned from my last trip I literally coasted in on fumes, there has to be very little fuel left in tank.

Am I better off leaving her empty for the winter or filling it up and putting some stabilizer in it?

Thanks

How long was that trip? I think you need to get a shop to take a look at it. It shouldn't be leaking gas at all assuming you closed the fuel tank of course

I think you missed my point :D

I just didn't fill it when I returned home. No problem with the fuel system I am just wondering if I am better off leaving it close to empty for the winter or topping it off with stabilizer in it?

Leave it full. Empty will promote condensation. If you can fill it with non-oxygenated premium (alcohol adsorbs water), so much the better. If not, don't worry about it. With a full tank you won't get enough water condensing to worry about.

You can use a fuel stabilizer, but it's not necessary for storage of periods about 3 months or less. You won't get enough octane loss in three month to make much difference.

Throw a Battery Tender on the battery (leave it connected), cover it if you want, start it back up in the spring. Don't start it while it's hibernating.

Thanks MacCool,

You said don't start with while it's hibernating? Since the garage is connected to my house am I better off walking out and starting it once every 3 weeks and letting her run or just put a tender on it and not start it the entire winter? I have seen threads that argue for both.

Edit: It probably won't come out of the garage till April, winters here are.....well they are awful. That being said maybe I should put some stabilizer in it if it's going to be in the garage for 5 months?

I thought you meant reaching back to your garage with fumes!

Seems every search I did previously said top up to first ding. Something about a half empty tank potentially getting condensation of h2o. Less free air = less potential water in the tank.

Leave a tender on, don't bother start/stop as its arguable that the components won't warm up enough and evaporate any condensation. On another note it's in your finished garage, wouldn't put a cover on.

Wash/wax, clean it out, fill up and optional stabil, toss on the tender and put some wire gauze in your tail pipes.

Lol mac you beat me to it, damn phone fails lol

If the car is kept in a controlled environment, it's not going to make that much difference if the tank is full or empty. But, as others have mentioned, keeping the tank full is usually the best option.

Stabilizer, plus or minus. Probably no harm in putting some SeaFoam or StaBil in.

Proponents of starting it base that on trying to get the oil pumped around the engine every few weeks. Modern oils have enough film strength that that's unnecessary. In fact, probably does more harm that good since the heating /cooling from starting will just promote condensation. You'd have to run it for awhile at temp to boil off any water. It's pointless.

Condensation occurs when the temperature falls below the dew point (think dew on the grass, which turns to frost if it gets cold enough), so if your garage is heated, condensation isn't much of an issue as long as the garage temp remains constantly higher than the dew point. A full tank is still a smart idea.

Winterization..
 

In a few weeks I'll be putting mine away pretty much the same way I did my motorcycles for years. Detailed, full tank of fuel, Stabil, battery out on a Tender inside the home, roll the tires up onto plywood squares and throw the cover over it until the end of March.

104

Why would you pull the battery if you're going to put it on a Battery Tender?

In case the battery tender goes crazy, over charges the battery, the battery pops leaking acid all over the engine compartment, ruining paint, wires, etc.

I too run in the motorcycle community where the pulling the battery deal is pretty common when you have your battery on a charger for 5 months or more. Just a thing I guess. Not necessary but hurts nothing.

Put mine away yesterday in anticipation of winter coming. Full tank, can of Sea-Foam, batttery tender on, cover on...see you in April.

Simple answer...
 

The simple answer to your question is that I can't put a Tender on it where it's parked. I've always pulled the battery on my bikes and brought them inside.
I don't like the idea of leaving the battery out in the car for 4 months without a Tender on it.
I'm with you though. I'd probably leave it in the car if I could put a Tender on it where it is.

