6 Tips to Get Your Car Winter Ready

If you’re a car owner, the thought of winter is enough to send chills down your spine. While you can get cozy around a fireplace, your car is left in the open to face the cold wind, rain, snow, and other adverse weather conditions.

What might have been a small glitch in the engine during summers can turn into a full-fledged problem in winter. It could even cause your car to break down in the middle of the road on a snowy night.

This is in addition to the hard work your car has to put in every day to keep operating in freezing temperatures. The good news is that there’s a lot you can do to maintain your vehicle’s health as the mercury levels plunge.

In this blog, we’ll discuss a few useful tips to help you take care of your car during winter. Let’s get started.

1. Watch the Weather

You can’t wait until the arrival of winter before you start looking after your car. It’ll leave you with no time to get your car serviced and check the battery and engine. That’s why you should keep a close eye on the weather forecasts in your neighborhood and city/town to find the expected onset of winter.

You can get access to accurate hyperlocal weather data on ClimaCell’s forecast site. Alternatively, you can install a secure and trusted weather app on your phone. It can go a long way to help you prepare your car for bad weather.

Also, accurate temperature and precipitation data will help you make important decisions, such as:

• Changing the engine coolant
• Installing snow tires
• Moving wiper blades away from the windscreen

2. Get a Car Cover

A sturdy and durable car cover is a year-round necessity. However, it becomes all the more important during the winter months. Make sure you purchase one before the chill sets in, if you haven’t done that already. To begin with, it prevents the accumulation of organic matter in various nooks and crannies of your car.

This, in turn, prevents leakage and corrosion. Also, a body cover safeguards your car from snow and raiThis is espn in the cold weather. This is particularly essential if your car spends most of its time parked in the backyard.

3. Buy Winter Tires

Winter tires are made using soft rubber and have special tread patterns. This makes them easier to drive on snowy and icy roads. Also, they remain fairly flexible even in sub-zero temperatures. The best part is that winter tires offer excellent grip and traction on slippery roads.

If you stay in an area that receives plenty of snowfall, getting winter tires installed would be a wise investment. Make sure you choose a reliable vendor and get the tires properly installed by a professional mechanic.

4. Test the Battery

Yes. It’s possible to move your car around even with a faltering battery in summer. However, with the advent of winter, a weak battery is as good as a dead one. And you wouldn’t want to find this out the hard way.

That’s why it is a good idea to get a battery load-test done right at the onset of winter. If the battery or the charging system shows any signs of damage, make sure you get it replaced by an authorized service station. 

5. Fill the Gas Tank

If you’re driving your car around in winter, make it a point to keep the gas tank full all the time. It’ll prevent you from getting stranded on an isolated road on a cold winter night. If at all, you get stuck on the road due to bad weather, you’ll at least have enough fuel to run the heater and keep you warm.

Also, a full gas tank means negligible chances of condensation in the fuel pump. This, in turn, prevents the accumulation and freezing of water in the fuel pump and ensures that your car runs smoothly.

6. Repair Scratches

Precipitation and road salt can easily latch on to any minor scratches on your car’s surface and lead to corrosion. The best way of avoiding this is to get all the scratches repaired and restored before it starts snowing.

If you don’t have the budget to go to a service station, try repairing the scratches at home. All you have to do is slather some nail polish (that matches the color of your car) on the damaged areas. While this isn’t a permanent solution, you’ll be good to go for the season.

What hacks have you used to protect your car from the cold? Share your suggestions in the comments section below.