Winter Preparation Tips For Your Car

Winter brings with it an array of holidays, family picnics, and snow balls! On the other hand winter also brings long mornings filled with excruciating car troubles. Preparing beforehand on the maintenance of your car can help greatly with the endless troubles a car can give in winter.

A well maintained car has less chances of ditching you while driving then an ill maintained one. You should have a regular maintenance checklist of your car throughout the year. Some specific maintenance is advisable on a seasonal basis. And generally annual preparation tips include cleaning battery posts, inspection of spark plugs and breaks, and checking the engine oil.

Here are some winter maintenance tips you should keep in mind for preparing your car for winter:

• Check your Antifreeze: antifreeze plays a vital role of your car's protection against cold weather. A car generally has a solvent made with 50% water and 50% antifreeze in it. The level of the mixture should be checked regularly and should ideally be at full level. If you do not have the knowledge or are not open to the idea of popping that hood of your car, many service centers and mechanics will check the level for you free of any charge. A radiator flush should have already been done in the last season for optimal performance of your car.

• Inspect your tires: Good and healthy tires have many benefits. From assisting in good and efficient breaking to boosting the mileage, a good set of tires proves to be a knight in shining armor in winter. The depth of the tires should be checked for optimum depth. The recommended tire depth is 2/32' but if your tire depth is less then 4/32" then you should consider buying a new tire. Along with a tire in a good condition, the tire pressure should also be checked and maintained at the recommended pressure for the tire, the tire losses pressure in winter because of contraction of air molecules.

• Replace your wipers: In winter wipers do the job of cleaning and wiping anything that falls on your windshield, from snowfall to splashed slush from molten snow, the wipers of a car take care of everything. For proper cleaning a wiper should be in a healthy condition. The rubber blades of the wiper should be checked for cracks and unevenness resulting from change in weather conditions, or long term use.

• Check your windshield washer fluid: Windshields are used regularly in winter for cleaning the windshield. A lot of dirt and dust settled on the windscreen turns to stains when it mixes with dewdrops or water from snow. The use of washer fluid is used extensively for this reason only. The level of washer fluid should be checked regularly to avoid running out of the washer fluid. Care should be taken not to use anything other then washer fluid in the washer fluid reservoir because a washer fluid is specially designed for winter and wont freeze.

Apart from the above mentioned tips, many other precautions could be undertaken to suit the individual needs.