Ray: Sounds like you bought one of my brother's old cars. He used to have to shovel snow out of his covertibles in the winter.
Even though there are no visible tears in your convertible top, it’s no good anymore. You’re probably saying, “Duh!” about now.
But people don’t realize that old tops shrink over time and the rubber weatherstripping dries out. The cloth top itself even can become porous, and you’ll see drops of water seeping through.
So, if you’re really invested in this convertible, you need a new top. And you may be surprised to find that it’s going to cost you a couple thousand bucks! But at least that’ll stop things from getting worse, which is always the first step in dealing with water damage.
I suppose if you’re not committed to this convertible for the long haul, the cheaper solution is to just get a car cover and never drive it in the rain. In fact, to remove any temptation to drive it on a day when it might rain, you might want to just remove the top entirely. Or put in a bad set of plug wires, so it won’t start in damp weather.
Then you’ve got to deal with the mold. We’re not experts on mold remediation. When a customer drives into the shop with a mold problem, all of my guys barricade themselves in the men’s room.
But the first thing you have to do is dry everything out. The sun is your best friend here. Start by removing the carpeting (this will require removing at least the front seats). Underneath the carpet is a cheap padding that’s called the jute. You probably want to just throw that away and replace it.
Then park the car out in the sun for a few days, and lay out the carpeting and seats next to it. Once everything is really dry, you can treat the carpet and seats with a biocide product that’s designed to remove mold from fabric.
Of course, you want to test an area first so you don’t end up with white carpeting - not the most practical choice for the floor of a car.
If that treatment is unsuccessful, you may have to replace the carpeting and the seats. Or get the seats reupholstered. Or you could do what my brother used to do, and just drive around in a biohazard suit. Good luck, John.
She’s prepping for doomsday
Dear Tom and Ray:
My husband and I are doomsday preppers. We're moving to Florida and want to buy a vehicle that will give us the most flexibility in the event of various possible disasters (e.g., EMP, lack of available conventional gasoline, worthless money, etc.). Assuming for a moment that we're right about future disaster scenarios, do you have any suggestions, other than a bicycle or rickshaw? Natural-gas-powered Honda Civic? Diesel/biodiesel? Which would give us the most options? Thank you. - Lynne
Ray: In Florida? I think a pontoon boat would be my vehicle of choice, Lynne.
I think natural disasters are far more likely to hit Florida than anarchy and lawlessness - although Florida has been ground zero for both hanging chads and spring break, so you do have a point, Lynne.
But if your concerns are surviving electromagnetic pulse attacks and worthless money, then you want to go with diesel. Unlike gasoline engines, diesel engines don’t require spark, so engine electronics become a nonfactor. Your diesel engine would run after an EMP attack, assuming you can get it started without a battery.
So you’ll need to get a stick-shift car, and live on a hill so you can roll-start it. I don’t think there are many hills in Florida, so you’ll have to build one. Or maybe you can buy a house next to a large waterslide?
And if money is worthless, you would need to have your own supply of fuel. Again, diesel would be the choice here. You could bury a couple of 500-gallon tanks in your backyard and store your diesel fuel indefinitely.
Then, when disaster strikes, you could either hang around your compound and make forays out to the abandoned 7-Eleven to loot Slurpees, or you could fill up the back of your car with jerrycans of diesel fuel, and start driving - if you think fuel is more valuable than food and water.
Where would you go? I have no idea. But you’d have to somehow get around all the dead cars clogging the highways after the EMP attack.
That brings me back to the pontoon boat, Lynne. And a map of Cuba. Good luck.
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