06/18/2026
Storing a Vehicle for a While? Don’t Just Start It and Let It Idle.
With summer here, a lot of people are opening camps, parking seasonal vehicles, traveling, or leaving vehicles sitting longer than usual.
A common mistake is thinking the best thing to do is start the vehicle once in a while and let it idle.
That can actually cause more problems than it solves, especially with newer vehicles that have lots of electronics.
If a vehicle is going to sit for a while, a better plan is:
• Fill the gas tank almost full
• Add a good fuel stabilizer if it will sit for an extended time
• Drive it briefly after adding stabilizer so it gets through the fuel system
• Hook up a smart battery maintainer made for the correct battery type
• Avoid starting it just to let it idle
• Add a little extra tire pressure, without going over the tire’s max PSI
• Leave the parking brake off if the vehicle is safely parked
• Keep key fobs away from the vehicle so the electronics don’t keep waking up
• Check the owner’s manual because every vehicle is a little different
Modern vehicles can slowly drain the battery while sitting, and a short idle may not recharge it enough. A little preparation can save a lot of trouble later.
Hope this helps someone avoid an expensive lesson.
