Man puts car in salt water for an entire year to see he can get it to start afterwards

A man from Garage 54 put a car in salt water and just… left it there.

The plan was simple.

Sink the car in salty water, walk away, and see what happens over time.

And by ‘over time,’ we mean an entire year.

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Why Garage 54 left a car in salt water for a full year

This Garage 54’s first time doing something like this.

The YouTube channel had already tested the idea once by leaving the same car in salt water for about five weeks. 

When they pulled it out, the electronics were completely wrecked. 

Wires, switches, ignition parts – all dead.

But here’s the weird part: the engine itself survived.

After swapping out some electrical components, they actually got the car to start. 

That result felt wrong in the best way, so naturally, they decided to make things worse.

If five weeks didn’t kill it, what would a full year do?

On August 1, 2023, they dunked the car back into a pool filled with homemade salt water. 

As time passed, air bubbles escaped, and salty water seeped into everything – the interior, the engine bay, all the tight spots where rust loves to live.

Then winter hit.

The pool froze solid with the car trapped inside. 

For months, the car sat wrapped in salty ice, which kept eating away at the metal even while everything looked frozen and still. 

When spring came, it thawed. 

And when summer arrived, the car had been soaking for almost a year straight.

On June 10, 2024, they finally pulled it out.

After a year underwater, could the engine still start?

From the outside, the car looked completely finished.

Paint was peeling off, rust covered the wheels, panels, brackets, and headlights, and some parts had fallen off entirely.

Under the hood, things were even worse.

The fuel pump had been crushed by ice and was falling apart, the carburetor had corroded so badly it was basically dissolving, the wiring was shot, and the starter motor didn’t work. 

To make matters worse, the spark plugs were covered in oil and salty gunk. 

And salt is great at messing up electricity.

Still, not everything had given up.

The timing belt survived, the cooling hoses were okay, and the engine could still turn over.

So they tried to start it.

They cleaned what they could, poured oil straight into the cylinders, swapped spark plugs again and again, and bypassed broken systems using some very questionable but creative solutions.

It took multiple attempts, but finally it happened.

After almost a full year in salt water – frozen, thawed, and left to rot – the engine fired up and ran.

The car itself was done. 

The clutch was completely seized, so driving it wasn’t happening. 

But the point was clear.

Salt water absolutely destroys cars, but old-school engines built without layers of modern electronics can survive way more abuse than anyone expects.

Even when common sense says they shouldn’t.

To find out more, subscribe to Garage 54 on YouTube or watch the video below:

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