Protect Your Classic Vehicle During Winter

It is important to Protect Your Classic Vehicle During Winter. As the nights draw in and the weather turns colder, its important to make some time for your cherished classic vehicles and motorbikes.

It’s undoubtedly been a tough year with a lot of uncertainty, but Millers Oils Classic treatment range can take one worry off your mind, and will see your vehicle through until spring.

Here are some top tips from Mark Crossley, Millers Oils very own technical guru, on how to Protect Your Classic Vehicle During Winter.

Check your Engine Oil

Engine oil can degrade over time. If vehicles aren’t doing many kilometres, there’s an increased chance of fuel dilution, which promotes oil oxidation and degradation. We therefore recommend an oil change, or at least that you take an oil sample to check the condition of the oil before the winter lay-up. This will maximize engine component protection during the winter months. Millers Classic Preservation Oil 20w50 is an ideal engine oil to use during the winter lay up period: with a vapour inhibition additive, by the time you’re ready to use your vehicle next year, you’ll have a corrosion-free engine, filled with fresh oil for the new season.

Fill Up the Tank

A full tank of fuel will limit any condensation forming in the fuel system, and help to avoid potential corrosion. Don’t forget to use Millers Oil Tank Safe, which can be used in both petrol and diesel engines. This product provides additional corrosion protection through vapour phase inhibition, and improves carburettor cleanliness.

For vintage and classic vehicles, we recommend adding Millers VSPe Power Plus to your fuel. This will protect against the adverse effects of ethanol in modern fuels, up to and including E10, as well as adding lead replacement, octane enhancement and a light detergent for the fuel system.

For modern classics blighted by ethanol, choose Millers EPS to add to your fuel and protect against the corrosive nature of modern fuels.

Clean and Polish

Give your car or motorcycle some final attention at the end of the season. A good wash, polish and wax will help prevent corrosion from setting in and prolong the need for more costly future work such as re-spraying. Any dirt left on the surface, such as bird droppings and dead bugs can be acidic and slowly eat away at the paint or chrome work. It’s also important to remove dirt and moisture hiding in the little cracks and crevices as this can also do long-term damage. Check for any trapped water in places such as inside the boot, under the bonnet, inside doors, around rubber seals, trims and mirror surrounds. If you have a soft top, keep it up as folding it away could cultivate mould growth. Brake discs also need to be dry. Leaving them damp can cause the pads to stick to the disc and lock on, so take your car out for a short run after washing. This will make sure that you do everything possible to Protect Your Classic Vehicle During Winter.

Storage

The best place to store your vehicle over winter is in a garage, with the battery on trickle charge to keep it properly maintained. If you don’t have access to a garage, then try to ensure your car is protected from the elements, and disconnect your battery so you’re able to start up again in spring without any problems.

Check the condition of your tyres and slightly overinflate them, to avoid any side wall damage during the winter months.

If you prefer to store your vehicle inside, we are also able to offer storage solutions at our base here in SW France. You can find further details on our Car Storage page.

If you have any technical questions about any of the products mentioned or wish to discuss storage options, call us on 05 55 78 54 20 or complete the Contact Us form here.

For further details on our full range of Products please see our Classic, Motorsport and Road Cars sections within our Online Shop.

Protect Your Classic Vehicle During Winter