Driving Home for Christmas? Yeah!
Essential Vehicle Checks and Road Safety Devices for Winter Driving
Never has there been a more important time of the year than now, to perform those all-important weekly checks on our cars and vans.
We’re all guilty of letting the basics of car maintenance and upkeep slip – what with the fast pace of life we live, to the very fact that most of us are very fortunate to drive modern and reliable cars and vans for business, social and domestic use. The recent cold snap doesn’t help either. A dash to the car, engine on, fans on fall blast, a quick scrape of the ice on the windscreen and we’re good to go. Or so we think.
Prevention is always better than cure and with the potential dangers associated with winter driving, we need to make sure that our cars, vans, and motorbikes are in tip top condition. If you don’t feel confident to undertake the tasks on your own, then many garages and car parts retailers can do them for you – sometimes, even for free!
Tyre Tread and Pressure
In some countries, it’s compulsory to have a set of winter tyres for the season, but in the UK it is not so. What is mandatory though, is safe tyres in optimum condition. The tread needs to be above the legal minimum tread depth for cars, which in the UK is 1.6mm. This can be measured using a dedicated tread gauge or the edge of a 20pence piece - Simply place a 20p coin into the main tread grooves of your tyre. If the outer band of the 20p coin is obscured when it is inserted, then your tread is above the legal limit.
When it comes to tyre pressures, this is more specific to your vehicle regarding the type of vehicle, its current weight burden, and the road conditions. You can often find the maximum and minimum pressure requirements on the side of the tyres or on a sticker inside of the door frame. Failing that, a quick search online can help. Most petrol stations feature air pumps with automatic inflation settings and tyre pressure guides too.
Be sure to check your tyres all around and tend to any punctures, flat spots, wear, or deflation – good tyres can save your life, bad tyres can land you points on your licence, a fine, or worse case scenario, be the cause of an accident.
Recommended Product
The NightSearcher i-Spector Pocket is perfect for checking tyres. As a small, pocket-sized rechargeable LED light it’s bright at 350 lumens, and small enough to get in under the wheel arch and illuminate your tyres for inspection.
Engine Fluid Levels
Our motor vehicles need two essential fluids to run efficiently and effectively: oil and water / coolant. Both these fluids need to be clean and kept topped up for optimum engine performance.
Oil specifications are dependant on your vehicle and engine and are categorised by its viscosity or thickness at two different temperatures – when the engine is cold (5W for example) and when the engine is at 100-degrees C (30 for example, referencing a 5W-30 engine oil). Find out more about engine oil viscosity grades here. Most garages and car parts retailers can help you to find the correct oil for your vehicle.
Water, or engine coolant are a bit more generic across vehicle types, but there are some differences when it comes to the coolant / antifreeze additives that you must add to the water. Water on its own isn’t good enough for engines – it can freeze at cold outside temperatures, or boil at high engine temperatures if the cooling system isn’t completely pressurised. Both scenarios can cause severe damage to an engine. By adding coolant / anti-freeze to the engine water we change the properties of the water by lowering its freezing point and raising its boiling point. This allows the water to resist the temperature extremes and allows it to do its job of drawing heat out of the engine more effectively.
Typically, there are three or four different types of engine coolant, all depicted by the colour of the fluid. It’s important to choose the right one for your engine, as the different compounds within them can affect the rubber hoses and other components within the engine’s cooling system.
Recommended Product
Checking and topping up your oil and water is a two-handed job and so we recommend the NightSearcher Micro 1000 for this job. It’s compact, yet powerful and features a strong magnetic base which can swivel too. Attach it to the underside of your bonnet, position the light accordingly, and have both hands free for this quick and simple maintenance job.
Washer Fluid
Did you know that an empty washer fluid bottle can cause your vehicle to fail its MOT? Whilst you’re under the bonnet, be sure to check this equally important fluid level.
Keep your windscreen clean, clear, and free of obstructions including stone chips on the outside and any furry dice hanging from the rear-view mirror!
Light Bulbs
Check that all your bulbs are working, and the lenses are clean and clear too. Remember to check your fog lights, full beam, and brake lights too. You’ll need someone to help you with this essential task.
Your lights and bulbs not only shine the way ahead for you, but they also alert the other road users to your actions too. Whether you’re slowing down, turning, or alerting to a hazard, the bulbs of our vehicles are important tools for situational awareness. Make sure they’re working and have a spare one of each bulb in the vehicle too.
General Road Safety Tips and Advice
As already mentioned, prevention is better that cure, so be sure to set some time aside when it’s light outside to have a quick check over your vehicle.
Always leave plenty of time for your journey this Christmas. The weather can change quickly and even a little bit of rain can double your stopping distance, so don’t be in a rush, keep a safe distance between you and the vehicle in front.
Road safety / hazard warning lights are a good idea to have stowed in your vehicle. They alert road users of an accident or incident at incredible distances, and some of our hazard lights even feature front facing work lights to help illuminate any roadside repairs. The NightSearcher HazStar is a firm favourite – a dual purpose hazard warning light and front-facing work light.
As we’ve seen recently, heavy snow can bring about immediate road closures. It’s a good idea to keep warm clothes and a blanket in the car just in case you get caught out. Be sure to have more than enough fuel for your journey too – just in case you get stuck somewhere and need the engine running to keep warm.
Last, but by no means least, do not drink and drive! Not at any time of the year, but particularly at Christmas or during the winter. A lot of police forces operate zero tolerance at this time of the year, so even if you haven’t been in an accident, you can still dramatically impact your life for the worse, through points or even the loss of your licence.
Whether you’re driving home for Christmas or generally out and about on the roads this winter, be sure to check your vehicle regularly to ensure the safety of yourself and others.
Until next time,
Season’s Greetings and a Happy New Year
Drive Safe.
NightSearcher