Temperature drops and adverse road conditions can place the function of your car and the safety of your family at risk. Assessing your auto maintenance before winter can help prevent these events from happening.
Before you celebrate Turkey Day, consider marking the following tasks off your weekend to-do list.
Auto Maintenance
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Opt for Winter Tires
Exchange your all-season tires for true winter tires. All-season tires offer a wider lower-profile tread, which is not good for snow. If you want to go easy on the wallet, choose a package with tires already mounted on a new set of wheels. Remember, navigating through snow requires deeper tread than navigating on hot pavement. Click here to learn how to measure a tire’s tread depth.
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Replace Windshield Wipers
You should change your wiper blades every year. Beam blades are an ideal winter choice, because they don’t have an external spring that can freeze over. To maintain the performance of your wiper blades, turn them off before turning off the car to prevent motor burnout and lift the blades off the windshield when you park your vehicle to make scraping easier.
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Check the Battery
Winter puts stress on your automobile’s battery. Routinely have a free check performed to assess your battery’s remaining power before the deep freeze arrives and scratch another auto maintenance item off your list.
This precautionary measure can help ensure that bad weather during your holiday travels doesn’t leave you and your family stranded.
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Inspect the Nethers
Nethers are the protective panels under your car. You should have them checked regularly to ensure that they aren’t broken or loose, which can cause the panels to break off as you travel through deep snow.
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Check the Antifreeze
Cooling system failure is the leading cause of engine-related breakdowns. Check the condition and level of your coolant regularly to ensure that it is free of debris and other contaminants. Follow vehicle and coolant manufacturer instructions if adding or replacing coolant, or have the service performed by a professional. Most mechanics recommend flushing and replacing coolant every 40,000 miles (more often in colder climates).