I have a 1981 that gets parked in the driveway. I have kids and lost the garage years ago.


I live in So. Cal so the weather is pretty good except for some rain and a lot of dust.


The paint on the car is fair and I always have the car under a cover.


I have gone through a lot of covers over the years and to be honest they all fell short. They seem to last just a few months, rain and dust always get in. I understand its outside and my expectations aren't that high but overall very disappointed.


I've looked at covers online and looking for any recommendations and or findings.


Thanks in advance.


David

 

While I can't suggest anything about how long the covers last, I can suggest something we discovered. The C4 sits around a lot, at the shop and with a cover, even indoors, the dust always seemed to get in, no matter what, but one day, I got some clear plastic sheeting from the car painters next door.

It is 12' (that's right, 12 feet!) wide and easily drapes over the entire car! It comes in 350 to 400 foot rolls and I highly recommend it as an underlayer to a car cover. It works well as an underlayer, because even though it has built in static-cling, that eventually goes away and any breeze will pick it up, but under the cover, it stays put and your car is totally protected! Very thin and easy to put on.

http://directbuyautobodysupply.com/A...ing%20Products

 

I drive the car every week or so, so I don't want to plastic wrap the car. Looking for a good cover that I can take on or off fairly easily but works pretty well.

 

My '81 sits outside also. I use a cover made by Covercraft. They have one hell of a selection and their customer service is fantastic. You can order them through Summit to get a good price.

 

So. Cal. here too. Same problem with dust and durability. So now
I look for something cheap and soft on the inside. I've been buying
the 7 layer covers from ebay for around $45-50 bucks. They don't
last too long but they are lined with a soft fleece inside. They claim
to be waterproof and maybe are for the first 4-5 months but soon,
like all the ones I've had (many brands) there's dust underneath that
will not be shook off-so time for a new one. Makes covers around
$100 a year. Not sure why they call them 7 layer--looks more like an
inside and an outside but they are OK for the price. Oh yeah, the fit
---just so-so nothing really custom about them.

 

I've used Simoniz covers for the past few years. Like '69, it has lots of layers, and a 5 year warranty that I can take into the original purchase store and replace at any time.

 

My 08 has been sitting in the driveway for over 6 years. Never garaged.
I have a Coverking car cover. Coverking.com It is relatively thick with a soft plush interior. It's their Autobody Armor fabric. It's done a great job. There's a big ouchie here though...it cost about $300.

I keep the cover on to protect the car from UV and the morning dew, which can be substantial here sometimes. If it's going to rain, I remove the car cover.....my experience.......if the cover is rained on...any cover, it will absorb soak up moisture, and after the rainstorm, the car will be in a tented humid environment. Also, a rainstorm will cover the driveway under the car with water. After the rainstorm, you'll have a tented car over essentially a long lasting puddle of water, that will maintain high humidity conditions under the car. As I said I remove the cover before a rainstorm, and after the rainstorm, I start the engine, bring it up to operating temp to get rid of humidity under the hood, etc.
........................................ ................

I had to stop driving my 70 in 1992 because of lack of money. I stored the car under a car cover in the back yard, and years went by. I didn't want to fuss with it because it was an emotional thing it wasn't being driven. Eventually, I could start to restore it. When I pulled the car cover off, I was aghast. Every thing in the engine compartment had horribly rusted...all the bumpers were rusted. The almost impossible to replace louver grills and the front parking light grills were pitted. I think it would have actually been in better condition if it were not under a car cover....Hence my motive to remove a car cover before rain comes.