How to prepare your car for winter

Your car needs to be prepared to cope with the impact of winter weather conditions in the same way that you do. However, preparing the vehicle for the impact of freezing conditions is only part of what car drivers need to think about; there is also the issue of making the car safe for you to drive on icy and slippery road surfaces. You don´t want to be scouring the internet for a road traffic accident site, as a result of failing to make your vehicle safe for these conditions.

To begin with it is advisable to take your car to a qualified mechanic to have it thoroughly checked, before the worst of the winter weather sets in. There are several key areas that you should make sure to have checked at this point: these include the battery, brakes, thermostat and heater. You should also look to have your tyres examined by someone who knows what they are doing, because you need to be sure that they have sufficient tread on them to give you proper traction. The minimum required tread depth for tyres in the UK is 1.6mm, but if you want to be sure of your own and other people´s safety during the worst winter weather, you should probably look into getting your tyres replaced if the tread is less than 3mm depth. The brakes and tyres are amongst the most important parts of your car to maintain for safety reasons, particularly in the winter when road surfaces will be treacherous. It may be a good idea to consider investing in specialist winter tyres to cope with the ice and snow on the roads.

Another part of winter that your car needs to be prepared for is the salt that is put on the roads to help neutralise the slippery surface. This snow can potentially cause damage to the paintwork on your car, which you can minimise by rinsing the salt off on a regular basis. Periodically you should also look to thoroughly wash and wax your car properly in order to prevent the paint becoming corroded. Another issue you should look into is that of your windscreen wipers; it is best to secure winter wipers, rather than the standard ones, to ensure that they are able to clear heavy, frozen snow from your windscreen. You should also make sure that the nozzles that release the windscreen wiper fluid onto your windscreen do not become blocked by frozen wax, or outside debris during the winter.

If you check all of these areas before the worst of the weather hits, your car should be able to cope with the winter months.

published: 21/11/2011