Car sitting for a while advice

[Nigel Foster]

My Mazda 3 (the one with the weird e-loop capacitor) is gonna be sat whilst I recover from an op (from 2 weeks to 10 weeks before I can drive again).

I'm going to take the handbrake off would it be better to

1) leave in gear
2) use blocks

My mate reckons put in gear but mightn't the clutch plates stick together after a while?

[Edit: I am pretty dim when it comes to how cars work lol]

[MattsCar]

Will probably need a full restoration after 2 months....

Jokes aside...nothing is going to stick.

Will start first time after 2 months.

Maybe get someone to start and let it idle for 15 mins after month 1 to be sure.

[Super Sonic]

Hope the op goes well

[Cliodci12235]

I don't like to leave my car sitting overnight so check on it every Fifteen minutes and start it once every hour.

[White-Noise]

I think the main thing is to not let it go flat so use a ctek or start every 2 weeks and run up. I'd also get someone to move it back and forth to free the brakes.

[Andrew Hirst]

MattsCar said:

Will probably need a full restoration after 2 months....

Jokes aside...nothing is going to stick.

Thank you.. it was the gearbox/clutch I was most concerned about

I was going to use blocks but saves hassle if I can just leave it in 1st

[Andrew Hirst]

Super Sonic said:

Hope the op goes well

Thank you

[Andrew Hirst]

White-Noise said:

I think the main thing is to not let it go flat so use a ctek or start every 2 weeks and run up. I'd also get someone to move it back and forth to free the brakes.

I'm hoping I'll be able to at least start it myself every few days and let it idle for a bit, remains to be seen.. its in a spot where I can't really leave it attached to a trickle charger

But I have a really kind mechanic who will take it for a spin every so often to keep the brakes from seizing

[rodericb]

Andrew Hirst said:

I'm hoping I'll be able to at least start it myself every few days and let it idle for a bit, remains to be seen.. its in a spot where I can't really leave it attached to a trickle charger

But I have a really kind mechanic who will take it for a spin every so often to keep the brakes from seizing

These cars sit on RORO's for a few weeks on their way from Japan and then may sit in a paddock for more weeks or months before they find buyers. Nothing's going to happen to it in the timeframe you're talking about....

[Smint]

Cars can sit for months in compounds after defleet.

Smart charger to keep the battery topped up would be ideal, if thats not possible the battery is less likely to discharge fully if disconnected.

[GreenV8S]

Make sure the battery doesn't go flat. Don't let rain get into it.

Ignore all the other issues you and your mate were worrying about - none of them are going to be any problem at all over that timeframe.

[donkmeister]

I'd consider just disconnecting the battery, unless sitting and idling it for a bit will give you something to look forward to in the post-op boredom.

It's always a point of discussion/argument on here but some modern cars (even when working correctly) will drain a healthy battery in a few weeks, others will sit for months and start on the button. So disconnecting the battery or charging it (in your case through idling or your friend driving it) every couple of weeks, or assuming you will buying a new battery in 10 weeks, are the only ways to be sure.

[donkmeister]

GreenV8S said:

Make sure the battery doesn't go flat. Don't let rain get into it.

Ignore all the other issues you and your mate were worrying about - none of them are going to be any problem at all over that timeframe.

Basically this.

I've had batteries go flat and even after a battery repair cycle on a good charger they're never quite as good.

[Rhun]

I left my car for 200 days whilst I was away on deployment. All I did was keep it in gear with the handbrake off. It started first time on return. Don't worry. 👍

[98elise]

Rhun said:

I left my car for 200 days whilst I was away on deployment. All I did was keep it in gear with the handbrake off. It started first time on return. Don't worry. ??

Same here. 6 months away and it was fine. Leave it in gear, it won't affect the clutch. If someone starts or drives it once in a while all the better.

As others have said the battery is the only thing to be concerned about if you can't charge it.

[MitchT]

Any thoughts on a car that hasn't moved for 13 months? It's on a CTEK and the central locking works perfectly, so I assume the battery's fine. Just wondering what state the fuel might be in and if it'd be an issue firing it up.

[98elise]

MitchT said:

Any thoughts on a car that hasn't moved for 13 months? It's on a CTEK and the central locking works perfectly, so I assume the battery's fine. Just wondering what state the fuel might be in and if it'd be an issue firing it up.

It will likely be fine. You might want to turn it over with the plugs out to get some oil circulated, but beyond that I'd fire it up and then top the fuel up with fresh ASAP.

[MitchT]

98elise said:

It will likely be fine. You might want to turn it over with the plugs out to get some oil circulated...

I know sod all about cars other than the basic checks that everyone should be able to carry out, so I wouldn't have a clue how to do that.

98elise said:

... but beyond that I'd fire it up and then top the fuel up with fresh ASAP.

No chance of that as it's SORN'ed with no MOT and a failed rear trailing arm pocket means it's going nowhere, other than on a truck.

[GreenV8S]

MitchT said:

Any thoughts on a car that hasn't moved for 13 months? It's on a CTEK and the central locking works perfectly, so I assume the battery's fine. Just wondering what state the fuel might be in and if it'd be an issue firing it up.

Instead of worrying about it, fire it up. The only thing to be concerned about over that timescale is the state of charge of the battery, and it it cranks the engine over at the usual speed then you know that's OK.