On Sunday, I topped off the tank, poured in just enough anti-oxidation fuel stabilizer, aired up the tires, waxed the car, and rolled it into the garage. Then, I rolled it onto "anti-fatigue" rubber mats to keep the tires from developing flat spots, disconnected the battery, and slipped the car cover over it. It will sit there through April. It nearly broke my heart to do it, as it meant the end of weekends spent rolling around with my wife with the windows cracked, punching it onto the on-ramps, and soaking up miles of roads hugging the lakeshore. For the next several months, I will be relegated to driving my old Escort through the salt and snow. The bright side of this is, the Escort gets amazing mileage (averaging 32 - 34 mpg over nearly 1,000 miles), and I picked the right time to put the Crossfire away. It is snowing steadily here now, with a projected 3 inches or so accumulation before Thanksgiving. I actually succeeded in milking all of the remaining sunny days, before putting the car away.

 

Yep, sad day for sure living where you have to put a car away for the winter to keep it nice. Here's hoping for an early spring thaw up there in the frozen north...

 

Mine will just sit in my outside parking spot with its chyrsler cover on it. I will be driving it for 2 days every 3 weeks or so just to stretch its legs. I also have a '98 Jetta GLX. I have no plans to completely stop driving it EVEN in Wisconsin when there is a foot of snow on the ground. I have complete faith in the ESP and the weight I will put in the back to get me around. The all season conti's with micro cilia are a plus too.

I believe the car is built to withstand YEAR ROUND weather, and I'm going to prove it to all the skeptics who gasped and said "WHAT ARE U GOING TO DO WITH IT IN THE WINTER?" and I said "DRIVE IT!"

In actuality, the car getting dirty this winter is the only legitimate excuse I can come up with to myself<<<. NOT to drive it. And, I can shave off some miles per month for my lease cus I'm a bit ahead of schedule in that department

Its a two for one plus for me, BRING ON THE SNOW! tehee

 

Mine's my daily driver(Boston)...let's hope for the best.

 

My mid-Mo Crossfire will be plodding through the winter also. However, since I don't have the 15 mile commute on the twisty, turney, I don't think the engineer who laid it out owned a strait edge country road, it shouldn't be too bad.

 

Bizzelz, where do you drive? I live in Michigan on a dirt road and I know that there is not enough ground clearance to get to the main road when they don't plow it, or even when it has ruts from the 4wd's going out! I'm just lucky enough to just be able to stay home when it's crappy out.
I Hate Snow if I have to drive in it with Anything but a snowmobile!
Good luck this winter to all you snow drivers! Hope it's a short winter!

 

...I think it's safe to assume that your roadster is tucked away for the next few months.

I hear you, regarding living out in the country and trying to get to work after it snows. If you live in Livingston County or someplace on the fringes of "southeast Michigan", you are at the mercy of Mother Nature and the guys who wake up at 3:00 am and use their own trucks to plow the roads before the workday begins. Since moving from the middle of the state to the metro area, this has not been a problem for me. But, I still wouldn't want to beat up the Crossfire. The Crossfire is treated like a lady, since it is not the car that I have to drive - it's the one that I want to drive. Oh, and she's worth the wait.

 

Good for you, and you're only 28! You've got your priorities down!
We live in Northern Oakland County, so we have the same weather you have.

 

I'm in philadelphia and my only other choice would be to drive my wife's car, meaning she would need to drive mine...not gonna happen.
Look out snow here I come...

 

yup, me too. i'm on long island. they're already talking about snow for thanksgiving. doh --

 

My car is also put away as of this week as its snowing here as well. I've got about 3/4 of a tank, but I'm just going to get my jug and get some gas and fill it up all the way, being very careful not to spill it on my ride. I'm not covering it up as I'll be going out there about once a week to wipe it down and/or apply sealant glaze I just ordered from Klasse. I'm going to be hooking up my battery manager from Griots as well, the thing is amazing and another quality product they sell! Seeing that I'm leasing my car I have to keep full coverage on it, they will not even let me put "layover" on the car which keeps it fully insured, but you can't drive it. Oh well, when we get out "winter thaw", I'll be taking it out and stretching its legs and appreciate it even more!

 

Hey at least you have the beater to drive, when the weather is bad here (Maryland/DC area) I get to walk. I look at it this way my car stays relatively clean and I don't have to worry about getting hit or having a mishap. Its snowing here now and the Xfire is tucked safely in the garage. 60's on Monday!

Pat

 

Yeah we have that problem too...no wait this is H A W A I I. :-) Sorry, couldn't resist after growing up in Minne-snow-ta and moving to germany for 11 years...

I will drive mine everyday for all of you who can't...most days top down. :-)

~ Jess

 

Lucky SOB. Then again, I'll bet you pay more for gas out there.

Ever eat at one of those lunch wagons they've got on the islands? I read all about it in some Northwest Airlines magazine during a business trip. Apparently, all over Hawaii, there are these establishments that sell 1,500 calorie lunches consisting of BBQ pork, salad, a couple of other sides, etc.

 

My Crossfire is still in the body shop after my accident. Was planning on driving it to Florida tomorrow for my vacation. Got a Mazda 6 rental it will have to do. When my car is repaired I plan on driving it for the rest of the winter. Will have a lot of driving to catch up on. Do miss the xfire.

 

hey

i live in toronto and in owen sound on the weekends, the car is built great i drive it year round. 4 good winter tires and the traction control it is great on the snow.

 

AERO BLUE, Curiosity got the better of me and I just had to ask you, "Why are you putting your car away for the winter when it's a "lease" car?" I mean if you're going to turn it back in, in a couple of years, why not enjoy it as much as you can now? Especially if they won't let you put storage insurance on it.
Now if there is a chance you might buy it when the lease is up, then I fully understand.
I know Mich. winters aren't the greatest, but they're alot like ours here in N.E. Ohio and there are usually alot of days the roads are dry and clear enough to enjoy the XF.
I hate having to put mine away, but I don't have any plans of letting it go.

 

Well I might take it out during those 1 or 2 sunny days we get during the winter, but as far as driving it through the winter, no way! My car came with the Michelin "sports", so the tires aren't all season, besides, I have a beater to drive, so why drop $700+ on a set of snow tires for it you know. We also get our winter "thaw" and I'll be taking it out on those days as well, staying out of the right lane as much as possible! Look at it like this, if someone is looking for a low mileage, well taken care of leased Crossfire, there will be NO doubt that mine is right for the taking in a couple years!

 

I live in Kaukauna, WI. Which is 15 minutes SW of Green Bay. Just a tad North of all of you.

About 200 miles.

And its snowing now and I forgot to put the cover back on her from yesterdays Thanksgiving Cruise, DARNIT.

 

Living in WNY I've put mine onto a wooden base and put Stabil in the full gas tank. I was wondering how important it is to have it covered for the winter? The cover I used for last week's snow storm did nothing. Besides, they sit on the lots uncovered, so I really don't know. Not driving it due to the salt and corrosion factor.