How to Winterize Your Car This Winter
With the winter starting early this year, some areas even seeing light snow fall this week in November, it is time to start prepping for the winter. Here are some accessories and guides we use to help winterize our car every winter
Remote starter system – There has been days when it is freezing cold where we live. What that means is that the water or rain or snow flurries that was falling the night before is now frozen solid. Any water that seeped in between windshields is now ice. If you are parking your car outside like us, you wouldn’t be able to open the doors early morning. Once when I was in Ohio, my friend had to struggle with all four doors before she could get one back door to open. She had to then crawl over seats to the driver’s seat to start the car and warm it up! This is where a remote starter system becomes useful. Those mornings when we are rushing to drop the kids at school, starting the car a few minutes’ early helps warm up the car. The starter systems cost $80 to $500 but according to reviews online these are not environment friendly and emit gas fumes. So use your judgment and use the remote starter system on days when absolutely necessary.
Ice scraper – This is a device we cannot live with. On freezing mornings, having the ice scraper gets the job done quickly. Remember to wear gloves when using this and remember not to keep ice scraper inside the car after done. One time, we had an ice blizzard and later when we wanted to use the car, the ice scraper was inside the car and we couldn’t open the car to get it in the first place! It was a lesson learnt for us. You can buy ice scrapers at any retail shop and doesn’t cost much. Look for ones that wouldn’t scratch the windshields or the car.
Seat heaters – This is an investment for your car. New models of cars are already coming up with this feature these days. We have easy fold over heaters that require little or no installation and isn’t complicated at all. These are not expensive either such as Wagan Tech seat heaters which cost around $50 per seat. This is eco friendly and doesn’t mess with the car’s electrical system.
Chains – Snow chains provide vastly improved traction when traveling on snow and ice covered roads. There are so many models to choose from so ensure to follow reviews and measurements in finding the perfect chain for your vehicle. I insist on chains around the wheels since black ice on the roads are extremely dangerous and I personally have seen other cars spin on roads covered with ice.
All season tires – If you have all season tires, then you can do without the chains. If you are living in extreme snow conditions, it may be better to invest in winter tires that give better traction. All season tires are good enough where there is light to moderate snow such as where we live. These tires will give traction on ice covered roads.
Durable floor mats – Floor mats are needed to keep the floor of your car clean and devoid of snow and dirt. Invest in some durable floor mats that cover most or the entire floor under the seats. Avoid mats that slip or slide and interfere with the gas or brake system. Mats help you avoid treading all the dirty snow into your car! The slush is eventually bound to get under the mats, so try to clean them when the weather is dry or little warm.
Emergency car kit – Finally, always ensure to keep an emergency car kit inside the car all times. You never know when the weather can turn severe or if you get stranded. Key things to include in the kit would be ice scraper, snow brush, first aid kit, booster cables, paper towels, chains, hand tools like screwdriver, pocket knife and some flares.
No one can anticipate any extreme weather conditions. But everybody can take precautions to brave through them.
