Long term storage

[browndod]

I have a question about long term storage for my 6.9. The Mercedes shop that has serviced the car for more twenty (ish) years tells me that it is very hard on these cars & that I would be better off selling it & buying another car in the future. I would  need to store the car at least eighteen month's & possibly up to three years.
It is a 1977 6.9 Euro with about 90k. The car is in exceptional condition for its age. It currently has no mechanical issues at all. It is simply the best car I have ever owned! Any advice would be greatly appreciated?

[Big_Richard]

I have a question about long term storage for my 6.9. The Mercedes shop that has serviced the car for more twenty (ish) years tells me that it is very hard on these cars & that I would be better off selling it & buying another car in the future. I would  need to store the car at least eighteen month's & possibly up to three years.
It is a 1977 6.9 Euro with about 90k. The car is in exceptional condition for its age. It currently has no mechanical issues at all. It is simply the best car I have ever owned! Any advice would be greatly appreciated?

At that milage, id keep it and just deal with the issues caused by storage when i needed it again. But thats just me. Others will tell you the correct proceedure for long term storage 

[s class]

Well presuming it will be stored in a proper dry garage, it will be just fine.  I have cars that only run once in nine months or so, and after 5 years of that (mis)treatment, there have been no obvious problems. 

In the case of a 6.9, I would think you should support the car on the proper emergency blocks, because the suspension WILL sink after 18 months.  Bear in mind that the suspension spheres age whether the car is used or not, so even though the car is not used, if you leave it standing for 3 years, you may find one or more of them have gone flat. 

I am busy working on a 300TE AMG that was stored in a garage with no particular care for 3 and a half years.  When restarting I took the precaution of removing the spark plugs, filling the cylinders with oil, and cranking it a bit.  It all seems fine.  Bear in mind though that I kive in Johannesburg, which is about 550km from the nearest coastline.  The climate is so dry I can leave unpainted steel outside for about 3 months before a film of surface rust starts to develop. 

[alabbasi]

As far as I understand, it's not a good idea to store these cars for such a long time. The fuel gets old and gums up the fuel lines. Seals begin to dry rot, gas tank rusts and the top end of the engine rusts out.

Let alone the havoc on the suspension lines.

Do you have anyone that can run it once or twice per month? Maybe let a motoring museum borrow it?

[pez]

Well I can't believe that I am the first one to suggest this....

GIVE IT TO ME AND I WILL RUN IT WHILE YOU ARE GONE!

Seriously.....

Otherwise, then the following:
1. dessicant bags - lots of them - all through the car to keep things dry, and in the trunk.
2. fill gas tank to very very top. Add 1 gal of ATF to fuel that you use to fill up with, and also 1 can of fuel stabiliser.
3. change all fluids to fresh ones.
4. tires to 60psi.
5. put the car up on blocks so that the suspension hangs unweighted.
6. take the best leather rejuvenator you can find [I like the leather rejuvenator from Griots Garage], put tons of it on every leather surface, then apply clear kitchen cling wrap over the goo. You'll thank me in a year....
7. install a battery tender and plug it in
8. after getting the car in position, remove spark plugs, fill cylinder head with light oil, screw plugs back in, and then put a note on steering wheel reminding you NOT to crank the car without 1st removing all plugs to blow oil out from cranking.

Or, alternatively, you can give the car to me to run while you are gone!

[WGB]

You will also either need to run it monthly or expect the air-con to go flat.

This is probably not a great problem if the system has been converted but if still running F12 it may be hard to get it regassed without conversion when you want to use the car again.

Bill

[OzBenzHead]

[...] and also 1 can of fuel stabiliser. [...]

Pez (or anyone else who knows): What is this fuel stabiliser?

Because of the extra volatility of modern premium unleaded fuel available in Oz, I leave my "toy" cars, which get driven only once or twice a month, with just enough fuel in the tanks to get them to the filling station next time they're driven. That way I'm not likely to end up with tanks full of stale, unusable fuel.

I'd be much happier, of course, leaving the tanks full so that they don't rust out (at least those that I've yet to treat with POR-15 tank process). Note: I already add 1% synthetic 2-stroke oil whenever I add fuel to the tanks - or if I've run out of 2-stroke, then ATF.

