Is Your Car Ready for Winter?

The leaves are turning yellow, snow is appearing on the mountain peaks, and the days are getting shorter, signaling that winter is approaching. Everyone is starting to think about the upcoming snowsport season, and you are probably starting to get your ski and snowboard gear ready. Now is also the perfect time to ensure your car is ready for winter, as the first snowfall and frost on roads will not be far off.

• Related: Driving On Snow, For Dummies

Tires

Good tires are the key part of your snow-driving experience, so ensure your tires have a minimum of 0.15 inches of tread depth left. If you will spend time on roads prone to being covered in snow, invest in a pair of winter tires. Winter tires have a higher natural rubber content, making them softer and more supple in cold temperatures. They have deeper treads and a series of small grooves (or sipes) designed to disperse water, improving traction. The deep tread depth of winter tires allows snow to get stuck to the tires, which might sound counterintuitive but allows for more grip. Nothing grips snow better than snow. Winter tires significantly improve the braking distance in winter, making for safer driving. In temperatures below 44°F, stopping distances on summer tires can be as much as twice those of winter tires, especially on wet roads. This can increase to 8 to 10 times in icy or snowy conditions.

Battery

It is recommended that you check your car battery before winter. Batteries are particularly susceptible to the cold and can freeze if they are not fully charged, which is often a problem with old batteries. In addition, cold temperatures can cause condensation inside the battery, leading to corrosion.

Anti-freeze

Anti-freeze is a colored liquid that stops the water in your car’s cooling system from freezing during winter. Adding anti-freeze to your radiator water lowers the freezing point of the water in the cooling system. Anti-freeze is a concentrate, so read the instructions of your car manufacturer carefully for the right coolant mix. Make sure your car has sufficient coolant. Most cars will have a warning light that flashes if the level is too low. If you are unsure about the coolant level, refer to your car’s manual on where the expansion tank is located in the engine bay. The expansion tank is a plastic chamber that has minimum and maximum points marked clearly on the outside. Anti-freeze must also be added to the windscreen wiper water in winter to prevent it from freezing and blocking the water jets.

Inventory

To be ready for any occasion, make sure you have these useful items in your car for the snow season:

• a small bottle of WD-40 or an aerosol de-icer for defrosting frozen locks
• an ice -scraper for snowy or icy windows
• a blanket for emergencies
• a shovel in case your car is stuck in soft snow or covered by snow
• a small brush for brushing snow off the car
• a jumper cable or even a portable battery with starter cables
• a small rope for towing
• tire chains (ensure they are the correct size if you have changed vehicles or tires)
• spare finger gloves

…or as the Scout’s motto goes: “Be prepared!”