Easy Rhino

(There will be a poll as soon as I can figure it out).

Pilots will recognize pre-flght checks, submariners will recognize the rig for dive, and nukes will recognize a pre-critical check-off. Other professions have their own pre-performance checks.

Do you pre-flight your 50-year old C1/C2 before cruising, and if so, how extensive are your checks?

As a former submarine nuke, I do.

OCD? You bet?

Does it have a tie-in to how often you drive and how many miles yours gets a year?

YMMV

P.S. If you do pre-checks, what do you check and look for, e.g., from running oil pressure at the dashboard gage to pulling your plugs for inspection first (intentionally hyperbolic for our literal forum members).

FLYNAVY30

I get in and go....and voted accordingly, but I want to make sure that you understand my love of pie....in the event that you're offering

Easy Rhino

Greg, for this poll two or more choices are allowed.

Nowhere Man

I peak under the car for big puddles. Then open the hood for a quick visual of everything. Check fluids then turn the battery on and go.

capevettes

I always check the oil, coolant level, fanbelt and, on the 65, I check the knockoffs. Oh yea, I run a radar loop to check for rain in the area but I am a sick ba$tard.

FINWOLF

I don't have a per say list on paper but I do check the fluid levels and then I roll.

boxster99t

I check tire pressures and oil; start up, back out of the garage, clean the convertible top off with vinylex and top window with Plexus (it's a white top that is less than one year old so I'm trying to keep it looking new as best as possible), go over car with California car duster and detail spray, then drive.

That's my routine.

6T7L71CPE

I've learned to look under the car, in the engine bay etc. for tools and 1/2 done projects I've forgotten I started since last time I drove it.

63Corvette

Obviously I do use a check list, or else something would break every time I went on track........Oh wait, it does anyway

narlee

One of those -it depends. In the spring it gets a good going over, if we're doing something planned it gets checked pretty good, but if it's cut and run we usually just take off.

hedgehead

Kick the tires and light the fires.

rayvaflav

Brake fluid & mice.

Ray

OC-1

Do a preflight on the FI unit during warmup always pop the hood after finishing a run. It prompts a quick check for fuel leaks, etc. and then close the hood.

Gary's '66

I usually just let my car warm up to the point were the thermostat has opened meanwhile, cleaning the windshield and maybe a once over with the Ca. Duster.

I used to do a preflight check, 'till I left my expansion tank cap sitting on the work bench and, didn't discover it missing 'till I popped the hood at a car show. Amazingly, it never ran hot!

Now, unless I know I'll be traveling a long distance, I do a "post flight check".

Gary

ILBMF

I look under the car for any leaks, start it and pop the hood for a look around while it's warming up.

Easy Rhino

Anecdote: Went to give the mother-out-law a ride in the '65, started it up in the garage and did a walk-about while it warming up, and found a puddle of brake fluid under the passenger side rear tire. Before that time, I had generally gone with the "if it starts, drive it" crowd.

The good news: since it is flat here, I need not worry about my car rolling away. However, had I not done a brake check prior to pulling out of the garage, or worse yet, made it to the intersection with the 55 mph road that my neighborhood is close to, then I could have had a problem.

Now I have a checklist. Not exactly a nuclear reactor precrit, but somewhat thorough.

corvetteed

Since my "old" cars have a battery shut-off, I'm forced to raise the hood to move the knife switch. While I'm doing that, I might look around, using peripheral vision only. I might happen to look at tire pressure too. That's about it.

vettebuyer6369

You guys with the checklists... do you rarely drive your cars?

BB767

I use a battery tender on all my old cars here at home, plus I always disconnect the battery when it's parked for the night, even when I'm using it on a trip. Because of that, I take a quick look at the engine while removing the tender and or connecting the battery. Plus as I drive away I look at where it was parked for any large fluid leaks.

Going on a long trip I'll do a much more detailed pre-flight. Once I get to know a cars quirks and with a well maintained car I'm pretty comfortable with not being overly obsessive about it. The more you drive them, the less attention they need.

Thomas

Easy Rhino

Steve;

While I don't presume to speak for others, I believe that there is a calculous that applies that says the more infrequently you drive it, the more detailed the pre-drive checks might be.

Kevin