Is Your Car Winter-Ready?

If you recently moved into the Arnold, MO area from down south, or you are a younger driver, you almost certainly do not have a lot of experience driving in snow. Winter driving isn't something you should take on without the proper knowledge, both about how to drive and how to prepare. However, even if you are a veteran motorist in Arnold, Oakville, Imperial, or Jefferson County, MO, your automobile should be ready for the dangerous winter roads every single year. It is insufficient to understand that you have to brake sooner or pulse them, you need to make sure that your entire automobile is winterized and all set to go. To do this, CARSTAR Arnold in Arnold, MO has assembled this checklist to make sure that your car is snow-ready!

Of course, your brakes are specifically important when you are driving your car on roads that may have snow, ice, or that slushy half-snow stuff. If you feel that your braking system might be malfunctioning for any reason, get them checked out by a trustworthy auto body repair mechanic as soon as possible. Ensure that you know whether your brakes are anti-lock or not. If they're anti-lock, utilize your brakes normally if you feel your motor vehicle beginning to slide. If you don't have anti-lock, tap your brakes instead of holding them down. It goes contrary to what you will want to do, but it's the best way to recover control over your motor vehicle.

Examine your tires to ensure that you'll receive the traction that you need to have from them. To do this, you don't need to have a complicated gauge to tell you if your tires don’t have sufficient tread. You only need a penny. Merely stick the penny in the tread in a number of different places on the tire. Make sure Lincoln’s head is going in the direction of the tire. If Lincoln’s head touches the tire, your tires have sufficient tread. If the top of Lincoln’s head isn't going to touch the tire, you need to get better tires.

Undoubtedly, you'll want to have a functioning heater and defroster system. This isn't just for your own comfort though. If the front and back defrosters aren't working, you need to take your automobile to an auto body shop so that you can have the absolute maximum visibility on winter roads.

Lots of people overlook that batteries are a significant part of preparing your automobile for the winter season. The connection to the battery ought to be clean, tightly fixed to the battery, and totally free of corrosion. Be sure that the mounting on the battery is tightly secured. The majority of batteries that are 3 years old or over should be tested to ascertain if you must have it replaced.

The best thing that you can do to prepare your automobile for winter is to take it to a dependable Arnold, MO mechanic and get them to look at items like the hoses, belts, anti-freeze, and exhaust system. If your hoses or belts are poor, the cold temperatures might affect them and then leave you stranded. Having insufficient anti-freeze will damage your cooling system after prolonged usage. If your exhaust system has leaks inside, dangerous deadly carbon monoxide gas could enter the cab of your automobile. Notably if you get stranded someplace and you wish to run the heater to stay warm, this can be incredibly unsafe. As a side note for if you're stranded, make sure that a window is cracked and your tail pipe is free of snow and ice to give the carbon monoxide gas a place to go.

Be sure that you have adequate washer fluid as well. Winter driving is characterized by lots of that slushy, muddy stuff. Washer fluid improves your visibility, which is definitely a very important thing.
You may have seen how vendors carry specialized rubber-coated windshield wiper blades that are particularly made for snowy weather. Regardless of how good of shape your windshield wipers are in, think about investing in these snow-blades. They are ideal for dealing with the extra weight of snow that they'll have to deal with.

Finally, keep plenty of gas in your gas tank. The general rule is never to have under half of a tank at any time. Definitely, that will depend on your specific car or truck, but following this rule will allow you to ensure your fuel lines don't freeze.

CARSTAR Arnold in Arnold, MO see lots of vehicles which were not prepared for winter come through their auto body repair shop. I hope this article has offered you an outline of how you can ready your vehicle for the hazardous conditions of winter. Still, it's understandable that even the most skilled seasonal driver with the most well-prepared vehicle can end up in an auto body accident in Arnold, MO. If that's your situation, I really hope you will think about going to CARSTAR Arnold.