Post: #1

I'm thinking of leaving my car in US for a 1-6 month trip. I've been looking at options and have seen storage facilities offer spots for $100-$200 a month. What experience do you have with storing your car when going abroad?

Post: #2

Is it a McLaren?

Post: #3

Mom's garage.

Post: #4

Why not sell the car and buy another when you get back ... save on storage, insurance and even depreciate .

Post: #5

No, a McLaren is better than reasonably nice

(02-13-2016 01:38 PM)HonantheBarbarian Wrote:  Is it a McLaren?

Post: #6

I wouldn't pay $200/month to store my car unless it really came down to it.

Hit up your friends/family, someone has to be down to let you park your car in their driveway, for much less or possibly even free.

That way you also have a reliable person that can start your car every 2-3 weeks or so and runs it for a few minutes. I have allowed a car to sit for too long without starting it before and it became a serious problem when I eventually wanted to run the car again.

If no one is available to start the car every few weeks, put a bottle of Sta-bil fuel preserver in the tank and either disconnect the battery or leave it on a trickle charger/battery tender.

My .02

Post: #7

Fill up the gas tank and unplug the battery, my car has been sitting in a lot for $50/month simce December and I'm not picking it up until June.

Post: #8

(02-13-2016 02:33 PM)HonantheBarbarian Wrote:  I wouldn't pay $200/month to store my car unless it really came down to it.

Hit up your friends/family, someone has to be down to let you park your car in their driveway, for much less or possibly even free.

That way you also have a reliable person that can start your car every 2-3 weeks or so and runs it for a few minutes. I have allowed a car to sit for too long without starting it before and it became a serious problem when I eventually wanted to run the car again.

If no one is available to start the car every few weeks, put a bottle of Sta-bil fuel preserver in the tank and either disconnect the battery or leave it on a trickle charger/battery tender.

My .02

^^Yep. Happened to me too. Amazing how quick components (the brakes in my case) turned to shit in about a month of non-use.

I'll also reiterate that it's important to have someone start the car, pump the brakes and shift the gear box. If you can leave the car with someone you trust, have then take it out for a spin every so often.

If you're going to be gone for several months and don't care/the car's not valuable, you could lower your insurance coverage on it too. Save a few quid that way. Weigh the pros and cons of doing that.

Post: #9

I've done this. Found one of the places that have storage units and rented a parking space. This was in a city where I didn't know anyone, so a friend's driveway wasn't an option. Put it on blocks so the tires wouldn't develop a flat spot. Put a tarp on it to shade it. Full tank of gas, with fuel stabilizer. Started second time I turned on the ignition. I didn't disconnect the battery, but this was many years ago. Nowadays cars have things that drain the battery even when ignition is off.

I've been told by my mechanic that starting a car every couple of weeks and just letting idle in place is NOT a good thing. If you can't drive it around and let it warm up, it's better not to start it.

Post: #10

Sell it, unless its a rare gem like a Ferrari 612 scagliatti etc. If the car you're talking about is a BMW 3-5 series, Mercedes E series it is not worth taking the depreciation hit.

Post: #11

During various times living abroad I've found cheap (but secure) uncovered lots to store my car, just put a cover over it, sometimes I disconnected the battery sometimes not, though its a good idea to do so. I've also kept it a relatives home other times.

I would definitely not pay $100-$200/mo. Unless you want to have it stored indoors, heated/ac'd, and given sweet soft dust downs every afternoon, $100-$200/mo is crazy for vehicle storage. Are these parking ramps you're looking at or Park-n-Fly's or something? Those aren't the places you want to store you car long term. Anywhere that's convenient/meant for short term will be overpriced for your purposes.

Look up storage facilities on the edge of town, industrial areas, or where ever land is cheap in your area- thats where you'll find the facilities with reasonable rates to store your vehicle. There should be somewhere willing to do it for $40-70/mo in my experience in different areas of the U.S.

Post: #12

Just sell it unless it's really special to you.

Post: #13

Leave it with a friend or family member that has a nicer car than yours. This way, they are not eager to go cruising in it. They can start it up and take it for a spin around the block every now and then.

Post: #14

I left my car on the street for 5 months. Worked perfectly fine but the battery died. However it was the original battery at 50000. I have a friend who did the same. His car is at 200000 miles now. You might have some dents...What kind of car is it?...if its a nice car, you should stop wasting money on it anyway. I drove an expensive Audi for a year, never helped my game....my final verdict ..if you can't stomach it on the street, then you should sell it and buy a piece of shit...the money you save will be worth it, because you'll be spending it on your travels.

