So, I don't drive my miata in the winter. Pretty standard, right? I'm not afraid, don't judge, I drove my '94 for 4 years (including a couple turbo winters) all winter and it was a lot of fun. I just don't like working on a rusty car, so this is the price I pay to keep my bolts free-spinning. I have a turbo subaru to keep me happy in the winter anyway.

So here it is; I have a garage to store my Miata for now, but I don't really know what to do. Here are my challenges:

-There are mice in the garage - they like to make houses in air boxes and heater fans and really anywhere because they are devious ******* ********* (I cleaned a dead, rotten mouse out of the heater fan in the Subaru already and that sucked a lot).

- My primary tires are RS-3s - I have some shitty old Nankang somethings that came with the stock wheels, is it worth it to put them on for some strange reason? What's that reason? RS-3s SUCK when it's cold out.

- I may have to transport the car sometime this winter - I am looking for another job 2000 miles from where I currently live, and the car will probably go into storage 150 miles away sometime in the middle of the winter. I would only transport it on a nice day, but it's worth noting. I'll come back for the car in the spring when I can drive it to Salt Lake City without risk of needing snow tires.

- I know nothing about winterizing fuel - tank empty or full, what stabilizer, I really have no idea.

- Battery - It's a standard miata battery, sealed or glass mat or whatever, but does it need a tender? Starting that car in cold weather is a chore because I've never been able to properly tune the megasquirt for cold start (that's another whole story. I've tried and nothing changes).


I guess the weird part is the probable 150 mile drive in the middle of the winter. If I didn't think I would be doing that I would just put the shitty tires on, hook up the battery tender, and do my own research on fuel stabilizer. Oh yeah, and I need to pick the tires now-ish because anything that isnt' ON the car comes with me to Salt Lake City if/when I get a job there.

 

I store my car every year, and have been doing so for years. Only a few things I do:

I top off the tank, using good quality fuel. Reduces the space for condensation, and absorbs the rest.

I stuff coarse steel wool in the intake. Anything less than steel will get chewed up and used as bedding. Buy a bag of the stuff at a big box hardware store. Get the coarse stuff, and pack it in there tight.

I remove the battery and bring it into a heated environment, like my basement. Stick a charger on if you like, but it should be fine without. Left in the cold, even a slightly drained battery can die and freeze.

Toss a couple of dryer sheets inside if you like, it helps prevent the musty smell. It supposedly helps stop mice and other critters, but I don't really have any personal experience with that.

That's it. An oil change first thing in the spring, and I'm ready to go.

 

Put the other tires on the car in storage. Put the RS3's in your basement or somewhere climate controlled where they will not freeze. Otherwise next year when you put them on the RS will stand for Rock Solid. Freeze cycling r-comps basically destroys them as high-grip tires. They will still wear well under track use probably, but they will have little grip.

Perhaps consider a cat for the garage.

 

As for the mice, d-con has magical properties. Put a tray in the engine bay, another inside the car. They WILL eat it and die. Just don't leave it where the kittehs can get at it.

 

My miata doesnt really drive between October and March. It just sits there. I do nothing special.