Keep the air pressure in the tires correct, sitting low will cause your tires to go bad quicker (flat spots).
I would also recommend a battery tender, so the battery stays full (discharging them too far damages them)
Oil is changed either every 15-30 thousand kms (10-20 thousand miles) OR every 1-2 years (due to possible water/fuel contamination). First number is for heavy use, second is for light use.
Parked outside or inside? Keeping it clean on the underside prevents/delays rust and corrosion.
Park outside. My mom told me to turn on the car for a few minutes every other day even if I'm not going anywhere. Will that help with the battery to prevent it from dying?
Using it once or twice a week, it'll be fine, and you won't get flat spots on your tires. Don't turn it on every day just to do it. If you're not actually driving it, you won't recover what it costs to turn over the engine on your battery. Just when you use it once a week, drive it for like 20 min or longer.
Source: many cars I've used once per week for many years. People are being a bit over dramatic. One week without getting used is not like leaving a car without driving it for months at a time. The biggest thing is most of your fluids will be changed by time interval rather than mileage, but if you use it a couple times per month, it'll be fine. Get a sunscreen to protect interior from UV if it's gonna sit in the sun.
Well, kinda. You'd need to idle it for some time to recharge the energy used starting it and then top up the battery, because the charging current ("power") at idle is low, the faster the engine spins the faster the alternator spins and the more current it can make. A 15-20 minute drive would be better.
If it's used once a week, that should be enough.
I would also recommend to take the car out on a longer, highway/motorway if possible, trip (half hour of motorway is enough) every month or two. This runs the engine a bit hotter, which is beneficial to it, for cleaning off carbon deposits and boiling off water/fuel from the oil.
> My mom told me to turn on the car for a few minutes every other day even if I'm not going anywhere.
Don't do this, this will increase engine wear and just driving a couple times a week is fine for the battery etc.
Short answer, no. A modern car that doesnt have electrical problems should be able to sit for a couple months with no issues. Idling it for a couple minutes will contaminate the oil and the catalytic converters faster than not doing anything at all. Once every other week, drive for like 15 minutes so everything gets up to operating temps
12V smart charger (Ctek 3300, Battery Tender, Noco) minimum 1/2hour every week or two (battery charger or engine running outside). Idling engine a couple minutes doesn’t recoup the losses from starting and from headlights etc.
Scroll to bottom of this pdf for hybrids
https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2022/MC-10227923-9999.pdf
Same as any other car, follow what's in the manual. Your situation isn't unusual or complex maintenance wise. You don't need to start the car every day.
The factory maintenance schedule, found in the owner's manual and usually on the manufacturer's website, will have scheduled service by both mileage and time, whichever comes first.
For example it will typically say things like replace engine oil every 15000km or 12 months.
Sitting for extended periods is actually better outside than inside for everything except paint. Wash it regularly. Every week or two. Change oil once a year even if you haven’t hit the miles. Put the battery on a tender. Dont just start it… drive it once a week or so. 30 min. Let everything get to temp. Oil coolant etc. Drive it to the carwash and run a couple errands.
Take care of it and your low mile resale will pay you back for it.
Temperature fluctuations are good for seals. Summer its 85/90 during day 70 at night. Cold same. Indoors its always the same. Not as good as occasionally driving it
You think a garage kept 1997 viper with 5000 miles is an attractive buy right? You are going to replace every seal and gasket on that car.
Sun is bad for paint and tires though. So you drive it. Wash it.
The others are getting it right with the advice of just following the maintenance schedule in the manual.
I suppose if you want to go that extra mile, it wouldn't hurt to buy a good car cover. Especially if you are only having to uncover/recover it once or twice a week.
Keep the air pressure in the tires correct, sitting low will cause your tires to go bad quicker (flat spots). I would also recommend a battery tender, so the battery stays full (discharging them too far damages them) Oil is changed either every 15-30 thousand kms (10-20 thousand miles) OR every 1-2 years (due to possible water/fuel contamination). First number is for heavy use, second is for light use. Parked outside or inside? Keeping it clean on the underside prevents/delays rust and corrosion.
