Wintertime Startup

[Rgpmalibu]

Hi Gang,

I was just out in my freezing cold garge in central Michigan where my baby is sleeping for the winter. She's an LS swapped Chevy Malibu. She's hooked up to a battery tender. She looks so peaceful, but I really feel like I should start her up every once in a while. Should I? Or should I just leave her until spring and save wear and tear on the engine, because I know that she's not going to be super well oiled after just sitting there for so long. I hate to wake her, but I want to hear her run. It's pretty snowy and salty out on the roads, so driving her won't happen. Will i be doing more harm than good??

 

[565bbchevy]

I usually fire mine up a couple times in the winter just make sure it gets to full operating temp for a little while to get all the condensation out of the exhaust

 

[blk7gxn]

Hi Gang,

I was just out in my freezing cold garge in central Michigan where my baby is sleeping for the winter. She's an LS swapped Chevy Malibu. She's hooked up to a battery tender. She looks so peaceful, but I really feel like I should start her up every once in a while. Should I? Or should I just leave her until spring and save wear and tear on the engine, because I know that she's not going to be super well oiled after just sitting there for so long. I hate to wake her, but I want to hear her run. It's pretty snowy and salty out on the roads, so driving her won't happen. Will i be doing more harm than good??

There will be MANY opinions on this, and I respect others' opinions, HOWEVER it does not mean they are right. I will give you some information that has been tested not by me, but by the automotive industry, you make your own opinion.

Many people feel you have to go out and start up the car in the middle of winter storage to keep everything lubed up and limber. Your engine and other components DO NOT need this, they are still coated in oil from your last run.

When you start a cold engine in the middle of winter, there is NO WAY to bring the engine up to true operating temperatures to get all the condensation out of the block, exhaust etc. In fact, studies were done on this and proved its WORSE because of the moisture that is now induced into the oil. Doing regular startups and idles over the winter months causes oil degradation and with the induction of moisture, does your engine no good because instead of pure oil coating your internal parts, you now have oil with moisture coating all your engines internal parts, and your oil will have to be changed out before running it when you pull it out of storage.

I hope this will help make your decision for you. Our cars are our pride and joy, and everyone wants what's best for them. Many are misled by false information and think they are doing the right thing and will argue to their death they are right, when actually they don't like admitting what they have been doing is wrong

GOOD LUCK!

Will

 

[565bbchevy]

Mine is also in the heated garage I'm not firing up to hear it or for a maintenance type thing, I'm usually working on something I'll be firing it up within the next week so I can top off the coolant with the new radiator. For my Monte with the big block I usually just bump it over a couple times to rotate the pressure off the springs with a .750 lift cam. Also with two cars and a two car garage a lot of times I have to pull one out to work on the other and put one in my portable garage

 

[Rgpmalibu]

Hey, thanks guys, I appreciate it. I think I'll just leave it alone. That is, until the first rains of spring have washed all the salt off the roads. I'll wait to piss off the neighbors until then.

 

[565bbchevy]

That is, until the first rains of spring have washed all the salt off the roads.

I drove my Monte many years ago in the very early spring on an unseasonably warm dry day but we had yet to have a good rain to wash the salt residue away and I was amazed at how much salt dust was on and under my car and said I will never do that again.

 

[Bonnewagon]

Start it up and watch as all the water drips out of the drain hole in the muffler. Idling is not going to do much- you need to drive it. So you just helped your pipes rust out. I leave mine alone unless I can drive it somewhere without salt.