Drivers Schools:
Some auto clubs (Porche and BMW come to mind) are heavily into autocrossing
and driver's schools, and usually have a couple of each per year. The cost
for a driver's school is usually about $200. For that, you get several hours
classroom instruction, plus track time with an instructor. Required:
Helmets and seatbelts with shoulder straps (belts for both the driver AND
instructor). You don't need a hot car; people are known to bring rentals.
The experience level of students usually ranges from newbie to semi-pro.
A MIG tip:
I haven't tried this yet, but an experienced welder told me he sprays the
area to be MIG welded with PAM (non stick cooking spray) to prevent weld
splatter sticking. I vote for MIG with the shielding gas. You can also do
this in two steps; buy the MIG with flux core wire first, and later buy an
adapter kit for about $80 to convert to shielding gas. You can rent the gas
bottle from a welding company.
Storage:
The engine "fogging" oil is usually called "layup" oil, and is commonly used
to prevent cylinder bore rust for engines stored long periods (like boats).
It probably works great for older cars; I wonder what the oil would do to a
hot-wire anemometer (airflow meter) on a fuel injected car?
I vote for disconnecting the battery at the least. On older cars, without
any electronics, this might not be necessary. On newer cars, the electronics
have a constant drain even when off (around 200 mA I think). Clocks and the
like also cause drains.
Has anybody ever tried keeping a battery charged using one of those little
solar panels you plug into the cig lighter and put on the dashboard?
Cheers!
Sean Johnson
'79 MGB
'75 Spitfire
'87 Truck (to haul parts of course)
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