Mothballing an Audi

[rdh@sli.com (Robert D. Houk)]

   If it is not possible to get a driver, I would suggest the following:

   1) Run the car until it is out of gas. Gas will go bad in 9-12 months.
      If you don't want to do this, use a good stabilizer.

I disagree strongly here for two reasons. First - you want a full gas tank
so the tank doesn't rust up (on the inside). Second, I don't like gas
stabilizers (and my local mechanic agrees, at least so far as the German
cars are concerned) as they seem to cause more problems than they cure. If
you're gonna store the car for *that* long, drain off and replenish the
gas when you retrieve the car. A good stirring will remix most of the
liquid components which may have stratified in the tank; obviously really
volatile volitiles are long gone...but the gas itself will still burn OK.

   2) Put the car up on blocks, so the tires don't touch the ground.

Good idea. Alternatively, pump the tires up "real good" (but even this is
not sufficient for more than maybe a "winter storage" of a few months).

However, don't block the "chassis", leaving the suspension at full droop.
put the blocks under suspension componets so that the car is normally
suspended (shocks compressed, bushing at normal "angles", etc.) You don't
want your bushings/etc. to take a "set" any more than you want the tires
to "set" a flat spot.

   3) Disconnect and remove the battery.

Yeah.

   4) When you return, charge and reconnect the battery, fill with gas,
      and get the oil changed.

It's a good idea to change the oil before putting it in storage. Since
the oil builds up water and acids, leaving the engine soaking in a (ad-
mittedly dilute) water/acid (yeah yeah, and mostly oil) bath doesn't help
it all that much. Fresh oil! Remember, oil films only last a few days
("7" is the number generally bandied about by those that *should* know,
that comes to mind).

Also, someone mentioned running the car once a month. This is probably
the *worst* thing you can do. After 7 days, the oil films on non-immersed
components has pretty much run off/evaporated. Starting it after a month
means lots of raw metal/metal interfacing (networking?) until oil pres-
sure has built up and a new coat of oil is on everything This is the
worst of the worst cases for engine wear (most wear occurs [as a general
rule of thumb] in the moments between first cranking the engine and get-
ting oil pressure established and everything lubed - when the residual
oil film has also gone, instant wear!). If you can't run it every week,
don't run it at all. And when you do run it, run it for long enough to
heat everything up, boiling as much water as you can out of the oil, and
exhaust system . . .

All my opinions, of course.

					-RDH