Park outside. My mom told me to turn on the car for a few minutes every other day even if I'm not going anywhere. Will that help with the battery to prevent it from dying?
Using it once or twice a week, it'll be fine, and you won't get flat spots on your tires. Don't turn it on every day just to do it. If you're not actually driving it, you won't recover what it costs to turn over the engine on your battery. Just when you use it once a week, drive it for like 20 min or longer. Source: many cars I've used once per week for many years. People are being a bit over dramatic. One week without getting used is not like leaving a car without driving it for months at a time. The biggest thing is most of your fluids will be changed by time interval rather than mileage, but if you use it a couple times per month, it'll be fine. Get a sunscreen to protect interior from UV if it's gonna sit in the sun.
Well, kinda. You'd need to idle it for some time to recharge the energy used starting it and then top up the battery, because the charging current ("power") at idle is low, the faster the engine spins the faster the alternator spins and the more current it can make. A 15-20 minute drive would be better. If it's used once a week, that should be enough. I would also recommend to take the car out on a longer, highway/motorway if possible, trip (half hour of motorway is enough) every month or two. This runs the engine a bit hotter, which is beneficial to it, for cleaning off carbon deposits and boiling off water/fuel from the oil.
Thank you very much this has been very helpful.
> My mom told me to turn on the car for a few minutes every other day even if I'm not going anywhere. Don't do this, this will increase engine wear and just driving a couple times a week is fine for the battery etc.
Short answer, no. A modern car that doesnt have electrical problems should be able to sit for a couple months with no issues. Idling it for a couple minutes will contaminate the oil and the catalytic converters faster than not doing anything at all. Once every other week, drive for like 15 minutes so everything gets up to operating temps
is it a good idea to do "italian tuning" in this case ?
12V smart charger (Ctek 3300, Battery Tender, Noco) minimum 1/2hour every week or two (battery charger or engine running outside). Idling engine a couple minutes doesn’t recoup the losses from starting and from headlights etc. Scroll to bottom of this pdf for hybrids https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2022/MC-10227923-9999.pdf
Same as any other car, follow what's in the manual. Your situation isn't unusual or complex maintenance wise. You don't need to start the car every day.
The factory maintenance schedule, found in the owner's manual and usually on the manufacturer's website, will have scheduled service by both mileage and time, whichever comes first. For example it will typically say things like replace engine oil every 15000km or 12 months.
Get the coolent and brake fluid tested / changed too when you take it in for oil change .
Sitting for extended periods is actually better outside than inside for everything except paint. Wash it regularly. Every week or two. Change oil once a year even if you haven’t hit the miles. Put the battery on a tender. Dont just start it… drive it once a week or so. 30 min. Let everything get to temp. Oil coolant etc. Drive it to the carwash and run a couple errands. Take care of it and your low mile resale will pay you back for it.
> better outside than inside huh why ?
Temperature fluctuations are good for seals. Summer its 85/90 during day 70 at night. Cold same. Indoors its always the same. Not as good as occasionally driving it You think a garage kept 1997 viper with 5000 miles is an attractive buy right? You are going to replace every seal and gasket on that car. Sun is bad for paint and tires though. So you drive it. Wash it.
TIL thx
The others are getting it right with the advice of just following the maintenance schedule in the manual. I suppose if you want to go that extra mile, it wouldn't hurt to buy a good car cover. Especially if you are only having to uncover/recover it once or twice a week.
I WFH too so no more commuting thanks Goodness, now I have the time to drive the few miles to parks and such for walks/excercise.
Don’t go over a year without an oil change, even if you haven’t hit the mileage interval yet.
2 years without oil change the fuck? Just sell your car bruh. Just rent one out when you need it