Accepting that winter is on the horizon is never particularly pleasant. Especially when this also means acknowledging that the time has come to get your car or cars ready for the cold weather ahead.
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On the plus side, dealing with everything ahead of time can be far less stressful than attempting to tick all necessary boxes at the last minute. So for those who prefer to take a proactive approach, here’s a quick rundown of 10 things to start doing right now to get your car ready for winter:
1. First of all, you need to comprehensively check the condition and maintenance of your tyres. If there are any excessive signs of wear or damage, now’s the time to replace them.
2. If you live in an area where winter driving conditions tend to be particularly severe, you might want to think about investing in specialist winter tyres. These can make an astonishing difference in terms of both performance and health and safety alike.
3. Manufacturers typically recommend deflating tyres very slightly over the winter months. Check what’s recommended for your own vehicle and choice of tyres online.
4. As for your battery, it’s worth remembering that cold weather can do a number on even the best batteries out there. Which means that if your own battery isn’t exactly reliable or in the best of health, you might want to get it sorted before the weather takes a turn for the worst.
5. Never leave it until the last minute to replace the windscreen washer fluid in your bottle with a specialist winter product. If you do, you run the risk of the summer washer fluid freezing in the bottle and pipes, potentially destroying them in the process.
6. The same also goes for antifreeze, as you don’t want to leave it too late and risk problems that can easily be avoided. Experts recommend refilling antifreeze once every three years, so be sure to keep an eye on this.
7. Make sure your windscreen wiper blades are in the best possible condition. Given the way in which they will have to deal with much heavier punishment over the winter, now could be a good time to replace and upgrade your current wipers.
8. Check that your fans and heaters are working appropriately, as you will be needing them to keep your windows and windscreen free from interior fog. For obvious reasons, anything that affects visibility negatively during the winter isn’t a good thing.
9. Make sure that you not only have an emergency kit in the car, but that said kit contains everything you need. An emergency phone charger, blankets, something to eat and drink, a torch, basic first aid supplies and so on.
10. Last but not least, if your car has not been professionally serviced for some time, it is imperative that you get it done before the winter weather sets in. The reason being that while it may have performed adequately during the summer, you’ve no idea what kind of damage the winter weather might do when it eventually sets in!