Keeping the garage queen corrosion free

O

ohms69

New member
Hi All,



My car does perhaps 600 miles per year, and is in fantastic condition as a result, however, on opening the bonnet today i have noticed a little corrosion around the exhaust side of my newly installed hybrid turbo.



This of course concerns me, because obviously this is a good indication that perhaps conditions in the garage are far from ideal for the conservation and longevity of my pride and joy.



I have seen carcooons and various other such storage solutions, which claim to keep your car in tip top corrosion free condition, but do any of these offerings actually work?



I like the idea of removing moisture from the cars immediate environment, as this is obviously the reason for the quick degradation of parts, and wondered if anybody had any experience of...



www.permabag.com



www.carcoon.com



What are peoples opinions on these products and are there any better long term storage solutions...Winters coming and after the awfully wet summer I want the car in the best possible environment.:nixweiss
 
You have one or two options IMO. A garage queen can be made to look good but usually at the cost of longevity. Nothing keeps an auto in better shape than driving it (100% highway miles) every day. Everything gets to operating temp, moisture is removed from the crankcase, fuel etc. Everything gets lubricated and the clock keeps ticking (father time). But your Garage Queen while protected from the elements, not being a daily driver, (more like a summer weekend joy rider) doesn't get driven enough to remove moisture, crankcase, A/C, pumps, gen, tranny, axles, diff, etc are not getting up to operating temp enough times often enough to remove moisture and lubricate for protection. Long term life as a Garage Queen will give you grey hairs. You only live once, what are you saving it for (a rainy day). Unless you keep it in the garage 24/7/365 a year for show, drive it like there's no tomorrow, and enjoy the ride while it lasts! IMO. Best of luck! :cool:
 
Well said lpquick :xyxthumbs



I got a FANTASTIC deal on a '85 Jaguar XJ6 Vanden Plas so I bought it.

It was in top shape and had really been kept up well, it only needed some minor work to put it in immaculate condition.



I got it in september and didn't have time to drive it regularly so I let it sit all winter, starting it every few day's and taking it around the block.



By summer it was running terrible and I had decided I really didn't have the time to put into it and my dad wanted it so I sold it to him.



He put some time and and very little money into it and brought it back to like new condition and he drives it almost ever day and it runs beautifully now.



I say drive it, enjoy it, and take care of it.



Regards, 13
 
Unfortunately due to work commitments and an ever increasing family I really don't get chance to use the car as much as I'd like. Plus, it's not the most economical car in the world and would cost a fortune to run every day here in the Uk..$8 per gallon don't you know!!



My Diesel daily driver suits my needs perfectly for obvious reasons.;)



The other issue is the fact that quite simply this car is the best of a breed. To my knowledge there is not a better example out there. Most have been thrashed and carelessly abused so obviously I am trying to keep the miles off and treat the car as a long term investment. It's 13 years old now and has only covered 11K...A session on british roads during the winter would well and truly signal the end. Excessive road salt in winter kills every type of car trust me.



So back to the original question...Are these storage solutions offered by carcoon and permabag any good?



:)
 
Heh heh, sorta a "it's a small world" when I read Option 13's post about the '85 Jag. My Jag is an '85 XJS I bought new. It now has 17,000 miles, so yeah, it's a garage queen and I know a bit about this topic, including what happens when you don't exercise 'em enough :o



ohms69- Yeah, I'd get the carcoon. I might even get one for the XJS one of these years, but I just keep putting it off (I like having the Jag sitting there as heavy-metal-sculpture and I enjoy getting in it from time to time just to experience the way-back machine effects- zap, it's '85 again :D ). Anything you can do to keep the humidity down would be good and the carcoon does that and more. A friend of mine keeps his Jag in one and he says it's great.



I run a dehumidifier in the immediate vicinity of my Jag and I have desiccant packs (the crystals that absorb moisture) in certain areas that I'm especially concerned about. The only time I've had corrosion problems was years ago when I had to garage it in a damp place. Now that it's in a "nice" garage I don't really have any problems with only the measures I've mentioned. But as I said, I keep thinking I oughta get a carcoon so I suggest you go that route.
 
