Winter prep



  • I want to use my MX during winter, I notice that a few of you put yours to hibernation for this season, I was interested in why and if I do use it are there are preparations I should make, like oil for instance? having not driven this car in really poor weather conditions I wondered how it would handle, bearing in mind its a 1.6.
    If I should decide to lay her up for the winter is there anything I should be doing?
    many thanks



  • If you lay it up for the winter, get the antifreeze checked whether you lay up or not, if it freezes again your car will be useless without it and will need lots of expensive replacement parts.

    I disconnect the battery, check the antifreeze, check the tyre pressures crack the windows open for ventilation then put a full cover over it and leave it on a flat surface with the handbrake off and some bricks under the wheels so it does not roll away.

    The MX is good in bad weather just keep the tyres and anitfreeze up together, if you can now is the best time to give it a service so its reliable for the cold snap



  • thanks for that DJ, so do you know why some lay theirs up?



  • usually because we have more than one car :D

    I have a daily drive and now a second equipe that is laid up for the winter



  • @60e84c0dc2=jamesshack:

    thanks for that DJ, so do you know why some lay theirs up?

    Normally you get they vehicles going round putting salt on the road to prevent ice forming, this salt likes to rust metal, lots of dangers if you hit black ice ect ect



  • would using like a hammerite rust proofing under the arches be a good preventative measure for this?



  • hi there i used my 1.6 last cristmas even in snow had no probs just my advise is make sure its well undersealed as you dont want road salt rotting underneeth the car



  • I drove mine and was spinning the back end around almost every day, this year I think it's being parked up.



  • Don't usually do anything to mine apart from plug the solar charger in and start it now and then.
    I usually change everything oil etc in april when it comes back on road.
    I don't drive it during winter just for fact that it can't really be enjoyed. And I would be heart broken if someone drove into it after so many years of ownership.
    Hate how brakes corrode up over the winter months tho. Wish there was a way of keeping them clean



  • @857f9266a5=jamesshack:

    would using like a hammerite rust proofing under the arches be a good preventative measure for this?

    Hammerite = dog shit.

    If you are gonna use your car in winter, regular washing will suffice, just rinse with fresh water with a jet washer, pay attention to your sills, alloys and arches and any other places where salt deposits can stick and corrode.



  • My winter prep has been to be put some lowering springs on :lol:

    But to be honest, it's simple, keep anti freeze topped up, be sure to keep a scraper with you at all times and also a demisting cloth (these thing mist up like a twat in the winter!). Being FWD they aren't a handful in the white stuff but I know my 1.6 gets a little slippy in the first 3 gears when the surface gets a little greasy so keeping revs down is a must (but that's just common sense). If you have a locking petrol cap, take it off and throw it in the bin (the one on my 206 froze up and not even spraying anti freeze in it could help so I had to use the MX3 as it had fuel in it!).


 

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