Hi,

i wanted some ideas of how i should store my 88 Fiero Gt outside for winter, because of the lack of storage room.

In order to minimize rust forming on the body of the car, and also the under body.

let me know

thanks

I used to have a breathable car cover over my Fiero. I'd suggest keeping off bare ground. When I lived in the snow belt, my 87 GT went under wraps by November and uncovered in mid March. The only issues I had was when the winter winds hit 50 mpg and blow the cover off, however it had a cable strapping it underneath, so the cover didn't blow away.

The downside can be some paint abrasion where the cover flaps against the paint.

I've only done it once, but it seemed to work well.

First I filled the car with dryer sheets. Supposed to help keep varmits out.
Then I drove the car up on a large tarp, and wrapped it around the car. Then wrapped another over the top.

I suppose it would be better to get the car off the ground, too.

Good luck.

Bob

I just drive mine :P

Oil spray all exposed metal surfaces underneath.

Don't worry about rust on the body

Where is Brampton?

quote Originally posted by Vernon8360: Where is Brampton?

Ontario, Canada... But I suppose there is more than one...

Bob

I've stored some cars outside, not a Fiero yet thankfully.
As for rust dont store it on concrete or pavement. Dirt or even grass is fine. The paved surfaces sweat moisture up onto the car. One could put barriers under the car, but I have not done that outside, only indoor cold storage, I used layers of cardboard. Outside maybe a rubber mat would work, but rodents might like to chew it.

You could block it up higher off the ground as well.
A major concern could be rodents. Various tricks exist to keep them out of the car. make sure the car has nothing that they like, no old french fries under the seat for example.
An easy one is just add a ton of dryer sheets all over inside cabin, trunk, underhood, in exhaust exits, around engine bay, they seem to not like the smell of them.

Put Stabil in the gas and fill the tank with mid grade octane no ethanol if you can, (it takes longer to spoil).
Disconnect the battery (I bring mine inside to store warm).

A car cover that fits well and is made for the elements, but Id say not a plastic tarp, they trap moisture which will get excessive when temps rise after being cold, and if a cover moves in the wind it can damage paint by abrasion.

The oil spray is a good idea. On my daily driver Saturn, and my pickup which is always outside I spray most of the underside with CorrosionX.
http://www.corrosionx.com/corrosionx.html

We are assuming you are in Canada so it will be cold.

[This message has been edited by 2.5 (edited 12-30-2013).]

Tire can "rot" fast when parked on dirt/grass.
The tread can get cracks when contact on dirt/grass.
Crack can expose the belts, then everything can attack the belts if driving after.

Look at tread's slots for cracking.

------------------
Dr. Ian Malcolm: Yeah, but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should.
(Jurassic Park)

The Ogre's Fiero Cave (It's also at the top and bottom of every forum page...)

quote Originally posted by theogre: Tire can "rot" fast when parked on dirt/grass. The tread can get cracks when contact on dirt/grass. Crack can expose the belts, then everything can attack the belts if driving after. Look at tread's slots for cracking.

Interesting, amend my input to read: put peices of something under the tires, wood, plastic, etc.

[This message has been edited by 2.5 (edited 12-30-2013).]

quote Originally posted by 2.5: I've stored some cars outside, not a Fiero yet thankfully. As for rust dont store it on concrete or pavement. Dirt or even grass is fine. The paved surfaces sweat moisture up onto the car. One could put barriers under the car, but I have not done that outside, only indoor cold storage, I used layers of cardboard. Outside maybe a rubber mat would work, but rodents might like to chew it. You could block it up higher off the ground as well. A major concern could be rodents. Various tricks exist to keep them out of the car. make sure the car has nothing that they like, no old french fries under the seat for example. An easy one is just add a ton of dryer sheets all over inside cabin, trunk, underhood, in exhaust exits, around engine bay, they seem to not like the smell of them. Put Stabil in the gas and fill the tank with mid grade octane no ethanol if you can, (it takes longer to spoil). Disconnect the battery (I bring mine inside to store warm).

Actually the opposite is true. You WANT to store it over concrete or pavement. Parking over gravel, dirt or grass MAKES it rust because they all remain damp or wet for a long time because its shaded under the car. Def good idea to have the tires off the ground. Block it up as far out on the A frames as you can get so the suspension stays loaded. Dont leave them hanging. I had 2 broke down muscle cars parked out back for a few years that were in pretty much the same condition. One was on pavement and other was on grass in front of it. The one on the grass had all the floors, rockers and fender bottoms rotted out while the other was fine. I ended up junking the one on the grass.

quote Originally posted by rogergarrison: Actually the opposite is true. You WANT to store it over concrete or pavement. Parking over gravel, dirt or grass MAKES it rust because they all remain damp or wet for a long time because its shaded under the car. Def good idea to have the tires off the ground. Block it up as far out on the A frames as you can get so the suspension stays loaded. Dont leave them hanging. I had 2 broke down muscle cars parked out back for a few years that were in pretty much the same condition. One was on pavement and other was on grass in front of it. The one on the grass had all the floors, rockers and fender bottoms rotted out while the other was fine. I ended up junking the one on the grass.

Much of this depends on the ground, sandy, black dirt, clay. Also depends on the climate, wind, how much snow, etc.
But it could be because I'm thinking what we are talking about is winter storage only, which for me includes parking before roads get salted and parked until the snow melts, then the car gets driven again. The ground is frozen most of this time. Its the times when things are warming up that concrete sweats.

[This message has been edited by 2.5 (edited 12-30-2013).]