Leaving A Vehicle Un-Used For A While

bogzy · June 1, 2012

Hi Guys,

Did some searches on this but couldn't find conclusive answers so here goes.

Work related travel has forced me to leave my car (Lancer CS1) un-used for about 3 months.

I thought of asking my wife (who doesn't drive) to start the car twice / thrise a week and let it idle for a while.

Will doing that be enough or are there any specific tasks that i could do so that nothing would be wrong on my return ?

A friend suggested that i leave the hand brakes off as prolonged usage of this could lead to binding etc...

Any ideas, experiences, suggestions would be welcome.

PS : The engine oil was changed around 1000km back, new plugs were put in around 400 Km back.

trinity · June 1, 2012

Hi bogzy

Faced the same situation last year. Had to go out of the country for over a month leaving My CS1 un used for the same period. What i asked my dad is to start the car twice or trice a week and keep it running for about 5mins or so.. Also i asked him to switch on the A/C too.. Not an expert, but thought it'll prevent rats from making A/C vents their home ...

After 5 weeks i drove out the car without any issue.

Ah forgot to mention, hand breaks was on the whole time and faced no issue in brakes too..

I'm not an expert on motor mechanics, so i could only share my experience... Hope others would fill in with technical stuff in this regard...

Kind regards

p.s Since its three months, ask the wify to wash off the dirt at least on monthly basis... :)

bogzy · June 1, 2012

Thanks for you input machang ! much appreciated.

On 6/1/2012 at 6:48 AM, trinity said:

p.s Since its three months, ask the wify to wash off the dirt at least on monthly basis... :)

hmm good idea, wonder how the paint will handle it though

The Don · June 1, 2012

On 6/1/2012 at 6:11 AM, bogzy said:

Hi Guys,

Did some searches on this but couldn't find conclusive answers so here goes.

Work related travel has forced me to leave my car (Lancer CS1) un-used for about 3 months.

I thought of asking my wife (who doesn't drive) to start the car twice / thrise a week and let it idle for a while.

Will doing that be enough or are there any specific tasks that i could do so that nothing would be wrong on my return ?

A friend suggested that i leave the hand brakes off as prolonged usage of this could lead to binding etc...

Any ideas, experiences, suggestions would be welcome.

PS : The engine oil was changed around 1000km back, new plugs were put in around 400 Km back.

Machan the car should normally be able to handle it. The only issue will be the battery. Do you use mineral, semi synthetic or synthetic oil ?

My suggestion is the same as what you thought. Tell your wife to start the car around once a week and run it for about 10-15 minutes and shut down. That will prevent the entire engine from being drained of oil and hopefully charge the battery a bit. Don't worry about dust etc. You can wash the car when you come back

whmsujith · June 1, 2012

On 6/1/2012 at 8:24 AM, The Don said:

Do you use mineral, semi synthetic or synthetic oil ?

Hi Don, Is there any issue, If car with 50W oil not used for some time?

The Don · June 1, 2012

On 6/1/2012 at 8:31 AM, whmsujith said:

Hi Don, Is there any issue, If car with 50W oil not used for some time?

No, the thickness of the oil is not the issue. But synthetic oil has detergents which tend to clean the engine and in the process collect deposits etc. This is not an issue when the oil moves all the time and the deposits are removed when you change oil (this is mostly a problem when synthetic oils are used in older engines, or engines where some sludge has formed). But when you leave the car idle without running these deposits may sink through the oil and collects in places blocking oil lines and sometimes forming sludge. This maybe caused by the chemical breakdown of the oil itself.

Sampath Gunasekera · June 1, 2012

On 6/1/2012 at 6:11 AM, bogzy said:

Hi Guys,

Did some searches on this but couldn't find conclusive answers so here goes.

Work related travel has forced me to leave my car (Lancer CS1) un-used for about 3 months.

I thought of asking my wife (who doesn't drive) to start the car twice / thrise a week and let it idle for a while.

Will doing that be enough or are there any specific tasks that i could do so that nothing would be wrong on my return ?

A friend suggested that i leave the hand brakes off as prolonged usage of this could lead to binding etc...

Any ideas, experiences, suggestions would be welcome.

PS : The engine oil was changed around 1000km back, new plugs were put in around 400 Km back.

Machan, Once I washed my previous Jap Alto in rainy season and kept in the garage for about 2 weeks without using it. I Also kept hand break on.

After 2 weeks when I started the car, rear 2 wheels were bound and car started to drag without rear wheels rotating.

So I took rear wheels out and gently knocked by a hammer on drum cover and then it became ok.

But I don't think so it will happen for large cars.

Edited June 1, 2012 by Sampath Gunasekera

JadeyBlitzen · June 1, 2012

While I was converting my Noah it sat on the same place for weeks. When I got it out of the garage I took it for a wash before applying the undercoat. After it was applied I got in it and tried to drive home and the wheels seem to be locked. turned out because that the drums have gotten wet and they were locked full on after I got back to the garage and left the handbrakes on. I had to dismantle everything and replaces lots of parts like springs shoes (the braking surface had come of when I tried to drive off). My mechanic said it happened because the vehicle was in the same place for a long time. It still doesn't make much sense to me. But I guess having the handbrake engaged had a big effect on it. I mean I didn't have a problem when I replaced the axles later with ones that remained unused for months, maybe years.

Clark's son · June 1, 2012

To be on the safe side park it without hand breaks and use rocks on the wheels,

try to park it on a closed garage if possible, or cover it.

Do not park it in an incline because it will be bad for the suspention.

Make sure it's in neutral when u leave it as you are leaving it to be started by a person who dosen't drive

jdnet · June 1, 2012

This might seem stupid, but, if your wife does not know how to drive, make sure she knows which pedal is the clutch, which is the brake and the gas.

udayap · June 2, 2012

I also faced similar situtions.

Best would be to fully charge the battery and disconnect the battery terminals. Keeping the car idle for sometime will not provide the charge to cover up what it lost during starting.

bogzy · June 2, 2012

Thanks guys. Much appreciated.

Shanjeev · April 23, 2013

On 6/1/2012 at 9:07 AM, Sampath Gunasekera said:

Machan, Once I washed my previous Jap Alto in rainy season and kept in the garage for about 2 weeks without using it. I Also kept hand break on.

After 2 weeks when I started the car, rear 2 wheels were bound and car started to drag without rear wheels rotating.

So I took rear wheels out and gently knocked by a hammer on drum cover and then it became ok.

But I don't think so it will happen for large cars.

On 6/1/2012 at 4:04 PM, JadeyBlitzen said:
While I was converting my Noah it sat on the same place for weeks. When I got it out of the garage I took it for a wash before applying the undercoat. After it was applied I got in it and tried to drive home and the wheels seem to be locked. turned out because that the drums have gotten wet and they were locked full on after I got back to the garage and left the handbrakes on. I had to dismantle everything and replaces lots of parts like springs shoes (the braking surface had come of when I tried to drive off). My mechanic said it happened because the vehicle was in the same place for a long time. It still doesn't make much sense to me. But I guess having the handbrake engaged had a big effect on it. I mean I didn't have a problem when I replaced the axles later with ones that remained unused for months, maybe years.

This happens to me as well. If the rear wheels get locked, put the gear to reverse and the accelerate a bit. The rear wheels will get unlocked.

RWD · April 23, 2013

I don't see an issue. Have left my cars and traveled pretty often for 2-3 months at a time. They have always started without a hitch. Only thing I did was ensure the tank was full, and the handbake was off and the tyres were properly inflated.