Technical Bringing home a classic on salty roads

True story, here is Anderson, South Carolina there has been a huge influx if snowbirds that have lived in snowy climates all there lives, a couple of years ago a elderly gentleman and his wife were having a field day talking with us about a upcoming snow event, what they don't realize that 85 percent of the time we get snow it is preceded if rain and ice, then the snow comes.

Our new neighbor drove down his drive way which had less than 2 inches of snow and about a 1/2 inch of ice underneath, he hit the brakes , slid over the embankment and into the lake, due to the lack of snow in this area we don't have millions of dollars worth of removal equipment. HRP

 

Drive it

 

If you absolutely have to pick it up now, get a box of this stuff and spray all over that nice clean undercarriage, then pay to get a flatbed tow, on a trailer you'll get even more spray from the pull truck. Then as mentioned above carwash right on the truck before you get it home.

 

We hauled this beater home is a freaking snow storm. 12 hours to make a 5 hour drive. No paint just primer. *I gave it a good rinse in the spring. It is doing fine.

*February to April before washing.

Salt is not instant, get it home and wait for a warm-ish day and give it a good hose washing.

 

If it's only on a trailer, I say just go and get it. I don't know that I'd want to drive it through wet salt water, but at least sitting on the trailer it's not getting the salt spray kicked up into the wheel arches and fender wells. If there is some salt on the car, it can come off with a good washing and drying. Of course getting an enclosed box for the day is preferable, but I don't think I'd let it stop me.

Back in 2010 when we debuted my 57 Ford at the Detroit Autorama, we towed it there from NJ across I-80 through a damn blizzard. When I got to Michigan, the car was so covered in ice and slush we had to stop at some car wash in the 'hood to clean it off before getting into Cobo Hall, where we needed to clean it off again. That car seemingly had no long term effects from that trip.

The other option is, depending on how far you have to go, is to hire a rollback to get and get it for you. It's not as good as a enclosed box, but it's better than a tow behind trailer, since the front of the car is protected by the cab and it's on an enclosed deck and not getting hit by spray or anything kicked up by the wheels of the truck. Hell, you might even be able to use AAA if you have it.

 

I'm with the enclosed trailer then local storage or if it absolutely has to move now then rollback then open trailer guys. And worse than salt it may be Calcium or Magnesium Chloride being used out there. It wicks into wires it goes where you don't want it. Evil stuff. That is a nice looking car, I'd go the next step to do all you can to protect it. If it absolutely has to come home in the open then the spray listed above or CRC SP-400 is better than nothing.

And no way would I try to cover it for open transport, it just won't work if you value the paint at all.

 

Go buy a large drop cloth plastic type from HD or hardware store. Put it down on the trailer and pull car onto it. Then put another over car and tie them together. Oh don’t forget to strap car down

 

2024 NEW $60,000+ vehicles are delivered on open trailers in all types of weather, it is still legal to wash cars with water last time I checked.

 

>>When I get home tonight it will be dark and probably around 9pm. I still think I have to wash it off ASAP but being below freezing not sure how I'm going to get that done.>>

Sounds like it's only ~12-hr round trip. If it was me, I'd already be on the road. Worry about washing the salt off some other day.

 

If you have to get it right away, and if the open car trailer is the only option, does your trailer have stake pockets around the outside? Mine does. You could stick a few 2x4's in the stake pockets at the front and put a piece of plywood or something across the front, would cut down on the spray a whole lot. Maybe have the wood wrap around the front corners a bit. You'll still need some access to put straps on somewhere. Maybe heavy cardboard instead of wood if you have a couple furring strips width-wise, you could staple it on. If the trailer has a wood deck and if there are gaps on the wood deck, you might staple some cardboard over the top, or even duct-tape the gaps shut for the trip.

Most of the salt/dirt you'd get from an open trailer haul will be what was kicked up by the pulling truck, so if you can figure out a way to set up a little wall at the front of the trailer, you'll cut it down quite a bit. Would help if we saw what the intended trailer looks like.

 

GUYS, Re read this.. Hot rods ta hell has it. Throw some moving blankets on it & wrap that bastard in the commercial plastic wrap like they wrap pallets with. Then throw a cheap cover on it, tie it in place, use a couple straps. That should take an hour and Id bet itd keep the car plenty clean. If you have a wood deck on your hauler screw a piece of scrap plywood under where the car sits the car so nothing comes up through the gaps..
@Squablow has the right idea w the stake pockets too. Get some good mudflaps on your pick up too !

 

Driving in shitty weather is traditional...

 

We get brand new big trucks that come from Canada and in Winter the stainless grilles come in stained unless they are coated with anti-corrosion spray before they leave. They leave an indoor shop and when they arrive we immediately wash with special softened water and soaps just for this but unless they are treated before hand they still stain.