I keep my Sunday driver zipped closed in a car jacket. When not in use for months and months I use dessicant bags. Car is always in great shape upon opening the car jacket and uncovering again.
 
It's a 1991 Renault 5 GT Turbo.



How often do you exercise the Jag Accumulator? Always had a soft spot for the XJS...My rich uncle had one from new in 1982...A beautiful HSE V12 in bright red...The noise was simply sublime!



How does the Carcoon keep the moisture level down. Surely blowing outside air in will mean that the humidity level inside the chamber is the same as outside? Or am i missing the point of how corrosion starts/manifests?:)



I took the car out for a good run today, and in all heonesty it6 started to fell more at one once we'd been out and about for an hour.





Only problem now is it's splattered with damn bugs again...Guess 'll have to get washing then!:xyxthumbs
 
ohms69 said:
How often do you exercise the Jag Accumulator? Always had a soft spot for the XJS...My rich uncle had one from new in 1982..
Click to expand...



Not nearly enough :o Haven't driven it yet this year. But I've found that it really doesn't need as much use as some would have you believe. This has just been (another) hectic year, I hope to use it a lot more in 2005. But then I say that every year.



How does the Carcoon keep the moisture level down. Surely blowing outside air in will mean that the humidity level inside the chamber is the same as outside? Or am i missing the point of how corrosion starts/manifests?:) [/B]
Click to expand...



Just moving the air the way it does will do a *lot* to fight corrosion. Add some desiccant and it should be ideal. The friend who uses on for *his* XJS doesn't have nearly as controlled-environment garage conditions as I do and his car does fine. It'll at least be a "far better than nothing" approach, though it's a bit pricey for such an uncertain expectation, I guess.
 
Q: “How does the Carcoon keep the moisture level down. Surely blowing outside air in will mean that the humidity level inside the chamber is the same as outside? Or am i missing the point of how corrosion starts/manifests?� ohms69



I was wondering the same thing but when you put this answer to your question it makes sense.



A; “I run a dehumidifier in the immediate vicinity of my Jag and I have desiccant packs (the crystals that absorb moisture) in certain areas that I'm especially concerned about. The only time I've had corrosion problems was years ago when I had to garage it in a damp place. Now that it's in a "nice" garage I don't really have any problems with only the measures I've mentioned. But as I said, I keep thinking I oughta get a carcoon so I suggest you go that route� Accumulator.
 
The other option as I see it, is plumbing a double din radiator into the garage and feeding it off the home central heating system. The garage will in theory be as warm as the house and consequently as damp as the house(the house isn't damp...Just for the record):o .



This option also means I can play out there for as long as I like without fear of losing limbs when the weather gets particularly nippy:scared



Some nice carpet, a fresh lick of paint with some good insulation...yes, not a bad idea! And will probably work out cheaper than buying a carcoon into the bargain.:rolleyes:



Decisions decisions;) :D
 
ohms69- But then you'd still have warmer weather to contend with and you might not want the garage the same temp/humdity as the house (I know I don't). My garage has heat and a/c, and I still run the dehumidifier and I still think I oughta get the Carcoon....yeah, lots to consider.
 
A dream day for me is going to be getting the carcoon and that scissor lift pictured to your left :D ( would already have the shower foam gun by then) ;)
 
In my haste it would appear that i completely overlooked the way in which Carcoon does it's job.:o



Having been back to the site it and re-read, it appears that carcoon circulates the air within the chamber, for some dumb *** reason I thought it blew air into the chamber and back out again...Doh!!



A few dessicant packs in there should see a nice controlled low humidity environment...Perfection for the longevity of my stead!!



Plus, there's one going on Ebay in exactly the size I need...Cheap!!



Wish me luck.:xyxthumbs
 
Wow, thought that would be TOO eccentric of an item even for Ebay. :bounce







When the time comes I'll hunt there too :up
 
The desiccant bags are a good idea. You must keep the humidity at around 35%, because it will stop corrosion but will not dry out rubber parts and tires.



And you should try Mike Sander's rust prevention grease. It is an old school product, but waaaaaaay better than the most competing brands. Excellent creeping quality, and protection. I have seen a lot of pro-restorers using it.



http://mike.british-cars.de/rustprevention.htm
 
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