Not driving your car

notrichenough
Wed, 03 Nov 2010 13:10:42 +0000

It doesn’t hurt the suspension or wheel bearings to bear the weight of the vehicle.

I think static loads can lead over time to greater and more permanent deformations than if the loads are dynamic. So a bearing, for example, might go out-of-round if kept in the same location for 6 months, whereas if it is spinning regularly the deformations are evened out or are worn down before they can get bad enough to cause a problem.

Parts that rub against each other will corrode less than if they never move, because when they move they will scrape any buildup off of each other, and may get lubricated as a result of moving.

Modern tires can still get flat spots (happened to my FIL’s car), although I would agree that it is not nearly as much an issue as with bias ply tires. In my FIL’s car’s case, it sat outside for a year without being driven.

Letting oil or gas sit for months without being mixed can apparently lead to problems like sludging. I don’t know the chemistry, but I have had gas in a lawnmower sludge up over the winter. It’s a pain to deal with.

For a time as short a a few months, none of this is probably a big deal.