How to prepare your car for winter

1. How to prepare your car for winter Winter has already begun. You can enjoy your cup of hot cocoa watching Netflix rolled in your favourite blanket. But your car might be chilling outside. Therefore, you need to make some preparations to make your car ready for winter. Without much ado, let’s get started about how to prepare your car for the upcoming season. 1. Check your tires The first step in checking your tires for winter is checking the tread on it. The tires need to have enough tread on it to dig into the snow-laden road. If the tread is worn off, the tires won’t be effectively able to move on the snow- covered roads. Have a check on it before it starts to snow. Get the tires replaced if needed, probably with snow tires with better treads. You’ll also have to get the tire pressure checked. Cold air is denser than warm air and therefore takes lesser space inside the tire. This reduces the pressure of the tire. A substantially low tire pressure can be dangerous. However, you need to have an eye on it only when the winter starts as it’s the cold air which is the main cause of reduced pressure. 2. Check the coolant

2. Coolants are also known as anti-freeze help to keep the cooling systems from freezing up in the cold. However, to be effective it’s important that the coolant is fresh as old coolants lose the ability to do their jobs. It’s a good idea to get the coolant flushed in fall before winter hits. You also need to get the cooling system checked for any leakage. Make sure that the fresh coolant is refilled to full to help you last the entire winter without any problems. 3. Check the oil The first thing to check is the level of oil. Before winter starts make sure that all the oils are at the correct level. You may also need to check for the viscosity of the oil. Some cars require you to switch to different viscosity oil. Check your manufacturer’s manual to find out if you need to get the oil viscosity changed. However, it is generally older model cars which require different viscosity oils during different seasons to keep the oil flow proper. In hot seasons, it requires higher viscosity oil and in colder seasons, a lower viscosity oil. Modern cars typically run on lower viscosity oil throughout the year that doesn’t need to be changed. Just check your manufacturer’s manual to know if you need such a change. 4. Check the battery and its terminals A cold engine is difficult to crank over especially if it’s a cold morning. If the battery’s already not powerful enough, then you are going to have a tough time when winter hits. Get the battery and the terminals checked by the need of fall and get it recharged or replaced if needed to have a stress-free winter. 5. Check the wiper blades Winter is tough on your car but you know, it’s rough on the wiper blades. Cold air makes the rubber of the blades brittle and the snow and ice are more difficult to clear than water. If you already have a wiper in poor condition, then

3. the odds of its survival and optimum performance this winter is too less. And in some cases, it can even lead to fierce accidents, if it is not able to effectively clear the snow and ice from the windshield. Don’t take such a risk and just get it replaced if it needs in order to have a safe winter. Also, feel free to ask Own a Car Fresno if you have any questions. We would love to answer all your queries right here.