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Question: Longtime parking unused honda pilot 2003 suv in a temperate African region

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gkbosun, 3.5L V6, Portland, OR, January 04, 2011, 02:11
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 Rookie

I have a honda pilot 2003 suv car shipped to west africa (with warm climate)for my use onlywhen i am on holiday for one month in a year. I took off the battery and all tyres to avoid damages. Please advice if my decision is right or wrong. Will there be any problem develop with this car when next i go on holiday to west africa in June 2011 due to not been used for a long time? What can i do to prevent any likely problem? Pls reply asap. Thank-you!

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    PRESTONFITZ from Honest 1 Auto Care, January 04, 2011, 06:39
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     Technician

    You have take a couple good steps already, between the battery and tires. If you will be using the vehicle for a few weeks every year, there really isn't a whole lot more that you need to do. Is the vehicle going to be stored inside or outside? If you are going to disconnect the battery, you will lose your radio operation if it still has the stock radio. This is an anti-theft system, so if the radio is stolen from the vehicle it will not work. I would advise you acquire the code before leaving the states. It should have been printed on a card that originally was inserted into the owners manual. If not, it's possible someone has written it down in the past, in the glove box, or maybe even under the hood. Worst case scenario would be pulling the radio physically out, to get the serial number off the unit, which you can use to call the dealership and they should be able to get you the code.
    If you wanted to play it safe, I would suggest getting a few bottles of what's called STABIL, it's used in the fuel tank to prevent gasoline separation. If you will definitely be driving it every year, I would say it's not a huge concern, but missing your trip one year, now creates a 2 year gap between drives, which could be pushing it.
    I wouldn't say you necessarily need to remove the tires, but putting the vehicle up on jack stands wouldn't hurt, it'll keep the weight off the tires preventing flat spots. If the vehicle is going to be stored inside, I really wouldn't worry too much about the extra effort, if outside then I would say go ahead and take them off, or at the very least buy tire protection guards. Blocks out rain and sun at least.
    Depending on the mileage of the vehicle, and whether services have been performed or not, I would highly recommend replacing the timing belt with water pump and associated pulleys and tensioners. This type of job should be sold with all of those components as a package. Transmission service? Coolant flush service? These are things I would consider before heading over, unless you know a good Honda Technician in west Africa.
    As for only driving the vehicle annually, I would say you should be just fine with your Honda, they are great vehicles and last a very long time as long as they are maintained appropriately. Hope all works out for you, let me know if you have any further questions.

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