How much do I need to drive?

Thanks everyone for the feedback. I'll keep doing what I'm doing.

 

Sub'd just for the outcome of that

Heard lots of arguments, but never seen any 'proof'.

 

The worst thing you can do is just start it without doing at least a full warm up drive cycle. Better to let it sit than to just start it and not drive it.

 

Wow. That's a very (very) long time. Web resources suggest anywhere from 2weeks to 4weeks for a battery to dip to a very depleted level where the processes of sulfation will result in permanent damage. That's damage that cannot be undone with charging from an AC charger placed on the battery, or via the alternator through driving. Don't forget the stress that is placed on an alternator in that scenario.

Discharge times will depend on the source(s) and extent of parasitic drain on the battery which should be considered to vary from vehicle to vehicle. The 2-4week rule-of-thumb recommendation may or may not be conservative. YMMV

After jump-starting one of my vehicles, I've always driven at highway speeds for an hour... Some might suggest 30minutes is sufficient, but I'd personally take that as an absolute minimum not knowing how much longer it is going to sit without being driven again.

FWIW: I also have one of those Li-Ion jump packs available. Well worth the cost, and really convenient not to have to have another vehicle and jumper cables! Saved me and my family a number of times. Also handy if you can't get the car started and your phone has no charge left.

 

I probably need to qualify my statement. There are "bio" based mixtures in all kinds of car parts. They are mixed with synthetic compounds to form a lot of different car parts. I should have said "RATS ARE NOT CHEWING YOUR WIRES BECAUSE THERE IS SOME BIO BASED COMPOUND IN THE WIRE COATING." Lol. Outside plastic parts, carpet, seat foam, the plastic cowlings, the plastic engine cover all contain bio based compounds yet rodents only chew the wires? I used to work on cars for a living and replaced a lot of wiring harness damage from rodents...way back when they were made strictly from man made products like vinyl. Rats still chewed them up.https://bioplasticsnews.com/2019/11/26/history-bioplastics-automotive-car-industry/
Here is a good link:

 

I put more miles per year on my motorcycle than my Tacoma. My truck is primarily there for winter and foul weather use and as such sits for weeks at a time. My commute to work is 10 miles one way. I've actually had to make a concerted effort to drive it over the summer so it doesn't sit for too long. I dealt with that with my last truck, a Ford F-150, and know just how harmful that can be to just let it sit.

I try to drive the truck now at least once every 7-10 days for no less than 20 miles. That seems to be sufficient to warm up all the fluids and burn off moisture and make sure the tires don't flat spot. Recently I've been forced to drive it more as construction in front of where I work has the road so torn up I don't want to take the bike to work. Hoping they're soon finished.

 

I know this is anecdotal but I've owned my Mustang for over 20 years and at some points the car has sat for 2 years without being driven. I've let the battery die more times than I can count. I just put my second battery in the car (3 total now) so I average about 10 years a battery. I usually have it on a tender though.

My alternators do tend to last about 30K miles but that's thanks to Ford for putting it right next to the exhaust manifold. In the time I've gotten flat spots on my tires, had a fuel pump fail and the AC discharge. This was all well after the car was 15 years old though. Luckily AC took a charge and has held for over 2 years now. Car has been fine other than that, no oil leaks, etc and always fires right up. It is garage kept though.

 

L.O.L.
Careful of G.W. protesters...

 

That'll make all the difference.

 

https://community.fmca.com/topic/11489-tires-parked-for-months-on-cement-is-there-a-problem/
There are a variety of things that can be used as parking pads to protect tires and extend their life. There are special pads for this purpose, I've used wood and now I use cutting boards, inexpensive ones from Walmart will do. Whatever you use should be large enough to support the entire footprint of each tire.
To reduce the flat spot, inflate your tires to the maximum pressure given on the tire and the rim. Do not exceed the lesser of those two pressures. An alternate would be to put the jacks down to relieve the weight being supported by the tires. You could also put the coach up on blocks as another alternative.
If parked outdoors, the tires should be covered to protect them from UV rays of the sun.

 

I'm in a similar situation as the OP- I only drive once a week and not usually very far. This past week, I had to get on an Interstate that is about 5 miles from my house. I had to accelerate pretty quickly to get from 10mph to 75mph--- and there was a cloud of white smoke behind me for the whole on-ramp. I think it was condensation that had built up in the exhaust- but who knows? It hasn't done it again since then, but it lends credence to the point that vehicles need to move for long enough for everything to be warmed up and moving.

 

OP, I drive about as much as you and have zero worries. My truck has been idle for as much as 3 months with no visible issues. Boats, motorcycles, snowmobiles, etc. sit idle for many months at a time. I’m pretty sure that driving your truck puts a lot more wear on it than letting it sit, with a few caveats already mentioned in the thread.

 

Keep up with the maintenance. a manual trd or with super low mileage would be worth like $100k in 20 years

 

Good post. Years ago had a rat chew on a power cable. I think their tastes lean toward PVC wire insulation but not exclusively lol.

 

I try to avoid just a quick trip to the corner store and back (total about 2mi). I will drive a few extra miles before returning home. I don't want to play unfair with the CAT converter. I will do this sometimes even if all I'm doing is re-arranging our car and the truck if/when we are expecting company that need to park closer to the house. Old habits die hard.

 

I always floor it in 2nd up to redline at least one when I go out for this reason. I bought an 84 351 Bronco in early 2000s from an old man who just used it around his farm. It took months for it to stop billowing carbon smoke under heavy throttle. I had to floor it everywhere for months to get it the clear up.

 

Let's hope!