GM and others shutting down production.

spoon059 wrote:

Grit dog wrote:

spoon059 wrote:

time2roll wrote:
Anyone thinking to avoid these trucks as possibly problematic?

Tires breaking down. Rubber belts degrading. Rubber seals degrading. Paint oxidizing.

Yea, I could see some issues.

Umm yeah, no, not really. Not at all, unless they sit for years and years.
And, based on current inventory and prices, don’t really see an issue with the mfgs off loading them. The longer the shortage, the more the demand.

Umm yeah, seen it happen with cars my employer bought. They sat for over a year. Batteries were completely dead and needed to be replaced. Many of them had oil leaks due to dry rotted seals. Tires had flat spots from sitting. It happens.

Look into it. Most car batteries will have significant voltage drop at 2 months. These are sitting for a year? Strong chance they are ruined. https://blog.nationwide.com/can-car-battery-go-dead-from-sitting/

A year of sitting in the sun and not being driven, with the full weight on the tires?
https://www.firestonecompleteautocare.com/blog/tires/what-causes-tire-flat-spots/#

Erie Insurance has a blog about stored vehicles and potential problems. https://www.erieinsurance.com/blog/how-long-can-your-car-sit

So does Edmunds. https://www.edmunds.com/car-maintenance/how-to-prep-your-car-for-long-term-storage.html

I forgot about fuel breaking down in the tanks. Oil thats started to breakdown. Pests getting into things.

I agree, it is better, in general, for a vehicle to be driven, and not just parked, and dead batteries, not able to be recharged are probably the most common issue.

But beyond that, again, unless we're talking alot more than a year, or even 2, a new or reasonably new car will not leak oil, flat spot tires and oxidize the paint.

That's overly dramatic.

How many years before a newish un-garaged car gets the paint baked to the point of damage by the sun? Even in Arizona, lets say?
I'll go with well over 5 and probably around 10. Lesser UV exposure climates, even longer.
Radial tires don't flat spot permanently, engine oil doesn't go "bad", new oil doesn't even have acids in it, why would they have fuel added if they weren't drivable?

Again, idk what vehicles your employer had that started falling apart parked for a year, maybe Fords, LOL!!
But the issue isn't some cars sat in a parking lot for a year.