Every winter season requires a little preparation. While decorating your home for the holidays or building snowmen in the yard with your kids are enjoyable activities, ensuring that your car can function on the slippery and snowy roads is important for your and your family’s safety. Follow these quick and easy tips this winter so that you can drive with less worry and hassle.
Equip Your Car to Fight the Elements
The possibility of heavy rain, sleet or snow means that certain components of your vehicle have to be in working order to adequately fight off the elements. It never hurts to bring your car in for a quick checkup to ensure that your windshield wipers are working properly. If there are cracks in the rubber of your wipers, it might mean that you will be left with a streak across the windshield that may make safe driving difficult. High quality wipers are an affordable and essential addition to any car.
To prevent water from freezing on your windshield on a cold day, add the proper mixture of water and antifreeze as recommended in the manual of your vehicle. Most manuals recommend a 50/50 mixture. The overall concentration and condition of the coolant should be checked regularly, at least once a year. A trusted technician can flush and refill your system in a short amount of time.
Keep Your Engine Running Optimally
There is nothing worse than a car that won’t start during a snowstorm. Many car manuals recommend a different type of oil during the winter months. When temperatures fall, oil with a certain type of viscosity may keep your engine running more smoothly.
Get a Strong Battery
If your battery is running low on juice, cold weather could make it completely stop working. Chances are that you don’t want to jumpstart your vehicle during subzero temperatures. A mechanic can test the levels of your battery using professional equipment, and replace it quickly if necessary.
Keep a Full Tank
Imagine your car to be like a grizzly bear that is hibernating. If the bear’s stomach is empty, it will get aggravated and possibly wreak destruction instead of sleeping like it is supposed to. Similarly, it is essential to keep your car’s gas tank at least half full at all times to prevent the freezing of moisture in the fuel lines. Your car will most likely run more smoothly as a result.
Taking a few days to prepare your car for winter may help prevent a maintenance failure. Bringing your car in for a winter season checkup will not only be better for your vehicle but for the passengers, too.