Post: #15

Parents garage preferably..or a cover it in a driveway. Anything over 2yrs you might consider selling it.

Post: #16

This really depends on your personal situation. People who are saying to sell it are crazy to me though, because it's a god damn hassle to list the car, show it to people who are interested/shop it around, sell it and do all the paperwork, search for another car, work out all the details to buy the car, buy it, register it, etc etc. Way too much time and effort for me.

My car has largely been sitting for 2.5 years almost, with use here and there every couple months when I'm around. I was letting a friend keep it in his garage for free, just so he could use it once in a while. Then I found a $120/month place to park it which worked out good for the time. Then I got sick of paying for it when another friend said I could park it in his street and he'd watch it and try to sell it for me. $100-$150 is a pretty good rate for what you should expect to pay, after I shopped around a ton of places. Scotian's getting a good deal for $50/month for sure.

Post: #17

Let me borrow it.

Post: #18

Probably lose at least 15% of value by selling and buying another one though.

(02-13-2016 01:44 PM)Geeza Wrote:  Why not sell the car and buy another when you get back ... save on storage, insurance and even depreciate .

Post: #19

This is an interesting thread as I'm still undecided what to do with my car. I don't know how long I'll be away, but I don't plan on spending much time in the US once I leave this summer.

Thinking of just leaving it with a family member, putting a fuel preserver in an almost-full tank of gas, and disconnecting the battery. From what I've read, it's the best way to go with an uncertain future.

At the same time, I might a quick wad of cash if I sell it on Carmax. Going through Carmax is probably the fastest way to sell.

Post: #20

It depends on a few things:

1) Is it a dependable car that you may not be able to replace for the price you would sell it at?
2) Do you need the funds for your trip?
3) Do any family or friends that you know well enough have extra space in their driveway or on their property?

Whenever I have left the country with a 1-way ticket, I have left my car with family or friends and asked them if they could start it every once in a while and take them out to dinner when I get back or somehow repay them. You can suspend or straight up cancel your car insurance if you want to save extra there if you are positive it is just going to be sitting and started without possibility of getting into an accident with others. Just make sure to reinstate it as soon as you get back as even a 1 day lapse will fuck you over if a cop pulls you over for a burnt out headlight or whatever.

Do you live in a city where you even need a car should you come back? Are there any RV yards/mechanics where their shop sits on a big lot that you could ask to just store and cover there? I know a mechanic around here has a bit of land and he charges something like $40-50/month if you want to keep something there covered as long as it's small.

Post: #21

If yo own the car and its paid for..... Keep it until you know exactly what youre going to do, if you have someone trust worthy leave it there have the start it every so often may for a spin every two weeks if possible. This is a lot less hassle and headache of selling and buyinga new one if you dont need to, but my theory has always been to ride it until the wheels fall of. Cars a massive waste of cash and resources unlesss you have to have one, I havent owned a car in close to three years. I've never once owned a brand new car and most likely never will, not because I cant simply becaue I can think of alot more useful ways to spend that money that will evaporate the minute you drive off the lot.

Post: #22

If I decide to keep the car and stash it at a family member's house while I'm gone, don't I have to keep insurance on it? If so, that's another big monthly expense.

Post: #23

(02-18-2016 09:33 AM)CleanSlate Wrote:  If I decide to keep the car and stash it at a family member's house while I'm gone, don't I have to keep insurance on it? If so, that's another big monthly expense.

The insurance company will give you a lot of shit for cancelling your insurance even when I switch cars or companies they do this but you should be able to do that.

Post: #24

Besides disconnecting the battery, buy some car stands for all four underside hardpoints on your car, then jack it up and put it on the stands so that the wheels are just off the floor. I did this and left a car in an unattended garage for 2 years. When I returned I put air in the tires, reconnected the battery, jump-started it and drove away. Taking the wheels off the ground keeps the tires from becoming warped and cracked.

Post: #25

You can deactivate insurance, then activate it for as little as one day when you come home to drive your car.

It would be good to let a friend have access to it to crank it and put a couple miles on it once every month or two.

If it's a car you really like, and the majority of depreciation has already hit, there's only storage costs to worry about.