Use your car in the winter

[jimj]

Firstly; household projects in the garage had coated the Elan in dust and I hear bad reports of hygroscopic cotton covers bubbling paintwork, and anyway, I like to look at it, so.... As the hose pipe had thawed and our local roads had been unsalted, I took the car for a spin yesterday then gave it a good wash. I really think you do old cars no favours by leaving them unused and it`s good to give everything a good warm through, plus I had a lovely, if short, drive. I recommend it.
Secondly; I have received some basic instruction today in uploading photos from other Elan.neters so here`s a pic. (hopefully !)of a clean Elan, already posted in "photos", but, hey, I need the practise.
Jim

[AussieJohn]

Well done that man!

[nebogipfel]

Wouldn't dream of taking mine out onto the filthy muddy salty roads around here ....... not after all the hours of my life that went into restoring it

[summerinmaine]

Ummm . . . what is this thing you call . . . winter?



It was 82F yesterday, and dropped to a low of 59F last night. Today looks to be about the same.

[john.p.clegg]

Beware..

I used mine late into last winter,had to replace the rear discs as the salt had BADLY eaten into them...a lot of other metal pieces on the underside suffered also...so if you do...don't forget to hose it down afterwards.


John

[Allison]

Our cars are on the road all year round and if bits get salty you just replace them! Its the advantage of a fibre glass car. The S3 has been out every day for the last 3 weeks - generally to/from work with the passenger seat taken out for the dog. Main trouble is that big dogs breathe heavily so the screens mist up then freeze over - inside - and when its already cold & frosty outside as well then life gets a bit complicated.

But if you don't use the car - then why have it?

Peter

[chicagojeff]

I am a big fan of driving in the winter, if it's not 0 degrees Fahrenheit, and it's not salty. Unfortunately, it's both here in Chicago right now. No doubt that a lot of electrical parts and rubber suffer from lack of use, but on the other hand, it's block-crackin weather here now! So, sadly, I put in the Sta-bil, covered it up, and will wait until balmy February.

[nebogipfel]

Our cars are on the road all year round and if bits get salty you just replace them! Its the advantage of a fibre glass car ........
Peter

....and plenty of money

I have a trusty old Skoda for winter use, not my precious Elan.

............But if you don't use the car - then why have it?
Peter

I have quite a few things I don't use all the time but I'd be lost without them.

[Bob]

I have every intention to use mine this winter, in fact its going out shopping in a few minutes. It will get washed and the salt washed from underneath. Top off, wrap up warm people look at you as if you are from another planet, "Planet Lotus" They dont know what they are missing.

[jimj]

Perhaps the title should be ENJOY your car in winter. I know some people enjoy just having cars but, show cars......trailer queens? I just don`t get it. I do like to keep the Elan in top condition and take pleasure from that but secondarily from the pleasure of driving. Surely a well prepared Elan, kept clean, shouldn`t suffer unduly from winter use. I`d guess that John Clegg`s brake discs corroded no quicker than a trusty Skoda`s would and would be much cheaper to replace.
Another thing; you hear/read classic car owner`s claiming their car is "never taken out in the rain". What? Do these people never go anywhere? How do you wash a car without it getting wet?
Jim

[John Sharples]

I am an Elan owner of 35 years and in the early days they got used every day, hail, wind snow or shine. Several dodgy journeys have been made in the snow.

I now own a 72 Sprint currently which gets a blast in the winter when I think that the roads are suitable, which at the moment is not that often. I really don?t want to get it too mucky.

So what?s changed? Not the car I think. When I was using them every day, there was no real problem. So, it must be me. Mmm. Time for a re-think perhaps.

My biggest gripe though is that the garage is too cold for getting on with that long awaited new dashboard.
Anyone managed to get one into the house to work on?

John

[bast0n]

Allison

But if you don't use the car - then why have it?

WELL SAID!!

Mine is used all year round with a good spray off every now and again. If you start off with it all covered in Waxoyl t'aint a problem.

PS - how do people who claim to use their Elan never seem to have stone chips? After 2,500 miles round very rural France this Autumn mine looks as though it has been blasted with a shotgun - but then again it looked much like that after the dirt roads in Italy......perhaps they never exceed 30mph?

[nebogipfel]

My car isn't a "trailer queen" or a "show car". It is an Elan I bought in appalling condition because it's all I could afford and I then proceeded to spend hundreds of hours and a very limited budget restoring it to what most people agree is a very nice Elan.

I don't use it in winter in the UK because it would deteriorate without being cleaned thoroughly after every drive and being stored in a heated garage so it dried out between uses.

I treasure my Elan and love driving it but am happy that my ?300 Skoda suffers the ravages of winter roads and it does not.

With respect, I don't think the "usage police" should dictate that my Elan ownership necessitates my using it on winter roads and that I'm somehow not entitled to own and enjoy it if I dont.

FWIW I would never use an Elan as a rally car even if money was no limitation .....but that's just me of course

PS The trusty Skoda is very reliable and parts are cheap and plentiful

[innesw]

This reminds me I really need to finish my restoration

Up hear in Aberdeenshire our local roads are still white, no snowplows or gritters, I wonder if I can get a set of studded winter tyres the right size for a plus 2? Now there's a photo in the making!

I also agree with using our cars frequently, once I finish the restoration that is!

[billwill]

In my early days of owning my Elan, I did buy a set of studded tyres.

There were no rules against them then, so I did tend to use them in the winter, including one amazing New-Year trip to Cumberland where we got snowed in. Even with the spiked tyres I could not climb Ska Fell and had to make a longer trip the other way.

I still have the tyres, but the spikes are worn right down now and I've pulled them from one tyre so that I can use that as my Spare.