Summer Motoring
Road trips, extra driving on family days out – it’s best to make sure your car is ready for the summer, because no-one wants to be broken down waiting for recovery!
Here are our top tips for safe driving this summer – pop by one of our garages to have a check or repair to get you on your way!
Tyres:
Check your tyres before you go anywhere, making sure the pressures are correct. If you’re filling the car up with people or luggage, add more pressure to the tyres.
Your tyres are at a higher risk of puncture in the heat if they’re not at the right pressure or the tread is thin.
A good test to check the tread is to use a 20p coin – if the tread is below the border of the coin, they’ll need replacing.
If you’re stopped, it’ll be two points on your license before you can say ‘change my tyres’.
Washers:
Screen wash is an important one for summer – because with less rain, nature isn’t giving us a helping hand. Sap from trees make your screen sticky and bits tend to make a mess on it so keep it clean with a topped up screen wash.
Levels:
If something isn’t quite right in the car, then you risk overheating – especially if it’s hot this year!
Keep a check on your coolant and oil and top them up, or pop by and we’ll do it for you.
Wipers:
There’s no point having the screen wash if the wipers then make a mess of it, so ensure your wipers are up to scratch and not causing smears, because in glaring sunlight, your vision will be restricted.
Brakes:
This one goes without saying and it’s a good idea to have your brakes checked at any time of the year but perhaps more so if you’re planning a summer trip.
Lights:
You still need your lights in the summer so do a quick test to make sure they’re all working – ask someone to help you as you go through them all.
You won’t necessarily know if your lights aren’t working unless someone tells you!
Exhaust:
Listen out for noises – they’re an indication of a problem, plus if there’s a bad smell, that can also be an indicator.
Emissions will be higher and there could be a risk of carbon monoxide exposure to people in the car too.
Suspension:
No-one wants to sit in a bumpy car for a long journey, plus damage can be caused if there’s a suspension problem. The last thing anyone wants is a cracked coil spring braking and piercing a tyre in the fast lane of a motorway.
MOT updated:
It’s quite common for people to bring their cars to us on the day their MOT is due, but we wouldn’t recommend it, especially if it needs some work to pass it and you need your car!
Try to plan in advance so that if we need to keep your car, you’re not left looking up the bus timetable.
You can have your MOT done up to a month before it's due. We send out MOT reminders by text to mobile numbers and/or email (unless you tell us not to) a month before the due date.
Air con:
We all want to be cool in the summer and if your air con is working, it will make for a very comfortable drive but if it’s not, then you’ll be a big, hot, metal box!
Air con needs to be re-gassed from time to time – every two years is recommended, especially in this area because of the high pollution levels.
