My car has been parked for a period of time.

20

Asked by Lori May 30, 2022 at 07:19 AM about the 2016 Kia Forte EX

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

My car has been parked and not used for
over a year. Prior to that I drove it daily but
then a bum knee made it impossible to get
in and out of it. I let it set a week and found I
had a dead battery and a flat tire (wonderful
alloy wheels). I have put a good amount of
money into the car and would like to get it
back on the road and sell it, My question is
how do I do that? I can't start the car without
a battery but if I buy one I can't just start the
car as the fluids need to be replaced. Also
the tire don't stay inflated despite numerous
trips to the garage. Please let me know what
is the best way to handle this. Thank you

2 Answers

2,920

I would contact a local garage to come pick it up with a tow truck, and make the necessary repairs to get the car running again, inspected and roadworthy to maximize your profit selling it. Your other option is to sell as is, and let someone else tow it away, but no way will you make any money as the seller will be buying an unknown. If you still want to do things yourself, search online, car has not started in a year. You will see all the steps you need to make. Replacing the fuel will be number one on the list as all the other fluids as you mentioned.

1 people found this helpful.
157,515

A year isn't really that long. I'd put a new battery in it, a bottle of Drygas in the gas tank, check the fluids, and fire it up. Let it run for about an hour, put some air in the tire and drive it to a local garage. Fill up the gas tank on the way. Replace the bum tire with a good used one and let the garage advise you about what needs to be done so you can sell the vehicle to someone in a safe roadworthy condition. Hope that helps! Jim

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