Vent: Keeping classic cars in climate controlled storage is overkill for most people

I see posts all the time about spending $300 a month on those fancy indoor storage units with perfect humidity and temp. Look, I get it if you have a Concours-winning Duesenberg or something, but for a '65 Mustang that you actually drive on weekends? That's just burning cash. My buddy in Phoenix stored his '72 Chevelle in a regular covered garage for 4 years, no issues at all. Ran fine when he pulled it out last summer. Has anyone else noticed that these storage places are just preying on people who read too many magazine articles?

2 comments

2 Comments

luna_green1mo ago

Respectfully, I gotta disagree here. I mean, sure, a covered garage works fine in dry places like Phoenix, but not everyone lives in Arizona. I had a '69 Camaro stored in a regular garage back in Ohio for just two winters and the rust on the floor pans was brutal. Humidity and temperature swings cause condensation, and that's what rots out the electrical connectors and turns your daily driver into a constant electrical gremlin nightmare. Maybe it's just me, but I'd rather pay $300 a month than spend triple that chasing down intermittent problems or replacing a warped dash. Idk, seems like cheap insurance if you plan on keeping the car for more than a few years.

wadea531mo ago

Totally agree with you @luna_green, you hit the nail on the head. I had a '72 Datsun 240Z stored in a damp carport back in Seattle for a year and the wiring harness was basically toast when I pulled it out. The connectors were all green and crusty, and the fuse box had rust spots everywhere. Ended up spending like $800 trying to trace down a short that made the headlights flicker randomly. A climate controlled unit would've saved me that headache. People act like $300 a month is a lot, but try paying for a new dash or a full wiring job and see which hurts more.