Prepping Your Vehicle For Winter

 Blue Collar Prepping recently ran an article entitled "Vehicle Check: Winter Is Coming," that has some good points on preparing for winter:

• Check your tires for wear and for pressure (including your spare tire);
• Change your wiper blades;
• Check your washer fluid (the author lives in a warm area so he doesn't use any with anti-freeze properties--those of you in cold areas should make sure that you are using the proper washer fluid);
• Check your brakes;
• Check your coolant (anti-freeze) levels. 

    Basically, you want to give your car a thorough looking over to spot potential issues that might lead to a breakdown such as belts, hoses, spark plugs, wires and cables, and make sure that your battery still has enough cold cranking amps (CCA) to handle the cold weather. 

    Although not mentioned by the author, you can pick up winter wiper blades that are supposed to resist the build-up of ice better than regular wiper blades. The downside is that they tend to streak more than regular blades. But I've heard (although I haven't tried them yet) that the beam style wiper blades work better in both summer and winter than either the regular or winter blades, respectively.

    If you live in a cold area of the country to get out and inspect your snow tires and/or chains to spot any issues before hand. It's still too early to mount snow tires (at least in Idaho) but better to spot an issue now than after the snow has started falling. I saw this at Bridgestone's website explaining why winter tires are better than standard all-season tires when temperatures stay at or below freezing for long periods of time:

If you live in a place that experiences extremely cold winter temperatures, it is recommended that you install winter tires when winterizing your car. When the temperature consistently hovers around or below freezing, the rubber compounds in non-winter tires harden, decreasing the tire’s ability to grip the road. Winter tires use special compounds engineered to resist hardening in cold temperatures, providing better traction in ice, snow, slush, and even dry pavement.

    While I always keep a pair or two of work gloves in my car, I also like to keep a pair of winter gloves in the car during colder months. I keep an extra pair of warm socks in the car in case my feet or if a break down requires me to resort to walking, and a couple blankets in case I'm stuck in the car. If you are the type that wears a lighter coat because you are just running between a warm car and warm building, you probably will want to throw some extra winter clothing (including boots) into your car in case you become stranded or have to walk. 

    Check to make sure that you have ice scrapers in your car and that they aren't broken or too dulled. You might want to add a small shovel or spade and some sand or something else gritty that can add traction to help you become unstuck. 

    Since winter months mean long nights, it is probably a good idea to make sure that the flashlight that you keep in the car still has working batteries. 

    For a more comprehensive list of things to check, lube, or otherwise prepare for winter on your car, see "27 Things You Must Do To Prepare Your Car For Winter" at Family Handyman.