Would fuel stabiliser prevent the good bits (all the volatile additives etc.) in the fuel from evaporating or degrading? What other benefits could I expect as a result of using the stuff?

And does anyone know where is it available in Oz? I've never seen it advertised.

[koan]

And does anyone know where is it available in Oz? I've never seen it advertised.

You'll probably find it on the shelf next to Peter Brock Magnetic Polariser.

Sounds very much to me like a product created by a marketing department.

koan

[WGB]

I use 95 or 98 octane fuel for my mowers and agricultural equipment that is not diesel.

Stores much better than 91 - never had any problems with any equipment.

Bill

[OzBenzHead]

I use 95 or 98 octane fuel for my mowers and agricultural equipment that is not diesel.

Stores much better than 91 - never had any problems with any equipment.

Bill

I use 98 exclusively in my cars. But it was 98 about which I read the volatiles degrading. Not that I've had issues yet.

[pez]

Fuel stabiliser is for real - it slows the evaporation of the volatile compounds in the fuel.  For long, I can't say....anecdotally, my best guess is a good 6 months or so.  Very common to be used here in the states - esp. for 4 stroke power equipment and auto storage.  It will not have any effect on the shrinking of rubber seals, etc.  It just slows the process of the fuel turning to a varnish.  And of course you should use the best gas you can get, and stay away from anything with ethanol, esp. for storage.

Someone brought up a good point about the a/c system. Whatever moisture is in there [esp. if the drier is old or original], will cause issues internally.  For real long term storage, I would flush the a/c system out and replace the drier before and after storage.  The issue of getting R12 is still present....

[Niclas]

My 4.5 stood for about 8 years before I bought it, it di not affect the fuel lines. I think the seller changed the fuel before I bought it.

The only "storage truoble" I experianced was three foulty sparkplugs and two rusty break discs due to galvanic corrosion between the brake pads and break discs. Oh, yes one of the rear break calipers was stuck too. I think you can save your self trouble by taking out break pads and exercise the pistons in the calipers for a couple of times and then leave the pads out.

There are a couple of storage oils used by boaters like me while storing boats during winter season. It's a foamy sticky oil that you spray in the inlet while the engine idles, just keep spraying till it stops then it will not rust inside the engine for several years. It's usally a bit hard to start again but usally you don't even have to clean the plugs.

Good luck/
Niclas

[wbrian63]

While it is probably a good idea to remove the pads from the calipers before a long term storage, DO NOT "exercise" the pistons. That is, if I understand the previous poster's idea to possibly exercise by stepping on the brake pedal.  One will find out very quickly that the pistons will most likely be exercised right out of their bores and brake fluid will be everywhere...
On many of the disc brake systems I've worked on, the total height of the piston was less than the distance from the face of the caliper housing to the face of the disc. The presence of the pad keeps the piston in it's bore during normal use.
In fact, when rebuilding calipers, it has always been my practice to remove the pads and calipers, drain the fluid from them calipers and reinstall and use compressed air in through the hose attachment point to "pop" the pistons out. No worry of flying pistons or possibly pinched fingers this way.
Another option would be to crack the bleeder screw on each caliper and use a non-marring wedge to push the pads back from the face of the discs, then reseat the bleeder screw. All you need is a bit of clearance to keep the pads from sticking to the face of the disc. It appears that the 6.9's use a single piston floating caliper assembly, so getting the outer pad to set clear of the caliper may be a challenge.
Also - far as I know, galvanic corrosion can only occur between two dissimilar metals. What the poster likely encountered was a buildup of rust between the disc and the pad which acted as a "glue". Of course, if there's enough metal in "semi metallic" pads, I guess you could get galvanic corrosion.

Just my two cents.

[TJ 450]

AFAIK, all brake calipers on W116s are dual piston units ie two opposing pistons.

Tim

[Niclas]

Oops thats right, sorry.

-You have to put wo big screwdrivers between the pistons and the disc.
-Push break pedal and then press back pistons with the screw drivers, repeat a couple of times until the pistons get lubricated and run smooth.
-Put back the pads temporaily and repeat the above on the other calipers.
-Remove break pads (if you live in a damp area).

There is bits of copper in the pads who create galvanic corrosion.

/Niclas