104

I'll be putting mine away this weekend most likely as well. I always leave it with a full tank, no stabil. It's only 4-6months at most so I'm not concerned. Just use good quality gas. I don't start it either, I actually think this is more harmful than beneficial unless you drive it to operating temps. No issues in the spring.

yah 4-6 months you dont need stabil. ive done that in the past with no issue.

i use stabil in my G cause it has the filler issue where i can only get about 90% fuel in there due to recent gas pump nozzles not fitting in right. it auto clicks too soon.

i use stabil in my Z cause my G uses it. dont want her getting jelly..lol

I too run in the motorcycle community. Here in Minnesota where the seasons are very..."distinct"...it's common to have multiple vehicles in storage at different times of the year. Between boats, cars, snowmobiles, quads, lawn tractors...other stuff, I have 4 or 5 vehicles on Battery Tenders at any given point in the year. Certainly, nothing wrong with pulling the battery for storage, just a pointless PITA from my standpoint. I plug 'em in and forget it. Never had one malfunction in decades, or at least since float chargers became common on the market.

All of this talk is making me glad I live in FL. :happydance:

Man, you guys over analyzing parking your Z for a couple months. When I deployed to Iraq in 2003, most of my battalion parked our cars in a fenced in lot for an entire year. We used fuel stab, unplugged the batteries, used mothballs on the inside to try to keep the interior fresh, and some guys put their cars up on stands to keep from getting flat spots on the tires. Came back in 2004, plugged the batteries back up, some guys needed a jump, but everybody's vehicle was good to go.

Yah, but from what I read, the snowmobiling sucks in Florida. Doesn't appeal to me.

Come on, there are plenty go good days with clear roads in November and early December. Ohio is not like North Dakota or Minnesota or Canada. My 2013 is a DD and I intend to get the Blizzaks on and only use another car when snow is expected or roads are unclear. How can you love something and put it away for months?

The Z is about driving fun. There's nothing fun about driving a Z in winter, especially with snow on the ground.

Wash, wax, park. Springtime comes, open garage door, start, and off ya go.

Remove battery & empty tank - like motorcycle.

How necessary is a cover if it'll be stored in my non-heated garage?

Cover isn't necessary. It just keeps the car from accumulating dust indoors

A cat lives in my storage garage. A cover stops the occasional pawprints in the dust. I agree though, mostly not necessary.

i've heard horror stories about moisture developing causing rusting/spots in regards to using car covers... each to their own but if you do use one remember the cliche 'you pay for what you get'

I think this is more prevalent when storing outdoors using cheap outdoor covers. Mine is a thin/breathable indoor cover, mainly to keep the dust off my car while in the garage. Moisture/animals aren't a concern for me.

yah, mine are covered as well in my garage. for good reason. no spiders and salt dust... and like this am, i bumped butts with my z :yum: while i was taking this heavy arse powersupply from the garage... no scratch. :eekdance:

youll want to leave a full tank in the z while in storage. dry sensors, moisture build up all lead to fuel level indicator issues... plus that last of fuel you cant get out will spoil over time.

if you live near the ocean you get salt issues too... from the ocean mist. not just during winter like us, but all frikken year round. :eekdance:

Empty tank is only helpful if you run the whole fuel system dry. Feasible (but pointless) in a motorcycle, not feasible in a car.

Don't do this.

now that i think about it... the dust and backsplash from the other car coming in and out... my poor baby...

i see it now... -15*C outside and i'm running outside with a space heater, QD and a handful of MF towels... lol

yah, not to mention the powder snow getting on your car along with salt dust, then that crap sticking to your glass and paint when your other car 'defrosts' everything in the garage with its warm engine. :ugh:

STOP MAKE IT STOP~!!!

actually the car's coming in/out isn't too bad... i guess coming back in from driving warming up the insides of the garage a bit... sigh i need a splash guard if anything lol

you need a garage of your own, mishuko..

Pull the oil plug, let loose all the old oil

drain the gas out

drain the tranny fluid

throw er on jack stands, remove tires, deflate and cover

throw on car cover after a good 2-3 hour wax and detailing sesh

IDK why you needed to bump this thread but this is probably the worst advice ever..