I'm moving to north-east Florida next March (or April) and to make that move easier, I'm thinking of driving my Z down there at the end of September and flying back, storing it in my garage until I move down. (5-6 months)

Now, I know about topping off the tank, putting Stabil in, disconnecting the battery and hooking up a trickle charger, cracking the windows (BEFORE disconnecting the battery) and putting open boxes of baking soda on the inside to absorb moisture. I'm even looking into getting a de-humidifier for the garage.

Is there anything else that I'm missing? I'm not comfortable with putting it up on blocks when I'm not there, and the main reason for this is that the builder is occasionally showing it as a model (by appointment) and people are walking thru the house (always escorted, they tell me). A slight bump when it's on blocks would not be a good thing.

Right now, up north, I go for months at a time in the winter without driving it and have never done anything special, with this car or many other fair-weather cars that I've owned. But, I've never gone 5-6 months without driving a car and never had any car stored in Florida.

Thanks!

 

Well if it sits on the tires for that long it'll develop flat spots.

 

If you're going down there next March, why not keep it in your own garage in PA? March or early April would be good driving time, not too likely to have snow.

If the problem is that you want to be driving a moving truck or something in March, maybe you can get a friend to either drive the Z or drive the truck down with you, help you out some with the move, have a little Florida spring vacation, and fly back. If you pay for the ticket, you're no worse off than what you'd be if you did it for yourself.

I'd be a little nervous about storing a car for that long - flat spots on the tires for sure, and you never know what else. Bugs and maybe mice getting into the car, that sort of thing.

 

I recommend a cover.

 

Thanks for your thoughts on this. Problem is, I have two vehicles to get down there. I will not be driving a truck, I'll be having professional movers do this.

I COULD enlist the help of a friend/relative to drive one of the cars, but they're both standard transmissions and I don't have a friend/relative that I trust fully in their "stick-drivin" skills. Clearly, I would be driving the Z.

I want this to happen as early in March as I can, and I don't trust the weather reliablility during that time. Driving a Z thru the mountains of West Virginia during a March snowstorm is nothing that I really look forward to.

I will further consider all of your points, however!

 

Ah. Well, is it too late to teach a friend how to drive stick??

Seriously, you are going to have problems with the tires if you let it sit for that long. Probably putting it up on blocks and getting a cover will be your best bet if you leave it in Florida that long.