What are the must do's before the 5.0 goes into hibernation?

89foxtrot · Nov 29, 2004

What is everyone's opinion for the top 5 things that should be done before the 5.0 goes into hibernation? It is now snowing in KC and I (unfortunatly) am done until March.

Na5.0HO · Nov 29, 2004

Wash, wax, fuel stailizer, disconnect battery, car cover.... and I think it goes without saying...for the love of god, keep it INSIDE!!

HISSIN50 · Nov 30, 2004

change oil and filter, put on stands, etc.

wyominghotwheel · Nov 30, 2004

the guys above pretty well covered it........hotwheels of turborides

PonyBoy90 · Nov 30, 2004

Putting on jack stands is above and beyond what is necessary. Usually this is done if you only drive the car 3 months a year. 4 months of storage won't cause problems to your suspension.

If you have indoor storage, lay a large plastic tarp over the spot where you'll park the car. Cut 4 pieces of 2x6 wood. Center your car on top of the tarp and then back the car up far enough to lay the 2x6 wood under each tire so when you drive your car up on all four pieces of wood it'll be perfectly centered. By putting wood under your tires, you're making allowance for the tires to "sink" into the wood hence eliminating/reducing the flattening of the tires which may occur had the car been parked in one spot for a long period of time on hard concrete.

If it was possible, I'd have rust proofed the whole car first, then washed and waxed. Pour gas stabalizer/anti freeze in a full tank. Do an oil change with fresh filter.

Last but not least, throw a breathable car cover over the car (assuming it's INDOORS). If outdoors, assuming you have tinted windows all around except the windsheild, place cardboard or one of those window shades on the windshield to protect your interior from sun damage and leave the car uncovered. In this case YOU MUST rust proof the whole car as in the spring all that trapped water accumulated during the snow falls in the winter will start to melt and cause rust where it's trapped. Car Covers of any kind are a serious NO-NO for outdoor storage in wet weather.

crazypete · Nov 30, 2004

If parked outside (heck or inside for that matter), get 2 pump bottles of tire silicone and BLAST the entire car. This stuff is very fluid and will collect in all of the exact same places that water from metling snow will. You can spray it everywhere where wax wont even go and it will make it smell nice. Make sure to go crazy and spray it INSIDE the fenders and inside the doors and inside the torque boxes.

Why would I do this you ask?

3 years parked outside, driven in new england snow and salt. Maybe 1 tiny rust spot since I started "pre-treating" it like this. Silcone forms a film than actually collects dust and such and uses it like that gunk on the side of your motor. Notice how the motor is not rusted where the gunk is. The floorboard will have this nice film on it protecting everything. Alas, it does burn off the exhuast so that will stay unprotected.

Plus it doubles as a darn good wax that also permeates the plastic/vinyl exterior pieces and takes off tree sap and dissolves light stains. I swear by this stuff. For laughs go inside and blast your interior plastic too. It's basically the same as armor-all but with more silicone.

Oh yeah, and it makes your tires shiny too.

willys1 · Nov 30, 2004

Pull in front of your house,and do a "HELLACIOUS" 2nd gear burn out This will remind you of your stang every time you see it over the winter

PonyBoy90 · Nov 30, 2004

Crazypete, living in New England, you should have a rust proofing outlet that'll do your whole car for $100. Like a Ziebart, or Rust Check or Krown Rust. Besides soaking a moisture repellent oil under your car, they also drill tiny holes in you door jams and quarter panels and with a pressurized "wand", spray the oil behind and inside all the panels of the car to prevent moisture from accumulating and rusting inside the panels where you can't see.

TheUser · Nov 30, 2004

i read it's a bad idea to put them on jack stands because it exposes the parts of the shocks, etc that aren't normally exposed and has the car sitting in an un-natural state. I didn't put mine on jack stands and we'll see how it is next spring.

crazypete · Nov 30, 2004

Maybe it's a bit of personal pride maybe even arrogance but I think I'm way more thorough than any "professional" outlet would ever be. To them, my car is one of a few dozen that ran through there that day. To me, it's _my car_. I really go crazy here. I pull fenders off and spray inside the reinforcement lattice beneath, spray beneath the carpet, behind the interior panels and under the gastank.

I doubt that it is regular policy to spray oil inside most of these little nooks and crannies but this is where the problems usually start. How many cars have I seen with the bottoms of their doors rotted out.

Plus, the silicone treatment (plus header paint on the underside: much more scratch resistant than regular paint) sort of accumulates year per year in the very same places you are trying to protect.

Drilling tiny holes....GASP! I'm the only one that gets to drill holes in my stang.

I used to do rubberizing but found it less effective than the 500 degree paint plus silicone. On year zero, I did rubberizing and found that all of the rubber was gone by the next year but the header paint was still down there where I had sprayed it. Nothing lasts in snow and salt so it is a better idea to do a regular inspection of the underside with a can of paint in hand than to rely on a single coat of rubber applied once years before.

