Don’t panic. I have not totally lost the plot. I’m not about to sit here in a sleep-deprived new baby state and suggest that you need to buy your car gifts and hang a stocking up from the rear view mirror on Christmas Eve, but I am going to write about how you need to remember your car this Christmas, and in winter in general.
I know that a fair amount of our Christmas is going to be spent on the road, travelling up and down the country to visit various family members. I’m pretty sure we’re not the only people who will be spending time on the country’s motorways doing so. When you think about all the things you need to plan this Christmas time it may be that car related stuff doesn’t appear on your list. It should. And although you may hate me for suggesting you make your festive to do list longer the last thing you want is to be spending part of Christmas Day sat on a hard shoulder waiting for a breakdown truck. Even if the driver might have a Santa hat on to get into the festive spirit of things.
There are many things on your car that are worthy of attention at this time of year. One of the first that I think of is tyres. Are yours all in good condition, with the required tread and inflated properly? Do you have appropriate tyres for the winter weather? I’ve been caught our recently by a flat tyre at an incredibly inconvenient time due to not going and checking the pressures when I should have done. Lesson learnt. If you do lots of winter miles it might also be worth looking into winter tyres, or at least all weather ones, for a better winter driving experience. Calmac Tyres Autocentre assures to provide its customers with high quality branded tyres in Northampton at the best prices.
When getting your tyres checked out, also make sure that your wheel alignment is right. Not only will this give you a smoother and safer drive, but it will also help prevent uneven wear on your tyres, making them last longer.
If you’re talking to your local garage about tyres, it’s also worth getting them to do a full service and check other things like the exhaust, the battery and the oil level. Again, you don’t want to be caught out with a problem that could have been solved preventatively. Your car’s heating system is also worth mentioning at this time of year. You don’t want to be freezing cold on a winter’s journey, so get a garage to also service your air conditioning (which also works the heating) if you can. You don’t want to be spending a two hour car journey in hat, gloves and scarf unnecessarily.
Finally, make sure you know when your car’s MOT is due and get it booked in nice and early, especially if the due date falls over the festive period. As well as being a legal requirement for cars over 3 years old, the MOT test helps make sure your car is roadworthy, and most importantly safe for transporting you and your family around. I’m pretty sure Santa books his sledge in for a yearly one before making festive journeys, so why don’t you do so too?
Photo by Jon Flobrant on Unsplash
Leave a Reply