Hello! First time post, long, long time user. I have been babying my TL as a daily driver for the last 10 years and while I couldn't get my hands on the new type s, I managed to get another DD and get to keep my car nice and tucked away in the garage as I slowly bring her back up to pristine condition. I won't be driving it much anymore, at most once a week and hopefully at least once a month. I have an optima red top I've always used but am wondering if I should switch to a different type if I won't be driving it often? Just had a one Y/O battery die out after only 4 months of intermittent use but thankfully got it warrantied out. I'm also looking for any maintenance tips to keep the car in good running condition with my expected use. This car has been beyond rock solid and I want to preserve it and enjoy it for many more years to come. Now I can do all the things to it I hesitated doing over the years because I enjoyed the smooth stock ride for my daily needs. Finishing up the suspension so I can have the most fun out of it! 

 

Battery. Trickle. Charger.

 

I'm in the same boat. I have a 07 5AT Type S that I daily with 201,xxx, and a 08 6MT Type S with 120,xxx that's the "toy"

I rarely take out the 08, have done things to it I wouldn't do to a daily, mainly coilovers and such. @Pair of TLs nailed it...trickle charger. I've gone way to long in between even starting the 08 (I know I know) and even longer without driving it, but I'm trying to be more conscious about it. I took the 08 over to a buddies house about a month ago to do somethings to it, and my friend says, "Jeff..you're car isn't dirty, it's actually dusty"

But good for you waiting to do what you explained. I've replaced a lot of OEM parts on the 08 (with OEM parts of course) trying to get it in the best shape possible. Shift knob, trim pieces, lotta engine components and suspension parts. Bulbs, gaskets, hoses, belts....you get it.

But yea..trickle is great advice!

 

Driving once a week or at least once a month doesn't really qualify as storage.

But yes, keep a battery tender or similar "smart" trickle charger on it.

 

Thanks everyone! Just ordered the battery tender. Any thoughts on using any fuel stabilizers? I have 150,xxx miles on it. Thoughts on how often (miles or months) I should change the oil if I'm using full synthetic? Definitely noticing how brittle a lot of the plastic under the hood is getting... scares me everytime I have to unplug something, but hopefully I won't have much more need to. I only just tinted my windows and started to treat my seats with leather care products, hopefully they won't get any more damaged. Any tips on interior care for the long run?

 

Storage means longer than 3 months, like putting it away for the winter---here, like from before Turkey Day until St. Patty's or April Fool's Day, or after a couple of rains wash away the road salt.

I use Sta-bil and a bottle of Heet when I put the 6MT in storage (see above.) I leave the windows open an inch to let the interior breathe, even though it's under a cover. You don't need to worry about the oil or gas if it's only sitting a month.

 

So my hope is to drive it once a week but more realistically once a month (so once a week at most is what i anticipate, probably more in summer), but could be longer in winter. Seems like I need to commit to driving it at least once a month to avoid additional care. I just don't want to be stressing about something going wrong everytime I drive it lol I've got issues, but I'm sure I'll learn how to handle keeping a second car as I go, thanks everyone!

 

What's your reason for storage? Here's why I ask....

I store a few cars every year from ~November to April. I do this because I do not want to drive them through winter and road salt.

My procedure is to:

• Fill the tank with fresh fuel from a T1 gas station (Shell/Mobil/Costco/etc) before storage.
• Change the oil/other fluids, depending on their age.
• Wash and thoroughly dry the car
• Make sure the interior is 200% dry. Dry asf.
• Put the car in a garage.
• Put a battery tender on it.
• Forget I own it until April. No starts. No drives. Nothing.
• In the spring, I wait til I'm ready to actually drive the car. I do an oil prime by disconnecting the fuel pump fuse and cranking the car 10 seconds at a time, until the oil pressure light turns off. After that, if I start it...its gonna get driven long and vigorously enough to get the oil to temp, etc.

So...
Are you storing for the same reasons as me? And are you storing in a garage?

If so, why are you driving or starting the car at all?

If not...explain your situation fully, and we can give recommendations.

 

I'm just storing it in the garage and won't be my daily driver. I enjoy the heck out of driving it so I want to drive it as much as I can, but also keep the miles as low as I can. I don't think I'd go more then 2 months without driving it.

I just went to put the battery tender on it and really couldn't find a good spot for the negative to clamp on securely enough that I'd feel comfortable leaving it. Any recommendations?

 

^ I have mine connected to the negative post. I have a connector that I just plug the tender into, the end on the battery is connected to the terminals.

 

Okay, yeah I've seen a lot of mixed reviews vs the manual which states to mount it to the chassis or engine (stating it should be a thick gage of metal). I have the pigtailed adapter and was thinking of keeping it connected to the same bolt on the fender that the battery ground is currently connected to. Just want to be sure there's no risk to having it connected this way since the fender is pretty thin. I don't know how i feel about having it directly connected to the terminal just yet given my research and knowledge so far...

 

That’s a good question. I’ve always hooked up a battery tender the way I have above. It works for me. I read about it on another forum years back. 🤷🏼‍♂️

 

Ended up doing it like this, probably not much different than hooking it up directly to the battery. I read that I should leave the hood open for ventilation. I wanted to wire it in such a way that I could keep the battery cover on and just have to barely pop the hood and plug it in, and keep the hood mostly closed. Any thoughts on that? Or should I just stick to leaving it opened all up like that? Also, this might be a stupid question, but i read something about making sure no accessories are running while its on there, is it a problem to open the doors and have the lights come on? I do have the Diode Dynamics bright leds...

 

I would connect directly to the battery post.

I left my hood open. I unclipped the plastic trim that covers the battery and left it on top of the engine...which meant I had to leave the hood open.

On other cars, I just run the battery tender cables up the bumper grille, into the underhood area, and clip directly to the battery. I close the hood. Or leave it popped incase I am a dumb mf and forget that things are plugged in.

I would avoid leaving any accesories RUNNING that will draw more amps than the tender will put out. Because then it won't charge the battery

Don't over think this.

• Plug into the battery posts.
• Close the hood, or leave it popped, or take it off and throw it in the woods. It doesn't matter.
• Don't leave doors open or lights on.
• No, its not an issue if you need to turn something on momentarily

Think of the battery tender as a weak alternator. You don't do anything special like leaving your hood open or plugging the ground side to the fender when your car is running and the alternator is charging the battery. So...don't do anything special with the battery tender plugged in either.

 

100% agree with BROlando. I use a NOCO 3.5A trickle charger to top off the charge when I haven't driven my 08 TL-S in a while. I try and drive it once a week, but that doesn't always happen. It can be 2-3 weeks between drives so when this happens, I connect right onto the battery posts and leave the hood open - just as a reminder.

 

Thanks guys! That was the perfect response I needed: "don't over think this" my biggest problem in life!