CorvetteForum - Chevrolet Corvette Forum Discussion - Best Practice Recommendations for Winter Storage

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Best Practice Recommendations for Winter Storage

A lot of Corvette owners who are in snow belt prefers to store/garage their vettes for good 4-5 months during the winter. There are many recommendations floating in the forum on what one should do for storage (and many of them are based on outdated technologies of decades ago!). This question is to understand the best practice recommendations from Corvette engineering that would help prolong the life of various components.
Specific items:
1) Should we keep the fuel tank full or half or less? A recent article emphasized to keep it quarter full to prevent corrosion of the sensor in the tank. Any truth to that?
2) Is fuel stabilizer (e.g. STA-BIL) necessary?
3) Should the tires be inflated +5psi over the recommended level?
4) Would there be flat spotting of tires possible based on today's tire technology? If yes, how can one avoid it?
Please advise on any other aspect that owners should be aware of and take the preventive actions.

Thank you.

Quote:

Originally Posted by flying_vette (Post 1598482472)

You can easily find answers to your questions if you use the search feature on this forum. I am confident that you would find many people would answer your questions 1-N (1/4 full is adequate), 2-Y (see Owners Manual for GM fuel additive to preclude sulphination of fuel tank send unit), 3-Y, 4-Y. These are the answers I have seen from some very good sources here on CF and other industry tire experts. Also, keep your battery on a charger (CTEK-3300) if the car is not being used for more than a week. Use aluminum foil to cover your exhaust tips if field mice and other rodents are an issue in your location. Some people use expensive car covers to cover their cars but I use the inexpensive 2 King sized cotton bed sheets. Pretty much covers most of your concerns.

The OP posted this question with the intent of getting an answer from Tadge. That is why it is posted in "Ask Tadge".

Quote:

Originally Posted by vettetwo (Post 1598508532)

The OP posted this question with the intent of getting an answer from Tadge. That is why it is posted in "Ask Tadge".

That may be but answers to questions posed are widely available on this forum.

^^MMD, not my first rodeo honestly, idea is to hear from Tadge and corvette engineering so that we can debunk many theories and hearsays 👍

I haven't looked lately, but: what's in the owner's manual regarding Winter Storage? They used to have entire sections set aside for it.

All it says is to either disconnect the battery or use the tender. Here is a snippet:

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...839f712ff1.png

There is one more reference to vehicle storage in the 2014 owners manual. It is for tires:
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...e8d5dd3562.jpg

Cool. I suspect that's all Tadge will parrot since it's already published. I don't really see the need to submit this to him.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jvp (Post 1598518453)

Cool. I suspect that's all Tadge will parrot since it's already published. I don't really see the need to submit this to him.

Agree JVP. Tadge must have a lot on his plate now. There are numerous other questions people have far more important like my 5 year old grand daughter has. She wants to know if Tadge has a small stuffed fur-bear attached to his rear view mirror and she would like to know if Tadge likes stuffed giraffes. I had checked my Owner's manual and there is absolutely no references to this topic. Thanks and Merry Xmas.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jvp (Post 1598518453)

Cool. I suspect that's all Tadge will parrot since it's already published. I don't really see the need to submit this to him.

It has been claimed that Engineering recommends less than 1/4 tank to avoid an issue with a fuel level sensor that is very expensive to fix. No one has produced a verified Engineering statement for this very important topic. What better source then the Chief Engineer for clarification and an explanation as to why the issue if as described cannot be fixed with a redesign to the sensor module.

How about putting it to a vote? Membership is probably split down the middle for this topic and everyone wants clarification.

@flying vette stated the question very well.

If I had to guess Tadge's/GM's answer, it would be that the car is designed to be used and not stored. He'll also reiterate the recommendations outlined in the owners manual pertaining to the battery and tires.