ok,

so winter is coming and I'm up in NY.....we get some cold temperatures in the winter, salt and a lot of snow usually. I'd like to preserve the paint and look of my car over the winter as much as i can, especially against all that salt.

I am going to be leaving car outside on the street nearby. I don't want to spend any more then $80. I plan to put the cover on as much as possible during the winter when i don't drive it(which will be almost all nights, after getting home from work).

I was thinking of getting the univeral car cover at autozone for like $50. It will get the job done for short term storage(overnight) like i need it for. Only problem im thinking is theft. How can I protect this simple cover from being stolen, any suggestions from people who have car covers...

thanks guys!

 

anyone?

 

Hmm, Well my thoughts are, "Jesus christ, its a car cover, who would steal a car cover? I would steal the car and leave the cover." Then I think, "Well he does live in NY, and there are some damn shady characters around." My idea would be to walk to work. and put the car in a self storage unit over the winter. Since you probably don't want to spend 30 bucks a month for that, than I don't know, you will just have to wing it. you can always tie it to the rim spokes but then don't forget to untie it hehe.

 

I had a car cover on my car last winter, and here's the problems I had which mad me consider not putting one on this time:

1) Depending on where you live, some people might damage your car just because it's got a car cover on it ... too much love for the car can hurt and you are parking it on the street after all.

2) The car cover will actually freeze and stick to the car because of any moisture, etc that gets under the cover. Considering that you are planning to put the cover on every night, you could be looking at a frozen-stuck cover every morning. I would have to guess that you run the risk of damaging your paint if you force the cover off. You're almost guaranteed to have your cover freeze because you're driving it everyday. There might be a light snowfall and even if you brush off the snow before you put the cover on, you're still leaving behind moisture. Bad idea - I only ran in to this problem a few times because I didn't drive my car last winter but had to get in to retrieve maps, cellphone charger, etc ... what a pain!

3) You said you were going to drive it in the day, so you're going to accumulate road grime, salt on your paint. Putting a cover over it, especially if it's windy and the cover will probably do more harm to your paint by rubbing the salt, sand, etc in to your paint.


My opinion: don't put a cover on if you're going to drive it every day, take it to coin-operated car washes frequently and wash stuff off with water, wipe the door seals dry otherwise the doors will freeze shut and you'll preserve your paint better that way. Lots of coats of wax before winter helps seal the paint too, so start waxing (the car)!

Good luck.