To Garage or Not Garage, that is the question.

Yes. Yes.

In theory, protecting the car from the elements when not in use will extend the lifespan of the paint and seals. Additionally, it could minimize corrosion of internal parts. So in the the long term the garaged car should look nicer and last longer and be more valuable than a non-garaged car.

In your situation, besides the sun, a garage may help prevent the damages of salt spray in the air. The negative may be slightly increased humidity in the garage.

 

I'm going to agree with mrstop on "yes and yes".

I live in SoCal as well (about 10 miles from the Pacific Coast). Cars not garaged will suffer from sun exposure (it will eat away the paint finish, corrode exterior seals quicker, and slowly wear away the interior of your car, especially the dash). The small periods of light rain combined with typically dusty environments I see in my area with persistent "dew" will aggravate the deterioration of your paint's finish and shine as well.

Also you will probably see a large decrease in bird droppings, sap, and dust on your car (which will eat your paint even faster). Garages also have smaller and slower temperature fluctuations which will help preserve the seals in your car, both exterior and interior. Your insurance carrier will probably also be willing to give you a lower quote of car insurance if they know it is garaged, as there is much less risk of theft, vandalism, and damage due to good ol' mother nature.

I'm sure the slight humidity increase of garaging the car is well worth all the other risks of leaving it outside. I'm not even sure if the slight humidity is even that detrimental to the car.

 

To Garage or Not Garage, that is the question.

Here's the answer. And....it's the lamest answer that there is:
It depends.

If you don't have a garage, then it would be silly to build one just to protect a $20,000 car. However (comma!) there may be other benefits in getting one added to your home (see below.)
In the PRC, you don't have to worry about humidity as much as sun and salt. Both are bad for rubber, plastic, sheet metal, and paint, and other things so it's dead-bang certain that a garaged car should be in better shape than one under a carport, and one under a carport should be in better shape than one languishing unprotected in a driveway after five years.....all other things being equal.
The reason I mentioned five years?
The Aichi Iron Works (IIRC) provides rust-through warranty protection for 5 years, regardless of mileage.
Ever see a Prius with extensive rust damage in the PRC?
Probably not.
Ever see a Prius with damaged rubber seals and sun faded paint?
I have.
News Flash: The reason your moon roof doesn't leak (yet?) The rubber/sillycone seals are (still) in good shape.


If you own a home sans garage, then I would consider adding one while the economy is in the tank....that is...if you can do some or most of the work yourself, and if you don't live in an area where permits, inspections, ECRs, regulations, etc prevent you from doing so. If you do have to hire the work done, labor is cheap right now, and contractors are hungry!
It's not always going to be that way.
Failing this...a carport either free standing or attached (beam and post) might also be an attractive option.
They're relatively cheap, east to construct, and if you enclose/semi enclose (lattice) the sidewalls and/or rear, you will get 90-percent of the protection provided by a full garage at probably 25 percent of the cost.
YMMV.

It's for sure that very few cars that are under a garage or carport ever suffer major damage from hail. If your car is inside a garage or under a carport it also adds a layer of protection from cretins who would do a thousand dollars worth of damage to your car only to find out that there is nothing worth stealing inside the car. A car that sits under a roof will not suffer the wildly gyrating interior temperature swings that occur when you're parked under the sun. This will make not only your interior plastics and seating surfaces more comfortable, but might also help keep you electronics working longer.
Finally....I can tell you that it is one heckuva lot easier to do routine maintenance under a roof than it is to perform these tasks outside.

So....as I said.
It depends.

Edit: OK....so I'm not all that bright. I just noticed that you have a GARAGE pictured in your avatar. You still have the options of building a storage shed in the back yard (codes permitting)to store all of the priceless crap that's cluttering up your garage and preventing you from using it as a....Garage, or attaching a carport to the front of your garage.
All of the benefits of garaging? Still apply.
Good Luck!

 

My vote is park it in your garage. It cost too much to leave it sit outside If it was a rust bucket beater then by all means let it sit on the street

Mike

 

Had to step in on the hail point - life BD (before divorce) I lived in upstate NY and two years ago we actually had a hailstorm that produced golf ball sized hail. My neighbor had her car for a week (don't recall the make), parked in her driveway but the car was badly pockmarked from stem to stern with impressions those hailstones made. Insurance made good on it (along with the damage and broken windows to her house) but if she had cleaned her garage so she could have stored the car inside, she would have saved herself the aggravation on the damage to her car.

Life AD (after divorce) for me - the garage at my rental unit is clean so my new Prius can rest comfortably indoors with the roommate's 2012 Tacoma without bird droppings, acorns or the errant storm blowing down branches or trees. When and if snow and ice fly, she will rest in comfort until the roads are clear - the diesel truck will be called into service for those runs. As I have mentioned before, the Prius is the first new car I have purchased on my own and got all the bells and whistles I wanted - I need her to be around a long time so keeping her undercover I figure is a start....

Now, if the ******* deer will just stay away - I hit a good sized 4 point buck in my former 1994 Corolla last year (she is still going strong with a friend's daughter - over 230,000 on the odometer when we passed the car on)... I kept on the accelerator and the deer's butt left a dent in the hood and rolled *** over teakettle over the windshield and roof, hit the ground and shook himself off before hightailing it out of there.

Not sure I want to try that manuever again...ever.

 

I store my Prius in our garage until May. No salt or snow on it. It also is allergic to rain so I leave it in our garage during the driving season when it rains. I have my SUV for the dirty work

Mike

 

Not living in SoCal, I like the decrease in warm-up time and energy that starting out at 45F rather than -10F gives me. There is, of course, the cost of the propane to heat the garage.....I am sure it is a net loss overall.

 

Ah, now I understand the reason for the question in the first place.