Later this summer, I should take delivery of an 08 Coupe and I am doing a little advance research into ownership issues. For at least 5 months of the year, the car will have to be parked due to the local winter climate. During this storage period, I would like to know if it is considered better to just remove the battery and let the car sit over the five months or whether it is better to start it up every week or so.

The car will be kept in a heated underground garage during this time and there is the option to drive the loop of the garage every so often to regularly set the drivetrain in motion. The downside is that I have no access to power in this garage so that I cannot hook up a battery tender. I would have to run the engine long enough and regularly enough to ensure that the battery survives the storage period. I have no idea how often or for what duration that should be and would appreciate any input.

I did search the forum and did find advice on precautions to take when parking the vehicle for the full winter season. Therefore, I think I know how to go about doing that. The question is which is the better preventative maintenance option - 1) regularly starting up the vehicle or 2) parking, battery removal, gas additives etc.

Regards
Don

 

Hello fellow Canadian. These cars are meant to be driven. If you are going to park it for 5 months you should consider a battery tender. Also beware that you are setting yourself up for the limited slip differential clutch pack noise and other issues due to the car sitting idle for so long. I drive mine all year long without much concern. I know that Manitoba winters may be more brutal than southern Ontario but I am sure they have snow removal in your area as well.

 

I currently have a 1987 Coupe that I have owned since new. It's not a daily driver, but it has never been parked over the winter. I tend to drive it around once a week in the winter for relatively short trips and I have never experienced problems that I would attribute to winter inactivity. I have all season tires so that winter driving performance, while not great, is tolerable.

I have been led to believe that winter driving performance of the C6 is intolerable and that is why I am looking at storage options. I do live downtown where streets are mostly kept clear over the winter, so actually taking out of the garage for short trips could be an option. However, the cold tire performance of the stock tires seems to be so limited that I thought that this could be a safety issue.

Don

 

I have the Z51 summer performance tires. These are not good for cold weather use or rain for that matter. You have to drive any performance car with respect to the weather conditions at hand. The car will depreciate whether you drive it or park it. Garage queen cars seem to have more trouble since they are not allowed the exercise they require.