It’s been a long, cold winter here in Vermont, and if history is any indicator, it isn’t over quite yet. While my own seasonal car isn’t a collector’s item (yet), I still take great care to store it safely in the back of the garage — next to the pallets of wood pellets — from the first salting of the roads until spring rains wash away the last traces of the nefarious chemical.

Then, with robins chirping in the trees and the sun glowing in a cloudless sky, I gently awaken the car from its winter hibernation, grateful that I’d carefully prepared it for storage. Before parking the Miata for its slumber, I diligently check the level of electrolyte in the battery, perform a fresh oil change, fill the fuel tank — careful to add the right amount of fuel stabilizer — wash and wax the paint and wheels, and fill the tires to a higher pressure than normal to minimize the potential of flat spots or deflated tires from long-term storage.

What are your spring rituals, be it car storage, DIY auto service or anything in between?