Winter Use W123

[rmmagow]

When I first bought my current W123 it was (and is) in such good shape I thought I'd perform a restoration. Ha Ha Ha, like many a plan, I am starting to realize this ain't gonna happen so I want to use my car but not abuse it. To keep rust at bay I will not drive it during snow/ice storms but I will drive it on roads that have been salted and might be slushy enough to build those huge mounds of kicked up garbage in the wheels wells. The car has virtually no rust on it and I'd like to preserve it as well as I can. Am I better off letting the car just sit in a frozen state during the cold months or should I attempt to wash the underside even though it is still winter? I don't hate the car at all and will drive it probably until I can't drive anymore (not too long unfortunately, 10 years, maybe 20) and don't want it to just rust away. I go over the car annually and spot fix any rust issues and have not had any rot issues to deal with and I keep the drains clear. So I guess my basic question is do I try to rinse out the salted crap or will the freezing temps keep it from doing a lot of damage?
Thanks for any and all suggestions for preservation.

[Simpler=Better]

Yup, wash & wax it. Letting the salt slush sit on the steel will allow it to corrode, even if it's cold out.

Find a cheap automatic carwash that you can drive through

[Maki]

Personally, I think the wash does more harm than good, enabling brine to seep into joints. But after awhile it does start to look like hell.

After reading simpler=better's post, I'd agree that you need to keep caked snow and slush off. But avoiding drives on snowy days should keep that at a minimum.

[Alastair]

Well,--They say that reduced temps reduce reaction times of chemical processes, but personally if it isn't too much trouble I would get the pressure-washer out and jet-wash that crud out of there...

The salt is the issue, and as I live right on the coast and the local council salt the roads here like nutters, I know the scenario well!

One dry day it would be worth waxoyling all the underside and wheel-arches, it does get washed off in time but at least it does help...
(As waxoyl is so expensive, I made up my own--I'll post the recipe if you want...)

You can pour waxoyl into the sills (rocker-panels) if you remove the outer rear seat-belt mount bolt, and pour a litre or two in there--Have car on slight hill to allow the stuff to flow forward. Temp. block the rubber sill-drain for a day or two.
If you want to do a fairly good job of it, pop off the door-panels and coat the internal structure of the doors too. Under the rear seat you'll find a number of rubber grommets that lead into the various chassis members--Give 'em a good old dose with a lance and modded plant sprayer....

[rmmagow]

I'd be interested in the Waxoyl recipe. I have a power washer and will clean the car myself then. This might be an old wives tale, but I've heard the water used in most car washes goes through at least a little recycling, i.e. might have salt in it. That could well be bogus. Most of the automatic type car washes either close down or are super crowded when they do open. I don't see where I'd have a problem keeping the car pretty clean during the winter then. I'm going to see what I can find for spray on wax, that should help a bit. I might be able to buy a lift in the spring and that'd go a long way to being able to react quickly to underside issues. I do need to rust-paint the part way under the car in front under the bumper. A good coating of POR15 should protect that from any further damage, only has a light coating of rust now.

[Alastair]

The 'Waxoyl' recipe I came up with is a variation of the ones you see on the web.
--I found those recipes made a wax that was too hard when 'set', was flaky and too thick to spray.

Here's mine-

1 part (by volume) hard candle-wax. I used one of those cheapo huge candles from a cheapo-shop. (I'm a 'cheapo' kind of guy!)

1.5 parts cheapo engine-oil.

2-3 parts white-spirit/turps substitute. (according to application ambient temperature.)

Melt down the candle/s in a pan that's in another of boiling-water.--don't rush it or use a single pan we don't want it mega hot!

Add the cheapo engine-oil or used oil if you don't mind 'black' waxoyl

Have the 2-3 parts of white-spirit in another vessel and add the mixture to it--Take care on the temp isnt above say, 90 degrees C.

Mix well and keep an eye on it as it cools, Shake up regularly as it starts to cloud and go thick.

Job done. If you find the mixture a little heavy/thick, you can add a little more spirit to it to get to the right thickness to spray.
leave it thicker for brushing.

I use either those kitchen cleaner spray-bottles or better still, a large plant-sprayer--Not the pump-up type though, they dont seem to work as well with the thicker fluid.

This stuff takes a while to 'dry' but remains soft and rather sticky,--like the official product....

[thorsen]

Originally Posted by Alastair

1 part (by volume) hard candle-wax. I used one of those cheapo huge candles from a cheapo-shop. (I'm a 'cheapo' kind of guy!)

1.5 parts cheapo engine-oil.

2-3 parts white-spirit/turps substitute. (according to application ambient temperature.)

Instead of engine oil, I use chain-saw bar lube in my recipe. It's "stickier" than motor oil (it's made to cling to a moving chain) and isn't that expensive.
Sometimes I'll just shoot the bar lube in the cavities.

[Alastair]

Ah-- Chainsaw bar oil will be good....

A few years ago, I had some 'steam-cylinder oil' That stuff was like honey in viscosity and incredibly sticky.

Sadly the oil suppliers that had it, closed down--They could supply practically any oil or solvent you can imagine--Amazing place....

Maybe a steam railroad guy would know the stuff and where to get it

[Stretch]

Chain lube with PTFE in it goes really sticky after a while - probably not a cheap solution though...

[eatont9999]

Yes, definitely don't let the salt and slush sit on the car. Clean out your water drains. Undercoating does help. Go through a carwash that has an undercarriage wash option once the salt subsides in between storms. Good window seals will help keep the lower door panels from rotting out. Fix any other seal leaks and rust spots.

If you can, find a W123 that is already rusty and use it as your winter beater thus saving the rust free car for the summer. It is better for the nice car not to get wet and especially not to have salt on it.

[Maki]

Originally Posted by thorsen

Instead of engine oil, I use chain-saw bar lube in my recipe. It's "stickier" than motor oil (it's made to cling to a moving chain) and isn't that expensive.
Sometimes I'll just shoot the bar lube in the cavities.

Engine fogging oil might be another alternative. Amazon.com: STA-BIL 22001 Fogging Oil - 12 av. oz.: Automotive

[Silber Adler]

Keep a minor oil leak going. Coat the underside with oil.

Yeah rust sucks and it only gets worse. At best you can keep it looking nice for year.