Tundra sitting questions (Did a search didn't find answers)

Due to a medical procedure I had a few weeks ago I am unable to drive until a couple of weeks from now and I have a couple of questions. Every week or so my wife starts and runs the truck for about 10 mins or so and then shuts it off? Do you think more needs to be done? My wife said she is not comfortable yet enough with the truck to drive it to work.
The next question is we used the truck to take me and bring me back from the Hospital where I had the work done and it has salt on it and it is still there as we speak almost four weeks later. Is this necessarily bad thing if I wait until I can drive again in a couple of weeks to take it through the touch less car wash? I am in Kansas City so I am technically not part of the rust belt.

Thanks for reading so far almost a year later still enjoy this Truck more than any vehicle I have had before and I hope to make it last a long time and cannot wait until I can drive it again.

 

I’m in your same situation. I’m Having back fusion surgery in a couple weeks. I’ll do the same thing I did when I had my knee surgery. I’ll connect the battery tender to the battery and remote start/stop it periodically.

A couple weeks isn’t really that long. You could have your wife move it a foot or so. This will stop any flat spots from forming in the tire. But again a couple weeks is not bad. Definitely get the salt off first.

 

I'm not driving my new 2018 through this Wisconsin winter. the few nice days we had...not a problem, i keep it filled up and covered. my old 07 still runs like new through the snow storms. i would think some trucks sit on the lot for a few months.

 

Thanks guys. I cant really move enough to clean it myself why the salt has been sitting on there for about a month now doctor says about a couple weeks until I can start light driving at least again. Which is why I am getting worried about the side affects of the salt. I will see if my wife is comfortable enough taking it to a touchless Carwash.


EDIT: I probably worded my original post wrong Truck been sitting for a month since the procedure on my lower back and estimated at least two more weeks until I can drive again. I rush posted the op.

 

Connect the battery to a maintenance tender.
Do not start the truck unless you are able to drive it, and get the drivetrain to operating temperature - short start for ten minute sessions is doing more harm than good.
Wash the salt off at your earliest convenience.

Fuel can begin to deteriorate in as few as two weeks. However, I think a modern fuel injected engine would be fine to run on fuel that's about six weeks from the pump. I probably would not do anything to the fuel system for this length of storage.

 

Thanks

 

Don't worry about the fuel. It'll be fine in the closed system for at least 6 months. If it were a tank open to the atmosphere such as in a boat, that would be a different story, but the fuel in the sealed tank will be fine. The fuel does deteriorate some, but not fast enough to be a problem. Phase separation, due to water absorption is the problem with ethanol-laced fuel in open-air tanks, but that's not a problem in the sealed tank.

You really should get the salt off it. If it were me, I'd find a trusted friend who is comfortable driving the truck to take it to the car wash, rather than put my wife in that uncomfortable position. You'd be putting her in a stressful situation and she might panic a little trying to maneuver into the tight space of a self-serve car wash. If she dinged it, she'd feel awful and it would really be your fault.

 

Yeah I am not going to have her do it. I will have to find someone that I trust to do it as you said.

 

A lot of them sit on lots for months. I don’t think you will have an issue. I’d be more concerned about getting the salt off your truck.

 

I agree.

My truck regularly sets 1-3 weeks without use. I've had no problems at all with starting and smooth operation, but it's garaged and I deliberately never fill my tank more than 1/2 full because I know it won't be driven much. I had heart surgery a little over a year ago, and the truck probably sat 8 weeks without being driven at all. I have experienced no discernible problems from that exended downtime.

I would definitely get the salt off the chassis. Inquire at fancy car wash places about a "chassis wash"...there has to be anal Beemer owners that demand it.

 

Recently my Tundra sat for a month as I was out of the country. No issues as it fired right up. If I was going to park it for an extended period I would fill the fuel tank to minimize condensation and connect the battery to a battery maintainer.

 

My truck will be sitting for 14 days due to a long business travel. I wasn't planning on doing anything to it. It will be parked at the airport.

 

I have, over the last 20 yrs, stored 2 of our vehicles in our unheated garage as they only see summer. Now my Tundra is doomed to the same fate - it will never see an Ohio winter as long as I own it! I just disconnect the battery and put it on a tender, fill with gas and add Stabil, making sure to run it enough to circulate it. I also lay down some cardboard on the concrete to minimize condensation.
In the spring, I change the oil and filter before I even start it, reconnect the battery and I’m good to go. Haven’t had a bit of problems after all these years.

And yes, you really shouldn’t start it unless it will be driven.

 

I agree with the folks about adding a fuel stabilizer if you sit your truck for 1-2 months, but in your case I think you will be fine this time around. Ive done it before and she runs fine. Use that gas, maybe add some fresh gas, and get rid of that salt as soon as you can though. Wish you a speedy recovery and always remember to keep smiling!

