What is the best way to prevent rust problems in cars that will be confined for long periods of time?

Lubricate all joints with a good quality lubricant, Raise the vehicle of the ground, rotate the wheels regularly, use a breathable car cover, try to start the car once a month, get it up to temp, cool it and do it again. Even if it sat, press the pedals to keep the lines pressured. Open shut doors, trunk, hood, it keeps the rubber seals active.

Does a car battery suffer a lot if it is left unused for a long time?

Yes, a trickle charger is recommended, you can get good quality solar ones that maintain battery health, however if you’re leaving the car for months, disconnect the battery.

What is the best way to maintain tires? Are there any restoration tips you have?

Rotate the wheels to stop a flat spot at the bottom, put more air or higher pressure in the tires so the contact patch is smaller.

What precautions or measures should be taken if you haven’t started your car for an extended period of time?

Disconnect the main distributer lead from the coil, crank the engine over so it won’t fire and build up oil pressure, reconnect the lead.. it should be fine.

What kind of electronic problems can cars incur when left to sit for prolonged periods of time?

Electrical joints can dry, use a good quality electrical spray to lightly dust over the electrical surfaces, like plugs on the loom, light fittings and even the fuse box.

How often should you move your car and check the water and oil levels?

As often as you can, I recommend a minimum of once a month.

Just how much of an impact has the coronavirus pandemic had on the car market? Is right now a good time to buy a car?

No, the market is paused. There will be some amazing deals once this is over as dealers will have stock that’s got 3 months more depreciation and they will need to of load that stock quickly.. so be patient.

What is the best way to sell cars online during this pandemic? Or would you suggest waiting until everything goes back to normal?

I would wait, however if you need to of load quickly, take good quality pictures and write a true accurate description, you may have to have some trust that you will need to keep your distance during the sale, so they might have to test drive on their own… its risky so I would wait.

What are your top tips to stay safe when travelling by car during the coronavirus pandemic?

Keep your distance, there’s a temptation to speed on empty roads so keep to the speed limit. Take antibacterial wipes and keep, door handles,  wheel and shifter clean, you may have touched something outside the car and bought it in.

For those using this time to restore or re-vamp their cars, what advice would give to beginners?

Now’s a good time, if you’re at home you can work in the garage, lean upon the internet and reach out to car clubs, look at online videos for how to guides, have the confidence to have a go. Binge watch Motortrend to give you some courage.

It’s very easy to forget to do the above but it’s also easy to make an effort to remind yourself. These are great tips to take note of not only for the well being of your baby (aka your car) but also yourself.

The interview was quite insightful and let us into Mike’s world including touching a bit on his childhood as well as his apparent love for classical cars. Find out all about that and more below:

So you clearly have a passion for all things automobiles, especially cars.  It’s the passion you grew up with, especially being around cars your whole life.  This is largely due, thanks to your dad, who also had the same passion, from what we gather.  Can you please tell us a bit about your relationship with him? 

Yeah, my relationship with my dad is incredible. Actually, I’m very fortunate that I have amazing parents. My dad is the most incredible man. He is clearly passionate about motoring. It’s all he’s ever done in his life as well. He’s passed down the skills that I’ve learned; you know, he passed them down when I was a very young boy, from the age of eight until the age of 16 when I had to help out in the workshop during the summer holidays at school, he passed down all the skills to me. 

And today we still share the same motoring passion, you know, me and my dad, we talk about cars on a weekly basis. We’ve – me and my wife, recently bought him a 1965 Mustang, so he can have his own, you know, retro classic American hot rod car that he’s fixing up himself. It doesn’t need fixing up but he can’t help himself. He is fixing it up anyway. He is doing modifications to it. So yeah, we have an incredible relationship, and I am a very, very lucky man to have him. 

You tend to focus on something that’s quite rare, but equally enviable and in some cases expensive; what appeals to you so much about classic cars specifically? 

I think it is character.  Classic cars have a character.  They are very communicative when you drive them, they have smiling faces.  Most cars look like people and they have smiling faces.  And today cars are designed by computer that churned out cars and they are designed with no soul.  There’s just no soul or passion injected into any of these modern cars. 

Most of the cars today on the road all share the same platform, you know, whether it’s a Renault shares the same platform with Nissan, anything from Audi or Porsche or Volkswagen shares that same platform with SEAT, it’s just that – there’s no – the diversity is very small in today’s world.  Where in the olden days, cars were designed by people that cared.  They sat at a table and they drew something with a pen and they tried to inject their own passion into what they were drawing and that’s what we got. 

And that’s why there is a classic car world, that’s why there is this diversity in the classic car world.  Because it’s funny, you know, you only have to look back at the last 70, 80 years from the 1950s up until the ‘90s – up until the 2000s, if you look then, they are the most interesting cars and they are the cars that are still coveted in the classic car world. 

You know, you won’t find anyone in the classic car world getting enthusiastic about a PT Cruiser, because it’s never going to happen, nobody’s going to stand in the parking lot and go, ooh, that [inaudible] car because it’s just designed awfully, it is an awful.  So, as such, it plays out in front of you.  The classic car world is from the previous – there will be classic cars that a modern classic, they will be classics in the future, from the recent generation of cars, but they will never have the same passion as the previous millennium. 

Absolutely.  I totally agree with you on that.  Having said that, do you own any modern cars and if so, which ones? 

