Classics and Irish Winters

mike65

As some may know I've been "idling" with idea of buying a classic, the recent weather has got me wondering if its worth it though. I have no garage or rigid cover so it'll get the full whack of whatevers going. A MG BGT would be tempting but heck its gonna be British and 30 years old so its bound to be leaky. Can anyone reassure me that 30 year+ vehicles if in good shape can stand the elements?

Mike.

kikel

Unfortunately Mike, I have no words of encouragement. :mad: I've had my classic out all winter and oh boy the rust is starting to take over.

mustang68

Yea,

Its not good, its a constant battle with the Mustang, I keep finding places in the car where water pools and never dries, there are leaks around the window, that I've had to seal up, the air intake for the heating system is quickly starting to resemble the bog of allen, and now that paint is starting to break out in nasty teenage rust spots

Although I expected nothing better and knew I have to deal with this. One thing I discovered a bit late in the season..... WD40, it saved my chrome bumper, great stuff, spray it on the bits that car/are rusting and it will slow things down.

Blue850

I have a 36 year old Fiat that lives outside in all weathers, its holding up ok, I have to T-cut the paint once a year to get a shine back, only big problem is where it was repaired years ago with filler and this is now cracking. Keep it waxed and rustproofed and in regular use and it should be ok. Don't put it under cover or into a garage wet.

Dades

I think you can run a classic all year round if you get the right one. There's no point in buying a concours example of anything if you don't have a garage - what you need is a solid runner with a sturdy body/hood.

You also have to be committed to drive the thing at least a couple of times a week - preferably 7 days a week. Even worse for an old car than the elements is sitting for long periods of disuse. This can be tempting during the winter as most people have a second car (as required by classic policies). Important then is a car that doesn't leak and has a decent heater!

Waxoyling will go a long way to maintaining the integrity of the car. It may never appreciate in value sitting outside your house but it might keep it if you're lucky.

G'luck.

maidhc

One way to save things in general from rust is to spray them in waste oil. Get one of those cheap paint sprayers in lidl, does the job lovely.

I have never sprayed a car, but any machine that is being put in for the winter gets a coat. The result is we have 15/20 year old stuff with immaculate paintwork.

Alfasudcrazy

Even with a dry garage a bad wet winter such as we had and still are having is a killer for classics as they can't be used as often as they should. This has been the worst winter that I can remember for my classics and they are all suffering to varying degrees as a result of being parked up for too long.

I don't think a British sports car is suitable as an outdoor classic but I have a guy living near me and he keeps his BMW 2002 and Triumph 2000 saloon out but he uses both regularly.
If I wanted a classic that could stick the Irish weather I would not go too far back in time - a 1980's Mercedes 230CE would be my favourite tip - or a Mk II Golf Gti.;)

http://www.usedcars.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=search&maxrows=100&MakeID=17&xMakeID=17&ModelID=1461&xModelID=1461&Year=&xYear=&submit=Find+cars+%3E%3E

ds20prefecture

I'd echo Atheist and Blue850s advice. My DS is 4 years parked outside. I used a cover religiously for the first year but it was a pain in the ass, occasionally scuffing the paint.

You MUST drive it. Nothing gets rid of water that's sitting on steel like a nice 2 hour drive everyday. Waxoil is a must too. There are small spots of corrosion here and there, but nothing critical and nothing about to break out like a plague (I hope!). My car has gained a slight patina of use, but it is of use, not neglect if you know what I mean.

Go for it - the cost of a garage in Dublin covers about 3 or 4 top quality resprays or 20 years. Having said that, is a BGT a viable daily driver? If not, then the car won't be driven often enough. The other thing I'd say is make sure the car you buy is as original, unrestored and rust free as possible. Botched repairs rust a lot quicker than the original metal.

mike65

Hmmm. an MG is'nt nailed on but they are affordable and quite plentyful. God its when thinking about this I wish I was in Arizona!

Mike.

BrianD3

I'd agree that regular use is important. However if regular use involves driving the car on roads with loads of muck and standing water or salty grime you'd probably be better leaving the car sit idle on those days.

But during an Irish winter there will generally be at least one or two dry days a week.

A few other points to consider
-keep a very close eye on drain holes and window seals
-keep car as clean as possible
-if car is left outside keep it in a well ventilated area. Eg out the front of your house facing south may be better than having it tucked up at the side of the house where it never gets any sun and is sheltered from wind
-the types of surface that the car is parked on may make a difference. Tarmac may be better than concrete and anything is preferable to grass

mike65

Well driving to and from work today has made my mind up - a glorious day and....the road is covered in mud and stones for half my commute. The fecking 'mountain moving' process for the Waterford By-Pass is ongoing for God knows how much longer so until that is complete I'm not bothering.

Mike.

Eric318

I find this winter rather mild and encouraging.... and if a MGBGT is not a possible daily driver, I dont know what car can be!!

I have used my MGB Roadster for a whole winter outside of Paris with temperature reaching -10°, many many days of snow. The car slept outside under a cover and was parked dry during the day (underground car park at work). Liberal use of WD 40 kept the MGB pristine (it is a rustfree US import and still is rustfree even after its second winter in Ireland - kept underground).

I'd say get the best non-concours MGB you can buy, spend one week end, sealing all points of possible water ingress, waxoyling it and soaking it in WD40and enjoy it in Ireland as often as you can. Like all things this side of the galaxy, entropy will work its way and your car WILL age, nobody can do anything about it

As somebody on this forum once said, cars are NOT soluble

If you buy a rusty car, you will be fighting a loosing battle though.

deckie27

Eric318 wrote:

I'd say get the best non-concours MGB you can buy, spend one week end, sealing all points of possible water ingress, waxoyling it and soaking it in WD40and enjoy it in Ireland as often as you can.

A little confused. I understand the waxoil is for the underside of the car
but Where do u spray all the WD-40?

Cheers
Dec

RoundyMooney

If you're looking for rust free reliability, how about a Reliant Scimitar?

It's the only British classic I would even consider keeping outdoors tbh.

mustang68

deckie27 wrote:

A little confused. I understand the waxoil is for the underside of the car
but Where do u spray all the WD-40?

Everywhere!!

Put it on anything you think may decide to rust up, bumpers, screws, nuts, bolts, handles etc., The WD in WD-40 stands for Water Displacer, thats what its for.