Winter lay-up. Fuel.

[AlanO]

I'm going to take my 270 of the road for a few months Dec - April. I'm pretty OK regarding how to store it (axle stands, handbrake off, battery indoors on charge etc) but unsure about fuel. The advice online seems to be to keep fuel in to avoid rusting/oxidisation but to add a stabiliser to avoid the fuel going 'gungy' and creating blockages. With fuel in I'll also be able to run it if needs be and avoid decanting fuel.

So, my question; do people use a fuel stabiliser and if so what do you recommend please? Thanks.

[GulfSeven]

I've brimmed my 310R with Esso Synergy Supreme+ 99 (which is E0).

I run it on that anyway, but I very much doubt you'd have a problem with any fuel in a 270. More additives and less ethanol seem like a good idea though.

[Tom_Arundel]

12 years with nothing done anywhere no additives, no take outs,and no problems. I think many owners get a bit OTT with unnecessary stuff, it`s just a car at the end of the day 

[revilla]

My car ends up on axle stands for the time when I'm servicing it, the rest of the time it just sits on its tyres. Never done anything special about fuel, it sits with whatever it had when I finished the last drive of the season. Never had any issues, always fired up first turn in the spring. K Series, but don't think it will make much difference. As above, I think it's easy to get a bit carried away!

[GulfSeven]

As for tyres, I just put an extra 10psi in while it's laid up. I don't bother with axle stands and I've never had any issues with flat spots.

I used to use a battery conditioner on my Elise, but the Seven has a battery isolator switch so that's not needed now.

The only other thing I do is apply ACF-50 to the chassis (and where the skin meets the chassis rails under the bonnet).

[Ralph45]

These are thoughts I have had for years with motorcycles as well as the Caterham only wanting to do the right thing.

Good fuel a little extra pressure in the tyres making sure not to leave the hand brake on so using wooden chocks just in case it goes for a drive on its own   and roll it back and forth so the tyres don't flat spot.

Doing these few simple things and with enjoying   a non essential regime of winter servicing and polishing and in the case of the seven as GulfSeven says a protective coat between the the skin and chassis I have never had an issue with any vehicle I've owned and to be honest you could probably do less?

 

[AlanO]

Yep, I've got the ACF50 ready! Thanks, I've a clear picture of what I need to do.

[David Brown]

All the above, apart from doing anything with the fuel. Started it roughly once a month and ran it up to temperature and, if on the floor, moved it forward or back a couple of feet. 

[Dan R]

If anyone needs to buy ACF50, this company is the cheapest i can find at the moment.

https://www.sportsbikeshop.co.uk

[Ralph45]

Thanks for the link,I'm now set for some winter fun and games when the package arrives  

[Beagler]

Used to get parts for the bike from here.

checkout their price

https://www.nippynormans.com/search?q=Acf50

[Ralph45]

I'm an ex biker and I know nippynormans for their excellent BMW gs accessories.

They always have given great value for money.

[T-Bone]

A friend in the industry said it's fine to sit with the fuel in there, but suggested filling the tank up so there's less room for condensation to form inside the tank from the temperature change over winter. Higher octane is a good option as stated above. 

I've just kept it topped up and followed a lot of the advice above and never had any problems starting it or with it running on 'old' fuel. 

[AlanO]

That's what I'm intending to do T-Bone #13.  Hoping for good weather next Saturday (Penn7 meet up) for a final run before SORN for the winter.  Quite looking forward to getting through a longish list of jobs over the winter

[Geoff Brown]

For me SORN on 30th November after just one more blat & fill tank at least 3/4 full with E5. Less head space less chance of condensation. 

Then its just a case of tyre pressures to 20 psi, handbrake off, in gear.

Disconnect battery negative & attach C Tek once a month for top up. 

Every two weeks reconnect battery, start engine & run for at least 30 minutes, move car in & out of garage exercising brakes. BUT before starting disconnect inertia switch (found on engine bay rear bulk head) & turn over engine to gain an indication of oil pressure. Don't forget to reconnect switch & after run disconnect battery neg.

Personally I do not raise car on axle stands as the suspension can suffer being drooped weight off over long periods. Cars with BMW diffs on axle stands can be a no no as the drive shaft out put seals can potentially become stressed & eventually leak. This does not seem to occur with the Ford diff though.

What one does to preserve the car over Winter is a matter of personal choice but I have been doing same above since 1994 & three cars with no problems.

 

 

[SM25T]

Don't agree with starting and running car every 2 weeks. Not necessary and not beneficial for the engine IMHO.

[7 wonders of the world]

......or cranking to get oil pressure, as your running the Raceline DS the oil pump is fully gravity primed and shows near instantaneous oil pressure on start up.

[revilla]

Even on a wet sump, mine always shows oil pressure pretty much immediately on starting after a winter lay up.

[Geoff Brown]

Old habits one never gives up on.........

[ScottR400D]

I'm also one who believes there's more harm than good done by starting and idling for minutes every now and then. Seems counterintuitive to repeatedly subject an engine to running in the condition that sees most wear. 

I've never heard a good reason for doing it, to be honest. 

Whilst I do do the inertia switch thing after oil changes, I don't do it any other time and the car's often stood for more than a couple of weeks, summer and winter. (As have most of the cars I've ever owned and I didn't do it with them either!! )