I think that’s the car has been designed by a computer and driven by a computer.  We just bought the new Porsche Taycan, so in amongst everything I said, there’s me going to buy my first electric car designed by a computer.  But I have to because my carbon footprint is absolutely awful.  I have a show where I specialise in petrol and gas. 

I fly backwards and forwards across the Atlantic, you know, on a monthly basis making these car shows.  So I know my carbon footprint is awful and I feel quite guilty about that.  So to try and offset some of that, I thought I should do the right thing and buy an electric car.  And if you’re going to buy one, why not buy one that you can actually drive with a bit of passion, which is the new Porsche Taycan? 

I’ll tell you what, if you’re going to pick one, that’s the one to pick.  It is – I’m looking at a picture of it now, it’s gorgeous. 

I said, it goes from nought to 60 in 2.6 seconds, so that is good enough for me. 

You also have the smash hit series, Wheeler Dealers currently on Discovery, how did the opportunity for that show come about exactly? 

So Wheeler Dealers really came off the back of another show that I was making on Channel 4, which was called Deals on Wheels, I started making in 1997.  That show was focusing on the second-hand car world what was – what people were buying and selling.  We were looking at their stories.  But during making that series, I started to educate the audience on how to fix up a car and sell a car. 

And once that series was coming to the end, at the genesis of that idea how to fix up a car and sell a car, was picked up by two guys called Michael Wirth and Daniel Allen, who owned a company called Attaboy Productions.  And they picked up that genesis of an idea and turned it into a show, which then became Wheeler Dealers, which is how to buy a car, fix it up and sell it.  And it’s a world’s first ever car restoration programme. 

Deals on Wheels was the world’s first time anyone had ever seen a car being flipped on television anywhere in the world, but a show dedicated to it was Wheeler Dealers and that was all the way back in 2003.  And now we have a whole network dedicated – you know, MotorTrend, it is amazing. 

We always appreciate exclusive features like this one. Our thanks to the Discovery Inc’s team for facilitating and of course to Mike who was kind enough to indulge us.

Even with that it’s important to take a break from consuming a barrage of news that could leave you feeling anxious and depressed or to step away from the laptop screen to indulge in a little bit of escapism by watching your favourite TV series or documentary (which we feature heavily here). Although television content can offer the distraction that you seek and can provide hours of endless entertainment, it is also as important to moderate screen time and to ensure that you are watching TV mindfully and responsibly over this period.

In South Africa, data from Multichoice shows that the average time people spent watching TV in March was two hours and 16 minutes. Adults between the ages of 15 to 24 watched between two hours and 1 minute; those between 25 – 49 watched for two hours and 16 minutes; adults aged 50 to 64 between two hours and 27 minutes; and people over the age of 65 watched TV for two hours and 30 minutes per day.

To find the balance between escapism and over-indulgence, keep the following in mind when taking a break from the realities of lockdown whilst putting your feet up to enjoy your beloved TV shows.

Be present

When watching television try to be fully present to what you are watching, as opposed to half-heartedly talking to a loved one or browsing through your phone. Trying to do too many things at once robs you of joy and decreases your effectiveness.

Make it fun and healthy

Try to eat healthy snacks while you’re indulging in that favourite TV show. Rather snack on biltong or nuts which might be gone by the end of the show, just like a bag of potato chips would, without your even realising it but the difference is you will have filled up on something healthier.

Bonding with your loved ones
Watching that TV series with a partner or family member might actually make you feel closer to them and lead to a happier relationship. It provides for an opportunity to bond while watching something both parties can relate to and possibly share anecdotes with at the dinner table. Something light-hearted and fun might be your genre of choice – the simple act of experiencing happiness and laughter with your loved ones while watching can be positive; humans sharing endorphin-inducing experiences creates a bond.

Responsible screen-time for kids

Screen time can be a valuable learning experience when watching with your children. Parents can encourage kids to actively engage with the content they’re seeing on screens, during the experience or afterwards. The more an adult can encourage conversation around the TV experience the deeper the experience becomes – make it an active process by commenting on things you’re watching together or even asking questions. This becomes less about what’s on the TV screen and becomes more of an interactive, social experience between you and your child.

You are what you watch

Research has shown that the type of content you watch, and the quality of shows can shape our thinking and even affect our cognitive ability. Some shows provide relaxation and entertainment while other programmes and documentaries can be inspiring and educational. What you watch can even have an effect on your mood, temper, and your general compassion towards others – so before you dive into your next show think about how it may affect your mind health.

Research from Discovery Inc indicate that these were the top performing or most watched shows on their owned channels over the last three weeks – Extreme Couponing (Real Time), The Carbonaro Effect (Discovery Family), Mountain Monsters (Travel Channel), the Bad Blood documentary (ID), Flip or Flop (HGTV), Spring Baking Championship (Food Network), Street Outlaws (Discovery Channel) with My Feet Are Killing Me (TLC) coming in as the favourite.

Thank you to the Discovery Inc team for the above info and data. Also, did you know that they (Discovery Inc) deliver over 8,000 hours of original and entertaining content to viewers each year? In South Africa, Discovery’s portfolio of premium brands includes Discovery Channel, HGTV, Food Network, TLC, Investigation Discovery, Travel Channel, Discovery Family and Real Time.