Outdoor car cover

[paulfrost88960]

Looking for some advice please. At home my XJ-S lives in my garage under an indoor cover which came with the car. However i'm wondering whther it's worth treating it to an outdoor cover for when i stay somewhere overnight and the car has to be left in the open. Whilst it would shield it from for example seagull poo whilst parked, if the car had picked up roadspray whilst away, presumably it's not a good idea to put a clean cover on a dirty car so how useful would one be really? Also has anyone any recommendations if i decide to get one anyway? Looking on the interweb it seems that prices vary a lot and as some are expensive, i don't want to make the wrong decision!

[daviespeter208212]

Hi Paul,
I brought a cover of Ebay when i bought my s type in December 18 it was £38, . It has kept the car dry upto this month, but now the U V is attacked the vynal outer membrane and hole and splits are occurring. I will have to replace it before winter,
Its definitely a good idea to keep your car covered especially if it stands outside like mine. Paying two hundred pounds plus, may last longer, but how much longer? Very cheap ones are a waste of time and money as the first windy day they'll rip and blow away.
Hope my experience is of some help. Regards Peter.

[PaulGover]

I bought the club's cover for an XJ6 Series III. It certainly keeps pigeon droppings off, and appears to keep it dry and clean - the car was continuously under the cover from about September last year to about May this year.

The cover's instructions warn you not to put it on a dirty car - it moves a little in the wind, and dirt will scratch the paintwork. So I washed the car before covering it. I guess in bad areas, you might need to wave your arms to scare away pigeons, seagulls and their ilk until it's dried.

I actually intend to put the car in the garage once I can get all the rubbish therein down to the tip, but I'd still cover it - a lot of dirt blows in over the winter.

[paulfrost88960]

Thanks guys for your feedback. On reflection, i'll probably just risk it whilst away, as i have been doing so far. I can't see the car being clean enough not to be damaged by the wind moving the cover against the paint.