Out of interest how

[Ashley Bowler]

do you guys in really nasty weather in the East, Midwest or Canada look after your cars?
I noticed a beautiful Carrera posted a couple of days ago that had just been perfectly polished, and I think the owner was in Pittsburgh. So what happens when you're out in the streets with snow, hail, salt on the roads,etc.
Isn't it a bit demoralizing once you take the car out, its got to be cleaned all over again? Or do most of you just drive your P-cars on nice days?

[spooldup]

October 1st to April 1st you can hear them snore ZZZZZZZZZZZZ

[Rolon]

spooldup is right, just in Sunny days, better on spring or fall, too hot in summer

[craigster59]

It's not that bad. Access to the trunk is a little tough, and wiper blades move REAL sloooow....(onramps pic)

[billroth]

I hope the roof was up!

[Ashley Bowler]

Originally posted by craigster59
It's not that bad. Access to the trunk is a little tough, and wiper blades move REAL sloooow....(onramps pic)

Thats a great picture!

[Super_Dave_D]

Ya and the pollen is real bad too this year, we have had almost 4 weeks of it. Its hell in Florida.

[pmajka]

i am a daily driver, lost 2 days of driving this winter...

In Eastern PA, we are in the ICE belt. if we do get snow, its plowed no later than 2 days (on a bad snow) however Salt is in the forcast all winter long.

[kqw]

In the East, there was about 3 or 4 days where you couldn't drive because of snow/ice. As far as salt goes, just wash the car frequently. And...in the heavy rains drive the car vigorously and it cleans out a lot of the hidden pockets that could collect salt residue.

[wcc]

My cars and bikes go in storage for the winter. Usually it comes out after a good rain or two to get the salt off the roads. But in the summer I tend to drive on just sunny days. I've been starting to drive my '85 more, and have been caught in the rain a few times.

[wholberg]

Here in North Carolina it actually got BELOW FREEZING a few times, but I braved it and drove my car anyway.

Actually, icy roads can be a problem in the winter, and in a bad winter the municipalities do a lot of prophylactic salt spreading. I am always diligent about taking the car to a self-serve car wash and cleaning the wheelwells and undercarriage throroughly within a few days. I probably would not drive a pre-78 in the winter, though.

One really great idea I read about (when I lived in the icier north) was a guy who drilled numerous small holes in a piece of PVC pipe so that when attached to a hose, it could be slid under a car and the holes would spray water upwards to clean the undercarriage.

[oldE]

I don't worry about rain, with the old E. I do wash the 911 more frequently than my daily drivers, but do not obsess, after all, my driveway is 1/4 mile of gravel! In deference to 36 year old sheetmetal, I do not drive while there is salt on the road.
Les

[Zef]

December trough March the baby is sleeping in the garage.If not...after 3 or 4 years of salty road going, you will see trough the body.It is OK for me, there is always several maintenance project for the P car in winter time.

[defcon65]

Ashley, that may have been my car you saw, the black Carrera? It's a garage queen. I inspected it on a lift shortly after buying it and there was no sign of rust, I mean ZERO. It came out of the south and apparently has never seen salt. I plan on driving it only in fair weather and never when there is any salt on the streets, not even the slightest dried residue. I live in the midwest and most of my cars have suffered rust damage, but this one never will. It's just starting to get nice again and I expect to put about 3000 miles on it this summer. It has got to be one of the most cherry 20 year old cars I've ever seen, Porsche or other.

Joe

[Paulporsche]

Here in Toronto I usually garage the car from about the 15th or 20th of december until about the same in march. This winter, which was extremely mild with little snow, I used it throughout.

[arcsine]

We don't use salt here so that is not a concern. I would not drive in really horrible snow or ice conditions but have no issue getting rained on. It is a mode of transportation first and foremost.

[Zeke]

Originally posted by kqw
In the East, there was about 3 or 4 days where you couldn't drive because of snow/ice. As far as salt goes, just wash the car frequently. And...in the heavy rains drive the car vigorously and it cleans out a lot of the hidden pockets that could collect salt residue.

Somehow, that doesn't seem right to me after having done 3 rust projects. It doesn't take salt to rust, that just speeds things up. An accumulation of dirt in the hard to find areas (except for water driven dirt) starts the process. A little more dirt and/or some rust flakes and the cavity is sealed and won't drain.

I saw years ago a fellow who put a couple of sprinkler heads in his driveway to drive over before entering the heated garage. I've also heard of sprinklers in the garage itself with a drain.

Of course, the trick is to understand the car and how it is supposed to drain. Flushing with water followed by an emulsion is one way to help retard rust. Another is to clean out the cavities, even if access holes have to be drilled, and then apply a petroleum based sealer. There are many of these. Some, like the waxes, won't hold water behind because they don't "coat" and delaminate which is worse than nothing at all.

[Paulporsche]

Zeke,

Where are the cavities you are referring to?

What emulsion do you recommend?

[Gene Wilkes]

In PA we keep it in the garage till Spring rain washes all the salt off the roads!

[Ashley Bowler]

Originally posted by defcon65
Ashley, that may have been my car you saw, the black Carrera? It's a garage queen. I inspected it on a lift shortly after buying it and there was no sign of rust, I mean ZERO. It came out of the south and apparently has never seen salt. I plan on driving it only in fair weather and never when there is any salt on the streets, not even the slightest dried residue. I live in the midwest and most of my cars have suffered rust damage, but this one never will. It's just starting to get nice again and I expect to put about 3000 miles on it this summer. It has got to be one of the most cherry 20 year old cars I've ever seen, Porsche or other.

Joe

Joe, it was your car.

I just thought what a drag it would be to make it look so magnificent, then cruise back home after a short drive to find it needed work all over again.
In Southern Cal, with any luck, you can detail your car and it'll stay clean for a while. I guess the constant rain here has made me think how tough it would be to keep a car in great condition in other parts of the country. But as you say, yours is not a daily driver.

Ashley