All posts tagged auto winter care

Do It Yourself: How To Prepare Your Car For Winter

by Carsurfer Admin on 2015/01/28 in Auto Maintenance with Comments Off on Do It Yourself: How To Prepare Your Car For Winter

Preparing your car for winter is important. The last thing you want is to be stuck somewhere in the freezing cold with a big problem on your plate. In winter, tow trucks seem to be too busy and getting assistance is a long, cold wait. With proper preparation your car will can safely get you through this coldest of seasons and you can avoid the problems which can spring up due to weather.

Take Care Of The Engine

Making sure your engine will start, and continue to run during the winter is a major priority. Your battery must be fully charged for good starting power. Just as you and your pets must be inside when it gets cold, your car engine needs protection from freezing. Sufficient anti-freeze in your radiator will stop the water in your engine from turning into ice. Take this step to make sure your engine gets through the winter.

Good Tires

Proper tires to handle snow and ice on the roads is a safety factor to consider when winterizing your vehicle. Good tread on your tires will also help with slipping and sliding. If your area has a lot of snow, then snow tires could be the best addition to your vehicle as the cold approaches. Snow tires have knobs on the tires themselves to assist with gripping the road, even one covered with snow. You can even find chains to take on and off as the roads clear. Staying on the road is the best way to arrive safely at your destination this winter.

Tools for Vision

An ice scraper should be an important tool in your car. Overnight your windows can turn into a winter wonderland of ice particles. Visibility on iced up windows can be a safety hazard. Preventing some of the icing up process is possible if you clean your windows with an anti-fog cleaner. While not always 100% guaranteed, an anti-fog cleaner will help prevent the windows from re-fogging once cleaned and de-iced.

Transmission Servicing

If you are stuck, you might need a lower gear to move your vehicle. Make sure your transmission is up to the task by having it serviced. According to National Transmissions, a transmission repair in Calgary, this is the most overlooked part of preparing a car for winter, so make sure it’s on you list.

Winterizing a car has many components to it. Your engine must remain unfrozen, and your battery will need power to start the engine. Good tires for the road conditions are a must. Take the time to not only de-ice the windows, but prevent fogging, and make sure your transmission is up to the task of getting you moving in a lower gear if necessary.

How To Keep Your Nice Cars In Good Shape In The Winter

by Carsurfer Admin on 2013/12/16 in Uncategorized with Comments Off on How To Keep Your Nice Cars In Good Shape In The Winter

Winter can be a rough time on cars. Temperature extremes, poor road conditions and the presence of corrosive materials on the roads can all add up to problems. Fortunately, there are a number of things that car owners can do to keep their rides in great shape through the cold months of winter.

Washing and Waxing

Keeping a car washed and waxed does more than make it look good. Washing removes dirt and other debris that can scratch paint and waxing provides a protective layer to protect a car’s finish from damage from sand, cinders and other objects on the road that are thrown up by other cars. Washing and waxing is especially important during the winter months when there is more debris on the road surface that can end up on a car.

Underbody Washing

While maintaining a clean and well waxed exterior is important, winter is also a time to focus on the underbody of the car. Road salt and other corrosive materials are constantly being splashed under a car onto frame components, CV joints, brake lines and other parts. Left alone over time these materials will cause parts to corrode and fail. For this reason, it is important for car owners to thoroughly clean the underbody of their cars during winter. It is important to spray off the bottom of the car as well as focusing on the wheel wells, bumpers and other areas that collect debris.

Tires

If a car owner plans to drive his or her car during the winter months, a tire inspection is mandatory. Tires should have at least 50% of its original tread depth for safe winter driving. An even better idea is to purchase winter tires to be used only during the cold months. Studded tires are still available in most areas, but modern winter tires that do not use studs perform better in most winter driving conditions. Car owners who choose to buy winter tires can have them taken off when warm weather returns in the spring and stored until next winter.

Storage

Car owners who want to protect their cars from all of the problems that winter can present should consider renting storage units to protect their car during the cold months. This is a particularly good idea for those people who do not have access to off street parking. Parking on the street in winter is especially hazardous for a nice car as snow plows, sliding cars and the splash of salty street slush provides an unending array of hazards for a parked car.