No matter where you live in the UK the difference between summer and winter can be quite substantial. Despite in recent years having had relatively mild winters. As with general car maintenance, you need to consider essential winter car maintenance to help you and your car survive the winter safely.
Tyre Checks
Whether or not you live in an area that regularly receives snow, you should take an in-depth look at your vehicle’s tyres before winter sets in.
There are four things to look out for when it comes to checking your tyres.
Pressure
Ensure all tyres are at the right pressure. You can find the recommended pressure in the owner’s manual. Overinflated or underinflated tyres can affect the grip and handling of your car, especially in the cold weather.
Tread Depth
You should check your tyres have plenty of tread left on them. If your tyres are nearing the legal tread depth, it’s often safer to change them early and have the maximum amount of grip for the coming cold winter drives. You can test this with the 20p test – you want 1.6mm across the central 3/4 of the tyre.
Side Wall Damage
Inspect the tyre sidewalls for any bulges or cracks. Any abnormalities can indicate a defect, or the tyre is starting to age, which will affect its performance. You can visually inspect the tyres or run your hand over the tyre surface and feel for any damage.
Uneven Wear
If you notice any signs of uneven wear across your tyres, this could indicate the tyres are not properly aligned or balanced. It is recommended to take it to a garage to improve the handling of the vehicle.
Fluid Checks
This is something that is recommended doing regularly in any season, however, making sure that you have enough of the right fluids is essential when it comes to winter car maintenance.
You want to ensure your windscreen washer reservoir is full of windscreen washer fluid and not just tap water (which will freeze). We recommend checking your engine oil, radiator coolant, brake fluid and any other liquids you can see whilst you’re under the bonnet. Find out more in our guide on topping up car fluids.
Inspect & Replace Worn Parts
Essential winter car maintenance also includes inspecting items which commonly wear out. This mainly covers rubber and plastic components such as wiper blades, hoses, bushes and belts . If any rubber items are showing visible cracks or wear you should probably change them before any damage occurs.
It is also worth keeping an eye on your windscreen wiper blades as you’ll probably be using them a lot over the next few months. Streaks, squeaks and vibrations whilst using the wiper blades to clear rain, snow and ice from your windscreen are a sign that the blades need to be changed. If you aren’t sure whether you need to change your wiper blades check out our guide on ‘How To Tell If You Need New Wiper Blades‘.
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