Outdoor cover

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dville

Outdoor cover

Post by dville »

I'm in the process of returning my 2nd Titan cover from Empire, while my car is hibernating. First time it leaked and left marks on the front and rear fenders, which I compounded out.(Cover was 4 mos old) They exchanged for a new one, and when I put the car away after Thanksgiving, there were again marks caused by seams rubbing along the fenders. They are trying to get me a refund but...... What's a great outdoor cover that any of you can recommend for 3 seasons?
AndyS
Posts: 328
Joined: Fri Jun 10, 2011 10:02 am
Your car is a: 1967 Fiat 124 Spider
Location: SF Bay Area

Re: Outdoor cover

Post by AndyS »

I have had good luck with the new Budge Rain barrier covers. elastic is a bit strong, but the covers are a fantastic fabric that is light weight, breathable, and totally water proof. dry fast too.

http://www.carcoveroutlet.com/budge_wat ... cle_covers
1967 Fiat 124 Spider
1964 Fiat Abarth 850TC conversion
1962 Abarth Allemano 1 liter Coupe
dville

Re: Outdoor cover

Post by dville »

When I returned the Empire cover I had to deal with Budge ( the manufact) so I'm not too keen on their products now. The first 2 covers seemed to be great - nicely padded, good fit.
wikkid

Re: Outdoor cover

Post by wikkid »

I was just about to pull the trigger on an Empire cover - hesitating between the options they offer. So I am very interested as well to hear any input about these, or other options.
-Chris
dville

Re: Outdoor cover

Post by dville »

I've gone thru 2 covers in only 6 months, and I think they're pretty expensive. If they didn't have the seams down the sides I'd try giving it a 3rd chance, but I'm worried about perm marks that I can't wax out.
wikkid

Re: Outdoor cover

Post by wikkid »

I was looking at either the Empire Waterproof for $98, or the Max cover, for $136.
I thought I remembered there being a "titan" model as you describe, but I don't see it on their site:
http://www.empirecovers.com/auto_covers ... =undefined
dville

Re: Outdoor cover

Post by dville »

It looks like AndyS posted he likes their waterproof. I don't see the Titan either - it was around $150 or $160 - 4 layers of something. I've got a bit of time before better weather, so I'm going to really look around.
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kmac33
Posts: 509
Joined: Thu May 22, 2008 11:19 am
Your car is a: 1974 Spider
Location: Lilburn/Stone Mountain Georgia

Re: Outdoor cover

Post by kmac33 »

I have been very happy with the cover I got from California Car Covers.
Very high quality, fits the car perfectly.

http://www.calcarcover.com/cover_about.aspx
Kevin McMullen

1974 Fiat Spider - Restoration Complete! But the mods/refinements continue
1980 Fiat Spider
2013 Subaru WRX
dville

Re: Outdoor cover

Post by dville »

kmac - which one do you use? Is your car outdoors for 3 seasons?
AndyS
Posts: 328
Joined: Fri Jun 10, 2011 10:02 am
Your car is a: 1967 Fiat 124 Spider
Location: SF Bay Area

Re: Outdoor cover

Post by AndyS »

I have tried a lot of different covers for outdoor storage, and so far the $59.00 Budge one is the best i have found. The California Car covers better outdoor covers are just way too expensive anymore--over $200 for a car cover. Those empire
"fleece lined" covers are overpriced junk and leave marks all over the cars.
1967 Fiat 124 Spider
1964 Fiat Abarth 850TC conversion
1962 Abarth Allemano 1 liter Coupe
dville

Re: Outdoor cover

Post by dville »

Thanks Andy - that's the problem I was having - marks where the seams hit. What about sun, though? I'm in South Jersey and get pretty full sun, with rain thrown in. Aside from building a garage, I need something to count on from April to November. I could use the Tital one with a sheet under it, but I was concerned that it would trap moisture. Anyway, thanks for the input.
wikkid

Re: Outdoor cover

Post by wikkid »

Andy,


I'd be interested in hearing more about the fit issue for the Budge: did you get the size 1 or size 2 cover? The late spider length, 13'-7" (from the owner's manual, including bumpers), is so close to fitting the 13'-1" max car length for the size 1 Budge cover, I wonder if the tight elastic issue is coming from that?

Budge looks great, though - so I guess I'll go with the size 2 cover, that covers cars up to 14'-2" long.
User avatar
kmac33
Posts: 509
Joined: Thu May 22, 2008 11:19 am
Your car is a: 1974 Spider
Location: Lilburn/Stone Mountain Georgia

Re: Outdoor cover

Post by kmac33 »

dville wrote:kmac - which one do you use? Is your car outdoors for 3 seasons?
My Spider is garaged year round, but bought the cover for protection when in the garage or if I am going to be parked outdoors for extended periods. I ended up getting a "Stormweave" cover. Since my car received a paint job during restoration that will be very expensive to duplicate, I felt it was worth the added $ to get one of the best covers you can buy to help preserve the quality of the paint.
Kevin McMullen

1974 Fiat Spider - Restoration Complete! But the mods/refinements continue
1980 Fiat Spider
2013 Subaru WRX
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