Just my humble opinions of course.

I never knew they had rubberizing outlets though.... thanks for the heads up

Michael Yount · Nov 30, 2004

I'd add - I don't think the 'wood' trick will save the tires from taking a set. What I do is simply roll mine forward, and then back a foot or so alternating every week or two. That seems to help the tires not take a set. Forward one week, back the next. Air the tires up to around 38-40. As temps drop, so will pressure - you want to have at least 32 in there even when it's zero out. Over pressure won't cause as many problems as under pressure will. Lastly, be sure when you put it away, it's been after a good, long drive. You want all the condensate evaporated from the exhaust system. And if you start it periodically over the winter (which is best for one), be sure to drive it long enough to dry out the exhaust system. Water sitting in the mufflers all winter will make quick work of the metal from the inside out.

The best situation is to be able to drive it a bit when the weather is clear. I've tried to leave mine where I can take them out for 30 minutes to an hour once every 2 or 3 weeks. Don't forget to hit the a/c switch for a minute or two to move oil around in the system keeping seals lubed.

90mustangGT · Nov 30, 2004

OMG, were talking about a few months, not years here. It's the salt on the road that eats your car, not the snow.

OR:

Move down south and forget about it.

willys1 · Nov 30, 2004

90mustangGT said:
OMG, were talking about a few months, not years here. It's the salt on the road that eats your car, not the snow.

OR:

Move down south and forget about it.

Michael Yount · Nov 30, 2004

Funny - the guy from Georgia lecturing the guy from Kansas about the effects of winter weather on the car. LOL

Notched · Nov 30, 2004

also i read, take out the plugs, and drip some oil down int he engine, not alot. just a dap. then crank the engine manually to lubricate the walls and rings...

also heard that every other week u should manually turn the engine over- with the coil disconnected

dont want the valve springs staying in same spot for to long, or else they will be compressed to much for a long period of time, and making there strength and or height altered

HISSIN50 · Nov 30, 2004

also, at marine shops one can get dealies that absorb moisture - might not hurt to toss a couple inside the cockpit.

TU, it depends upon where one places the jack stands.

90mustangGT · Dec 1, 2004

Michael Yount said:
Funny - the guy from Georgia lecturing the guy from Kansas about the effects of winter weather on the car. LOL

I'm not lecturing anyone, but I have lived up north, not native to GA. So I guess because I live in the south that means that me and my whole family were born, raised, and died in the same town? I guess the bennifits of my inbreeding were that I have extra fingers so I can change the radio station while powershifting. Nittos hook good on these dirt roads also.

HISSIN50 · Dec 1, 2004

90mustangGT said:
I'm not lecturing anyone, but I have lived up north, not native to GA. So I guess because I live in the south that means that me and my whole family were born, raised, and died in the same town? I guess the bennifits of my inbreeding were that I have extra fingers so I can change the radio station while powershifting. Nittos hook good on these dirt roads also.

LMAO.

i am prettys sure your first post was said in not total seriousness. and i think Michael posted his thoughts to yours, humerously. reading this, im not sure now. LOL.

Hey, i got ya beat Jason - i have to summerize my cars. the desert SW sees hot temps most of the year. winter is the easy time (though we have been below freezing lately).

i did not forget that i grew up in Alaska though.

90mustangGT · Dec 1, 2004

HISSIN50 said:
LMAO.

i am prettys sure your first post was said in not total seriousness. and i think Michael posted his thoughts to yours, humerously. reading this, im not sure now. LOL.

Hey, i got ya beat Jason - i have to summerize my cars. the desert SW sees hot temps most of the year. winter is the easy time (though we have been below freezing lately).

i did not forget that i grew up in Alaska though.

Yeah, I was just being an ass. In alaska, the first step to winter driving would be finding your car burried under the snow. I remember living in Minisota, seeing more snowmobiles than cars on the road when it got really bad. Helping my grandfather dig the driveway out, falling into snowdrifts over my head. Living in chicago and being blown into brown snowdrifts over my head. Chains on the tires, all the coats, F that, I love the South, except the humidity and bugs. One thing I noticed about this state more than any other I have been to, the air in the summer is stagnet, it never moves. If you feel a breeze, that means it's going to storm, but oh well, wait 15 minutes the weather will change, the sun comes back out and your in a sanna you can't escape.

5spd GT · Dec 1, 2004

90mustangGT said:
One thing I noticed about this state more than any other I have been to, the air in the summer is stagnet, it never moves. If you feel a breeze, that means it's going to storm, but oh well, wait 15 minutes the weather will change, the sun comes back out and your in a sanna you can't escape.

Sounds familiar...

Back on topic: I noticed after I did my h/c/i swap my "balance" was worse...you could feel more vibration thru the steering wheel...my car was sitting for about 3.5-4 weeks in one spot? Could that be what caused it? It wasn't a big deal but noticeable...

What are the must do's before the 5.0 goes into hibernation?

89foxtrot

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Na5.0HO

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HISSIN50

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