OXIDATION

[runsgrateasanut]

Is a Car better left out in the open than left in an open Garage or Car port for any period of time?

I was surprised by the amount of Oxidation that had occured in the Engine Bay after my Lexus was stored in France for fourteen months during lockdown.  The Garage admittedly was an open ended Garage but I imagined that with the exception of rust on the Discs (and any rodent infiltration) that the Engine would not suffer any consequences of its imprisonment.  I was wrong, as the photo shows  The Good news was that upon connecting the Negative terminal to the Battery and a charge, the Car started immediately.

Had the Car been left outside would it have fared better?  When I kept an MR2 in a  Garage (with doors) in the UK for six years it started OK with a bit of fresh petrol and after oiling the pots pre firing.  However when I went to sell the Car some six months later, unbeknown to me, (the oil had looked OK on the stick)  the Car had a Head Gasket failure.  When asked is everything is OK after taking the buyer for a test drive, imagine my chagrin when saying “yes” and looking at the Oil Filler Cap only to find the dreaded Mayonnaise!! 

I sold the Car to the gent for half the price and eight years later it is still on the road after repair. 

Any Car left for a period of time may also suffer the Head Gasket issue, I’m guessing.

Only other issue was very Rusty Discs which were almost new when the LS was parked up, Have left them on and they brake as well as the Car did before its “holiday”.  Rear drilled and slotted are taking longer to look “bright”.  Pitting is making no difference and life is too short to have them re-cut. 

Today the Car is having the opposite side Control Arm replaced.

[Malc]

18 minutes ago, runsgrateasanut said:

Is a Car better left out in the open than left in an open Garage or Car port for any period of time?

heaven alone knows ....  never been in that sad situation to own a car being left all alone and sad for any length of time ..  but she looks relatively cosy tucked up in idyllic looking France  ......might a little rubbing with oil " improve " the oxidisation look ?

Malc

[Mr Vlad]

I'd personally say how you left it was the best way. If you stored it in a sealed unheated garage then your car would look a helluva lot worse. If left in a heated garage then that's the very best way to store a car. But because your car actually could breath and have a draught of air circulating around it then any moisture that gathered on it would evaporate. However some metals suffer more than others so there's bound to be some oxidation on porous metals such as rocker covers. Your car has come out very well after 14 months stood still. Shouldn't take long at all to clean her up.

[ambermarine]

That corrosion is caused by condensation forming on the cold metal as the day ends as the humidity of the day settles on the metal and turns to water.

It is only possible to stop this form of corrosion by creating a dry atmosphere at all times and why the classic car junkies keep their cars in those types of environments, mainly air con .

It is impossible to create that environment in a climate where your car is located other than a sealed environment as previously described.

[Malc]

.... I  guess that's why cars rust and on the old Rover 2000's, with much aluminium bodywork, this type of corrosion was prevalent and then       " BANG  "       it all just fell to pieces  

Malc

[steve2006]

This was mine in May 2011 having spent 12 years in Japan and being kept in a dry but unheated garage.

[Malc]

• Oh my Steve, you could eat your ............................
• Tamago Kake Gohan   ............. off that one 

 

• Malc

[ambermarine]

and my mark1 when it was 18 years old

[Malc]

yes but yours would have been  ..........  porridge, banana and honey 

Malc

[BigBoomer]

When a car is used regularly, the heat generated dries the engine and engine bay. 
When it is parked and not used for an extended period, the condensation just sits there, eating away at any surface it can get to.
You could have prevented that with a liberal application of ACF50 or similar when you parked it, but as others have stated, only a sealed, humidity controlled, temperature controlled environment is going to prevent that from happening when it is in long term storage.
Worst still, is that that corrosion has happened everywhere on the car as condensation gets everywhere.

Yes, I do know that you didn't know it would be that long. None of us did. 

[runsgrateasanut]

I have seen images of the Aluminium Engine parts Paint powder coated and this would have prevented the corrosion.  They do look nice.

Not got time or inclination to go this route. Just brushed off the loose powder.

[runsgrateasanut]

The below engine bay intrigued me. The triple pipes on the throttle body have been capped and pipes removed.  The small Air filter on the EGR hole- interesting!  I must replace the pipes to the Oil pump on my Car as I find if I've stopped when the car is at temperature sometime the  revs are below 650 and the steering is very stiff as a consequence when reversing. Have to take the tray off to do this which is why it hasn't been done to date.