How To Protect Your Car Over Winter

When winter hits it can bring extreme weather conditions that can be harsh on your car. We have come up with a guide to help you look after your car over the winter to keep it in a good condition and to keep you safe.

Over winter the bad weather conditions can mean more dirt building up on your windscreen and prevent you from having a clear field of vision when driving. It is important that you check that your windscreen wipers are in good condition and to check your fluid levels to ensure you can clear your screen from any debris.

• Check your windscreen washer fluid levels are topped up to ensure you can clear your windscreen when driving. We recommend that you add a windscreen washer fluid to your water tank as this performs better than water at removing dirt and grime.

• Make sure you put antifreeze liquid (also known as coolant) in to you cars cooling system to prevent the water from freezing and to keep your engine running smoothly.

• Keep de-icer and an ice scraper in your car to efficiently remove any ice or snow from your windscreen.

As it can be wet and icy over winter it is important that you pay extra attention to the condition of your tyres to ensure that they safe and can handle the extreme weather.

• Tread - make sure the tread of your tyres are not worn, the legal minimum tread depth in the UK is 1.6mm across the central ¾ of the tread around the complete circumference of the tyre. It is recommend for safety that you replace your tyres before they reach this limit.

• Pressure - It is also important to check your tyre pressure regularly, having the correct tyre pressure optimises your tyres performance and increases the tyres grip. Under inflated tyres can cause steering to become less precise and increase the risk of aquaplaning.

When the weather is bad there is a greater chance that your car will collect debris.

• When parking your car in a public place try to avoid parking under large trees, the falling leaves can land on your car and leave tree sap or stains on your car.

• When parking at home place your car in your garage to protect it from the elements.

• If you do not have a garage or have more than one car, you might want to consider installing a carport. Carports will help to protect your car from bad weather conditions and also provide you with shelter when getting in and out of the car.

Over winter the elements can leave dirt and debris on your car, leaving this dirt on your car can be potentially harmful to the paintwork.

• Pressure washing your car is excellent for removing any built up or hard to reach dirt from the body of your car. Regular washing will prevent dirt and harmful road salt from building up on your car. Road salt is formulated to soak up any moisture, if this is left on surfaces of your car this can lead to metal corrosion.

• Applying a synthetic polymer sealant or natural carnauba wax to your car after it has been cleaned will form a barrier on your car to protect the paintwork through the winter months.

• During the winter months leave a bigger gap than usually between your car and the car in front. This is safer when braking distance is increase in bad conditions and will also prevent any dirt or salt from the road being sprayed on to your paintwork.

We hope our winter guide will help to keep you safe on the roads and protect your car. If you have any helpful tips or advice please share them with us.