New vehicles are sealed much better than anything HAMB friendly of which the newest is approaching 60 years old and the subject OP vehicle approaching 75 years. Paint formulations have also drastically changed. Yes, you can wash with water but Mag Chloride is wicked stuff and the spray will go places you can't get it out of. Wiring has changed a lot also. The cloth covered wire will just be a sponge to spray. If it was a parts car I'd say go for it, but not this one. That's just me.

 

“Mudflaps”

that was a friend of mines grandmothers nickname at the nursing home.

I’ve kinda always wondered why.

 

Just to lighten up the narrative a bit.............
Many years ago an acquaintance of mine told me he and his brother drove down to San Diego to buy a 1949 Mercury and flat tow it back to Portland, it could have been a 50 or 51, I don't know, never did know all the little differences.
Anyway, he says he made the deal, got the tow bar mounted, hooked up some lights and headed north, after a few hundred miles and a handful of rest stops he said they needed to put a little excitement into the long trip ahead.
So, after a little discussion it was decided to paint something funny on the side of the car to get peoples' attention, so they stop at the next Walmart they spot and buy some flourescent PURPLE spray paint and while in the parking lot they paint "got this old car for my wife ................................. pretty good trade huh"!
I guess it worked because everywhere they stopped people would have something to say, a guy even asked if he could see a photo of his wife so he could see if it was a fair trade or not.
I visited him sometime later but didnt see the Mercury anywhere so I asked him about the car and he said it was in the body shop.
Apparently the missus didn't find what he had painted on the car terribly funny and said "either that old POS goes or I go" that's when he said.................." I'm sure gonna miss that woman"!
That's all I got guys, have a HAPPY NEW YEAR.

 

Any storage units or HAMB guys with an extra spot that you could rent for a month or 2? That car is way too nice for salt, next best is an enclosed transport or wrapping it up on the trailer. May consider a commercial enclosed hauler if necessary. There is a guy on a MoPar board that has a great reputation, he pulls out of Illinois, enclosed trailer and goes cross country. I can find his contact if your interested, never used him, but heard he is good and careful, hauls a lot of MCACN cars and Mr. Norm stuff.
If you pull it home, I would avoid interstates and four lanes, try to drive side roads and rural to control your speed and reduce spray, plus usually less brine is used on those roads.

 

Where is the car at? I used to park my Challenger for the winter as I didn't want any form of the brine they use on the roads here in IA on the car. Depending on where you are in SE IA they might not be using brine yet. The state will be using it on the 4 lanes as it is easy to spray and they don't have to wait for snow to apply it. Same holds true for busy state 2 lanes. As was mentioned earlier, if you have to go get it, cover it, but defiantly stay off the 4 lanes as they will be sprayed. Once the 2 lanes dry, you should be good to pull the trailer and not kick up a lot of spray. Covering the car with a decent car cover should protect it from any dry salt/brine dust that kicks up.

 

Crash wrap. The stuff tow truck drivers wrap wrecks in so the parts don't fall off on the roll back. I have a roll of the sticky kind and a roll of the clingy kind. I prefer the clingy stuff as it is easier to remove. Put the car on the trailer, run around it with the crash wrap and it will be a nice little cocoon clean as a whistle.

 

If the seller needs the money and the issue is not that he needs the space, just go ahead and fork over a wad of money and a tad more for "storage fees". (The "wad" is whatever you are both comfortable with and the "fee" is for appropriate, safe storage.)
I feel you on the 'salt' deal. I lived in the Chicagoland salt belt for a number of years while onwing a dozen various cars and I never had one of them that didn't rust, big time. Now that I'm back in Texas I won't even drive any car I care about nearer than 50 miles from the beach. I have literally rented vehicles for beach trips and figured it was money well spent.

 

That's true, but they don't ship new cars in bare steel, which wasn't clear when I posed the question.

I try to drive my cars as year-round as I can, but that's tough when they brine the roads like they do here in NJ. I'm sympathetic in the sense that you have a nice car, you want to keep it that way.

My pal Jim Rawa bought a 58 Plymouth years ago from a state with a dry, arid climate. The car had no rust on it despite sitting for years in bare steel. Coming back into NJ he hit a passing shower, and the entire car flash rusted.

 

My theory is it's a 'weight reduction' tactic. As the pounds flake off, the rolling starts get shorter so the top-speed run is fatter. This explains why they are motivated to make more than one run in the hope of better numbers. It's science.

 

A buddy drove his late model on the salt at bonneville. It rain most of the way home (Wisconsin) and he claims a year later even the bake rotors had rusted out.

 

I absolutely Hate salt. How far of a drive is it? Can you find a tow company with an enclosed trailer.if you haul it on a open trailer and warp it make dam sure it’s not flapping anywhere because that will rub the paint off in no time.

 

There's something so fkn wrong with you.

No I like it, just sayin...

 

You mentioned the car is a
“ quality driver “ - anyone selling
a nice classic car this time of the year
should accommodate
your transport situation and store
the car until the weather improves.

Tell your Seller you will pick it up
when there is a widow for clear
weather and dry roads.

The Seller chose this time of the
year to sell - the weather is shitty.


Jim