 

Food for thought - engine oil that is exposed to the byproducts of combustion can become acidic, which can deteriorate the surfaces of your engine (particularly plain bearings). Changing engine oil and filter prior to storage would prevent your engine from being exposed to this danger.

 

I agree with the post that 10 minutes of idling probably isn't the way to go. It doesn't sound like you're going to be out that long, it would probably be fine.

On the salt, I'd like to get salt off my stuff too, but that's not a sky-is-falling situation either. Bear in mind some of us park outside full time in cold climates and driving on treated roads is unavoidable. My vehicles end up with salt on them much of the winter; I don't want to take it through a car wash in freezing temperatures. A month or so with salt on your Tundra isn't going to irreparably damage it.

 

...I wouldn’t over think this...

 

Don't you have a neighbor that can help you out? Drive it around, take it to a touchless car wash and such?

 

Thanks guys for all the help and the only neighbor I trust right now is gone until April on Active Duty.

 

Do you think this will be a problem after a 6 month sit?

 

It is quite possible I am overthinking this but I have not had a vehicle sit this long before so just wanted to ask.

 

Back in the 20th century, condensation of water in the fuel tank was a real problem in cold climates.

When I was living up north 50 years ago, I observed drivers buying an additive to keep condensed free water from freezing in the fuel line. That additive was essentially alcohol, which is miscible with both water and gasoline, and the net result was that free water was simply absorbed into, and burned with, the gasoline. I've wondered if keeping your tank filled to avoid condensation is even necessary these days since modern gasoline contains a significant percentage of ethanol. My thought is to have as little gasoline in the tank as possible to avoid it going stale.

 

Ethanol is hydrophilic, meaning it absorbs water. It actually attracts and extracts water from the atmosphere. The fuel line antifreezes are usually methanol, but that too is hydrophilic. In todays sealed fuel systems, condensation is not usually a problem, since once the moisture in the small amount of air in the fuel tank is easily absorbed, there is no more moisture to condense. And the modern automotive fuel tanks are not vented to atmosphere. The closed system was mandated by the EPA, not to protect your tank from condensation, but to protect the atmosphere from fuel vapors. The problem with ethanol at any outdoor temperature occurs in a fuel tank open to the atmosphere. Older automotive fuel tanks, and the large built-in fuel tanks on boats with outboard motors (mine has a 60 gallon tank) are open-vented to the atmosphere. In a humid environment, such as coastal areas, these boats with large tanks begin to have phase separation problems if they sit too long with partially filled tanks of gasohol. Air moves freely back and forth through the tank vent with each atmospheric pressure and temperature change. The ethanol attracts the moisture from the air, but can only hold so much water, then the water starts to separate out and, being heavier than fuel, settles to the bottom of the fuel tank, where the pickup is located. I don't have to tell you what kind of havoc that creates. This is why many boat owners, including me, have fuel/water separator filters installed inline between the tank and the motor. It's also why I use ONLY ethanol-free gas in my boat.

But I doubt you'd ever have such a problem in a modern automotive fuel system.

 

Good practice for an extended storage, for example a year or more. Unnecessary if the storage is less than a year...after all, one year max is the manufacturer recommended change interval, and I have been known to cheat on that if the (annual) mileage is very low and the engine is relatively new and tight.

 

Got a neighbor or fellow tundras.com buddy near by that can take it for a spin and wash off the salt for ya?

 

Well, there's one reason to be happy about having a charcoal canister.

 

I don't think there are any Tundras.com buddies near me actually. I am currently staying with family between Kansas City and Lawrence Kansas for my recovery.

EDIT: A good friend of mine stopping by to visit me on his way back to Ohio and he is bringing the truck to the touch less wash for me. All is good. Was a nice surprise too. We all good and soon no more salt since there is a chassis wash in the auto wash thing.

EDIT: 2 Changed things from past tense to the correct tense to make my Grammar teachers in the past happy. lol

 

Mine lives in a heated shop for the winter months... No issues with any of the vehicles. UTV, boat, Lawn mowers, chain saws... Snow blowers all summer. Just have someone take it for a spin if it's nice.

 

On the salt issue...I'm not sure that you should be too paranoid.Yes,I would like to wash off the salt asap but I live in Vermont where the roads are BLASTED with salt and brine from November to April.Most newer vehicles these days resist corrosion better than ever before.My friend has a 10 year old Tundra and his frame and suspension still looks great.I sprayed mine with Fluid Film last fall but I'm not convinced it's absolutely necessary. I wish you a speedy recovery.

 

As others have said, don’t over think this. People go on vacation, for weeks, months; cars get in accidents and sit for repairs; sit on new and used lots for months; people get called away to active duty, and on and on. Cars sit for months, very dirty, and are ok in the end nowadays. As far as the salt, yes in a perfect world it woud be nice to be salt free, but many of us in cold climates go all winter exposed to tons of salt. You drive to a car wash, if it’s even warm enough to dare dump water all over the truck, and then drive home on a wet salty road and your efforts are wasted. Relax, your truck will be just fine.