So I recently bought a car back in Nov '10 and with all these snow storms lately, I've been thinking about buying a tarp for my new car since I don't have a garage. Are they worth it? And what kind of tarp should I look for??
rent a space?? but then how would i get to this rented space to drive my car? especially in the winter.
You guys don't have tarps in the UK? anyways @ OP. do consider a tempo similar to this or something: That's if your city allows you to use them... some cities don't allow tempos because it makes the city look ugly. but that could be a good alternative to a garage
Thanks for the suggestions. That tempo looks sorta flimsy. Will it hold up in a snow storm?? That's the main reason why I wanted 1 anyway. @Dan, have people tried to steal your tarp or tempo? Apparently others seem to think it's a common thing??
I don't own either, because I have no need for a tarp, and the tempo is banned in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) (makes the city ugly apparently). But my uncle in Montreal has had the ame tempo for years now. It can easily stand up to Montreal snow storms, and it's really not that easy to steal, since you need to build the entire steel frame. edit: and those who steal tarps need to find something better to do with their lives.
There are 2 kinds of car tarps (I believe canopy is the proper term for them). The first require some bit of skill to assemble and to disassemble, these are less likely to be stolen. The second kinds are what they call easy-ups. Everything is already assembled and collapse to fit into a bag. I would suggest going for the first option because they're more durable and a bit harder to steal, especially if you anchor them properly to the ground. Also, keeping your car waxed is a good idea to help protect the paint during the winter. Find yourself a nice synthetic wax and put on a coat or two before and after winter. Before you wax the car, strip off the old wax by washing your car with dish washing soap. This is the only time you would ever use dish washing soap to wash your car.
Since it's still pretty new (less than 6 months).. I'm not sure I want to go and start stripping any wax finishes. Well, I wasn't thinking of setting up a mammoth canopy. I haven't even looked into the city's regulations on it yet, but I was literally thinking about a tarp that you just cover the car with. Not sure if it would even be useful for winter snow?
Not sure if you know this or not but the dealer is the worst when it comes to paint protection. Most of the imperfections (swirls) are a result of the dealers poor wash habits. Having said that, what ruins your paint finish is not the snow but the salt you throw on the ground to melt the snow. You should be more concerned with protecting the cars paint while you're driving it rather than when it's stationary.
Well i didn't so much think now was a good time for the waxing. I've been trying to get it washed within a couple days of the storms. Not much noticible salt grime right now. So until the weather gets warmer, I figured might as well protect it from the snow too. Also, it has the Simoniz coating so i'm not sure if I should be doing anything different to it in terms of the waxing. Actually, I don't even know the process of waxing a car :(
