leave standing for 3 months

I need to leave my TD4 (2005) standing (in a locked garage) for 3 months. Not sure what I should do?? Disconnect battery? Anything else?

thanks......................

depends how far you want to go and how secure the garage is.

1) disconnect the battery
2) leave windows open a little (10mm or so)
3) support vehicle on axle stands so wheels not on ground

My v6 was left standing outside on a small stony plot of land behind my house for 6 months while i changed the engine and did other stuff to it. The only ill effects it suffered was the front brakes semi seized and the boot carpet got slightly damp. Stick it in the garage, disconnect the battery and forget about it, it'll be fine.

Do Not apply the hand brake,,,

chock it so it wont move if needed..

Hi

Mine was left for a little under a year, outside, by a tree before I bought it. The front brake caliper seized by the time I got it home, the rear drums were both seized, but freed up with a, ahem, light tap with a lump hammer (!), and upon removal of the plastic engine cover, I discovered that at some time it was home to a mouse, or family of mice, alongside the crankcase breather housing. But all was well after a bit of TLC, and a new battery.

I would do as others have mentioned, especially if it's a secure garage. Jacking up and placing on axle stands isn't a bad shout either

Fill the diesel tank to near the brim - so leaving no oxygen in the tank which encourages the slime-growth which can occur if left standing.

Can't remember the scientific name - but it looks (and feels) like snot - it chokes filters and pumps - horrible stuff to have to clean out of the tank.

Motor-homes / campers suffer bad from it.

Singvogel said:

Fill the diesel tank to near the brim - so leaving no oxygen in the tank which encourages the slime-growth which can occur if left standing.

Can't remember the scientific name - but it looks (and feels) like snot - it chokes filters and pumps - horrible stuff to have to clean out of the tank.

Motor-homes / campers suffer bad from it.

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General term is "Diesel bug", mostly effects marine engines that run on red diesel, its an algae that is happy living in diesel, especially if theres a bio mix in there and lots of condensation.
Road DERV is far less susceptible but when bio fuels added it increases the risk. Its an absolute Bas***d to get rid of on a boat but car laid up for a tad should be fine.

try marine store for biocide fuel additive , disconnect battery, but you will need to recharge or connect conditioner, as leaving them flat doesnt do them any good, jack up and take weight off tyres . Bait and set a few mousetraps , and make sure nothing of an edible nature left in car as they will gnaw thru grommets etc to get in . leave windows slightly open to prevent condensation but only say 13mm gap . dont set handbrake . HTSH

tacr2man said:

leave windows slightly open to prevent condensation but only say 13mm gap

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Id say 13.5 mm would be better

Come one, we are only talking about three months here....I used to regularly leave a car in airport parking for significantly longer.
Park it and leave it. Disconnect the battery if you must.

dave21478 said:

Come one, we are only talking about three months here....I used to regularly leave a car in airport parking for significantly longer.
Park it and leave it. Disconnect the battery if you must.

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Works for me

Diesel bug is very rare in cars! It only grows if there's water in the tank cos it lives in the water and feeds off stuff in the diesel, they like a bit of bio you fill the tank to stop condensation, but on a hippo with a sealed system and plastic tank it shouldn't really be an issue!
So disconnect the battery and forget about it

thanks for all the excellent input and advice folks. there will be someone available to start the hippo and let it idle for a bit, every few days. i'd prefer not to let them drive it though :5bdriving:

would that be better than disconnecting the battery and leaving it?

Not really no.

For 3 months I'd just disconnect the battery.

6 months + I'd consider putting it on axle stands and a spot of oil in each cylinder if nobody was available to run it for a bit.

Starting it every few days is about the worst thing you can do to a car that's parked up.
If it is started, it must be run up to FULL temperature for a reasonable time, not just left idling for 5 minutes.
If the engine doesnt get up to full temperature, condensation builds up in the galleries which will contaminate the oil, condensation will also build up in the exhaust which will promote internal rust, the alternator will not have time to fully recharge the energy taken from the battery during starting so it will gradually run down over the weeks and its just a bad idea generally.
As I said - park it and leave it.

I agree - starting it and letting it idle a bit is the worst thing that you could do.

Guys

I previously asked about leaving my TD4 standing for 3 months. I have now discovered that I need to leave it for 2 years!! My climate is slightly warmer (average about 5 degrees warmer) than England, and fairly humid. I have a garage.

Please advise? Is this feasible or am I making more work for myself than it's worth. I'm quite attached to this vehicle so would prefer to keep than sell, if the effort is not too huge.

THANKS as always.................

Two years I would flog it on as your looking at hassle of battery weight off tyres etc

well if I was doing it I would put it up on stands put a tea spoon of oil into each cylinder to stop and rust. leave the handbrake off and I would leave the battery on but connect a solar charger on, you only need a small one ,that would stop anything loosing its memory and leave a window slightly open as it will be in a garage. when you get back check your tyres as they can get age related cracks.

tacr2man said:

but only say 13mm gap .HTSH

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if you can fit a bic pen in the gap, a mouse will have no problem either