Outdoor car cover? Reccomend me.

nderwater said:

Anyone ever shrink wrap a car?  Some of the local marinas will wrap boats to keep them clean during the off-season.

Well certainly not a expert on this and glad to defer to someone with more knowledge. I have been told that car covers need to be somewhat permeable to allow moisture between inside of cover and paint to evaporate. Trapped water can essentially turn into temperatures equal to cooking water by the sun doing more damage then with no covers. They usually shrink wrap boats for the winter when temps are cooler and sun is not as direct. I have seen fiberglass boats develope blisters in the gel coat when the cover touches the gel coat and the boat was stored for long periods of time.

I also have a Covercraft Weathershield cover for my Miata race car.  The car is not totally water tight without it, but when the cover is on it keeps water from entering.  The cover is four years old now, and still like the day I bought it.

I've had good luck with a 6 layer aluminum looking one I bought on amazon. Think the brand was Kayme but there are a few vendors offering the same thing for around $50-60. Bought the largest one I could find for my wife's 56 Buick and its held up for 2 winters now. It's not the best fit and the mirror pockets are not even close to lining up but for the money it does the job. Ended up getting another for my 280 as well.

Floating Doc (Forum Supporter) said:

Really, Keith? I follow always your advice, and this was no exception. 

Covercraft weathershield HP, right here. Fits the Miata like a glove. I always wash the car before putting it on, but I would think that is intuitive.

 

 

Looks like this thread got the traditional revival by canoe. Here's my cover after three years. The stitching started to break down, so my wife re-stitched it. Then the fabric started to break down. There's some small rips and I've got a long split covered with duct tape, I guess I'll find out just how good the warranty is.

I've had three Coverking covers, via Costco. Last time I bought one (late 2020) it was $150. The first one lasted about 6 years, the second one 2. UV kills them. I actually leave the second one - now adorned with an ever-increasing patchwork of duct tape - on top of the third one to protect it. The fact that I do this suggests that I never should have bought the third. Oh, well. That said, they're custom covers that fit well (mirror pockets!) and cover the tires. Paint protection isn't a priority for me - keeping rain off is. I think that if they aren't exposed to tons of sun, they'll last a lot longer.

So, not great, not terrible. 

I wish I'd read my own post before buying another Covercraft Noah for the MGB. Two years on and the passenger mirror is poking out a hole and the paint has taken a bit of a dusty beating., and there are a number of small holes.

The last cover was hastened along by roofers. The crows seem to like this one. If the MG were in better nick I probably would have removed and washed the cover more often. Hopefully it'll be mostly inside the new shop soon and this will be adequate for protection from shop detritus.

What about covering a car while it's on an open trailer? I don't really care about paint, the car is wrapped, but is there a type of cover that will keep the water out that won't absolutely shred itself doing 70?

In reply to AMiataCalledSteve :

I would be concerned about the cover blowing around and wearing through the wrap, paint, etc. 

AAZCD (Forum Supporter) said:

I have a lot of cars that I keep outside. Outdoor car covers are a compromise and will micro-scratch and wear your paint, but in most cases are better than doing nothing.

With any cover, avoid covering the car when it is dirty. Keep the cover tied down tight to prevent it from moving against the surface of the car in wind. Along with the cover, keep a good wax/polymer/ceramic coat to help protect the finish.

This, even when the car is waxed and the cover is strapped down tight you're going to get some paint abrasion that will shorten the paint's life when using an outdoor car cover, in return you get better protection from the sun and bird poop and weather to some extent.

I almost pulled the trigger on a CarCovers Platinum Shield for storing the 86 over the winter but I ended up going with a cheaper generic-fit model from a "Xicboom" brand, the material is super heavy and it's worked well for the first winter with no hints of wear so far. Was hoping to add an inflatable hail shield over that this year but apparently their prices almost doubled while I wasn't looking?

Canoe