long term storage---drained all motor fluids including OIL!

Has anyone ever drained engine oil for long term car storage?????? Seems a NO NO

I haven't, but I know a guy who ground-up restored a 69 Mach I and then never put any fluids at all in it. Only lubricants on that car were the front wheel bearings and enough oil in the differential to lube the rear axle bearings. It was never started or run and was rolled everywhere it went.

I can only imagine what a mess someone would have if they ever did try to run that car.

A friend had a engine in long term storage after rebuilding with out starting or oil. The cam lub became solid and failed to pass oil when eventualy started in about 15 years. Had to be rebuilt.

Has anyone ever drained engine oil for long term car storage??????

no.

Seems a NO NO

That's right, put oil in it for storage.

Yup. Some of the assembly lubes will dry up and prevent oil from passing though. It is best to get an engine running as soon as possible after the rebuild. After it has been run some, then it can sit for a number of years without a problem. When seals and gaskets dry up and get brittle, then it is back to square one. Dandy Dave!

No, but have filled them to the brim with oil for storage. My best friend's father owned 2 sawmills and died in 1974, he parked a 1974 IH tandem truck from the mill and filled the engine with oil. We pulled it out in around 1998, drained and replaced the fluids, replaced the rubber brake parts and fired it back up. He turned down $6,500 for it and sent it to a no reserve auction where it brought $1,000.

Wouldn't removing all of the oil for long periods of time (many years) open to possibility of rust developing inside the engine, especially if the car is stored in parts of the country where humidity is high for at least part of the year?

Has anyone ever drained engine oil for long term car storage?????? Seems a NO NO

Might as well just fill it up with sand if someone were to do that. Makes about as much sense.

Even with oil in the pan and diff. condensation can occur if the vehicle is stored in an area subject to temp and humidity changes. I found a substantial amount of water in the diff and oil pan after my car had been in storage several years and being that oil is lighter than water, the water settles at the bottom and can cause rust through after a prolonged period. Best case scenario would be to turn the engine and diff. over several times periodically to disperse the water and keep things lubed. Just my opinion.

Have you asked the internet how motor and aero museums inhibit engines for storage? I know one museum that inhibits its engines with Shell Ensis for storage and hangs big signs on the engine warning of it.

If you have non- or low-detergent oil, definitely drain it. I would also remove, clean and re-install the sump - it will contain a good layer of acidic sludge. Then I would put a good low or moderate detergent oil in the sump. The detergent and disperives will provide for some holding of any water that gets in there. Turn it over for a while with the fresh oil to put clean oil around everywhere. There are probably oils designed specifically for this use, with particular "stickyness" to hold to metal and not run off for a while.

If the oil is not clean, it should be changed for fresh for storage. Used oil contains acidic combustion products, as well as dispersed water. Turn the engine over for a while to put clean oil throughout the engine. The more of the engine you can coat with clean acid-free oil the better.

If you just drain the dirty oil, the sump will have a layer of acid-laden dirty oil on it and will rust.

My 1930 Dodge 8 was stored for 2 years at a time at one stage before I bought it. Ian would squirt (using a dishwash liquid bottle) a good dollop of Shell Ensis oil into the carb while it was running, give it a few (15?) seconds to disperse the oil through the combustion chambers and around the valves, then shut it down. Never mind the smoke! There were never sticky valves and it always started immediately fuel reached the carb. Again, look the other way for a minute or so while it smokes out the neighbourhood. The staler the fuel the better - it was designed to run on what, 63 octane fuel?

Probably best to fill with fuel. No water vapour in the tank then! A flat-head engine will be very happy with the old fuel when restarted. Mine certainly is.

Also, I have found that a maintenance battery charger is the bees' knees to keep the battery alive during storage. Mine has four stages and a rated current of 0.8 A at 6 V (well, probably 7.2 V actually). Make sure the electrolyte is at the correct level first.

My recent experience is that it is a VERY bad idea to drain coolant and leave it that way. You will have moisture laden air in there with little corrosion protection. Best is to put de-aired (not distilled) water in with a good level of corrosion protection. You want to exclude oxygen.

The marine industry has been using 'fogging oil' for winterizations for ever.

There is also an anti corrosion lube that is similar to what you might find on old military parts and the likes. It comes in spray cans. (or did when I was an Evinrude dealer).

I have some spray cans of this stuff that I never use. LOL

The comment about leaking more synthetic oil that fossil oil is is true. Synthetics will find the leaks easier. It has something to do with its lubricity.