Author: Jomathews
When the snow and ice hit, your car needs to be ready. From checking the tires to making sure you have enough windshield fluid, there are a lot of ways to keep your car safe during cold weather. If you’re driving in snow or icy conditions, remember to slow down and increase the following distance. Give yourself extra time to get to your destination, and keep an emergency kit in your car. You never know when a weather emergency might strike, and you don’t want to be caught without supplies if it does. You don’t want to be caught unprepared when the first freeze of the season hits. Preparing your car for winter involves more than just putting on snow tires and getting a good wax job. It also means checking your car from top to bottom so you can get through the cold months ahead with as little risk as possible. This article will cover some basic maintenance tips and tricks that will help keep your Toyota in tip-top shape during the winter. While most of these tips are tailored toward people who own a Toyota, they should still apply to any other vehicle brand or type. Read on and get ready for winter.
One of the most important ways to avoid a breakdown or an accident during the winter is to check the battery and the brake fluid. Winter temperatures can be extremely hard on car batteries, causing them to die quickly. This is especially true if you have an older car; you might want to consider replacing the battery before the first snowfall hits. If your car has been sitting for a while, you might also want to check the brake fluid and make sure it hasn’t gone bad. Brake fluid isn’t like gasoline or diesel; it doesn’t go bad. However, it does break down with time and use. If you’ve been driving your car and haven’t had the brake fluid checked in a while, it might be good to get it checked again before winter.
After the battery and brake fluids are checked, you should have the car serviced before winter hits. Go to a trusted mechanic and let them know what you plan on doing with your car throughout the winter, and they will be able to give you the advice and service that your car needs to get through the winter in top shape. Keep in mind that you’re going to want to take a little extra special care of your car’s engine since that’s probably the component that will take the most abuse during the winter. Make sure that the engine is properly warmed up before driving, and always let it cool down completely before shutting it off. Also, be sure to change the oil as soon as the weather warms up again.
Another important part of any automotive winter maintenance checklist is changing the oil. Just as with the brake fluid, the oil will break down and lose effectiveness over time. The standard recommendation is to change your oil every 3,000 miles, but it may be a good idea to do so every 2,000 miles during the winter. The extreme cold can also cause the oil to thicken, which can lead to excessive wear on your engine. This can also happen in the summer, but the extreme temperatures of winter can make it worse. To avoid this, you want to make sure your engine is properly warmed up before you drive it. This will help thin out the oil and keep it flowing smoothly.
Another way to protect your car’s interior is to add a dark tint to the windows. Winter sun can be extremely bright, and even on cloudy days, it can be pretty brutal inside your car. Adding tint will help keep the sun’s glare out of your car, keeping your passengers and your interior a lot cooler. Make sure that whoever you go to for the tint knows you’re doing it to protect the car’s interior. They may tell you that it’s not necessary or that they don’t offer it for whatever reason, but make sure you tell them exactly what you want. The darker tint will help keep the sun out, but it should still let enough light in for you to drive safely.
Finally, make sure that the tire pressure is at its proper level. Winter weather can cause tire pressure to drop due to the cold, and this can lead to some pretty dangerous driving conditions. Plus, it can also shorten the life of your tires. You don’t want to overinflate your tires in the winter, but you also don’t want to let them get too low. Consult your owner’s manual for information about what the proper tire pressure for your vehicle is in the winter. If you don’t have the manual, you can find the information online. Once you know what the proper pressure level is, you can check it every month or so with a tire pressure gauge.
The exhaust system can also become a problem in the winter. Cold weather can cause the exhaust to crack or break, often without you even knowing it’s happening. This can cause a leak in the system and put you, your passengers, and other drivers at risk. To avoid this, you want to make sure that the exhaust system is properly insulated. You can also get a silencer that will put the exhaust out of harm’s way. Finally, make sure that your muffler is in good working order. Rattling or leaky mufflers can be very dangerous, especially during the winter when they’ll be putting a lot of extra heat into the air.
Conclusion
The winter can be very hard on cars, and you don’t want to get caught unprepared. It is important to make sure your car is prepared for the cold weather ahead. A simple way to do this is to make sure you have enough windshield fluid to clear your windshield in case of freezing weather. Also, make sure your car’s engine is protected from the cold weather by topping off antifreeze as necessary. If you have a garage or a covered parking spot, make sure that it is heated if necessary. Finally, check your car’s tires to make sure they are adequate for the coming weather. Tires are especially important in cold weather, as they lose efficiency. Follow this checklist and you’ll be able to protect your car from the worst of the winter. If you live in an area that gets a lot of snow, your car may be spending more time covered in snow than it does driving. Make sure to clean off your car every time it snows so that the snow doesn’t become a problem. You also want to make sure that the snow doesn’t freeze in your car. This can cause all kinds of problems, from blocking critical components to becoming a safety hazard when it melts.
