posted by Travel Cat on Feb 4
Regardless of whether you have breakdown recovery - you need to check your own car!
Yes, they will come and help you out of a sticky spot if you break down or get a flat tire, but they can’t help you see that car behind you, or make your seat-belt save your life in an accident!
This means that there are certain things that you should check yourself before heading off on your vacation in your car, van, or RV.
Obviously, making sure that you have enough ’spares’ can go a long way to keeping you on the road as well - so a set of spare bulbs, a roadworthy spare tire and the jack to help change it, a warning triangle, spare gas, spare oil and water all in suitable containers and blankets and waterproof clothes just in case!
But the list below is for those little things that only take a second to check for yourself, giving you time to put them right before heading off:
Tires:
Make sure that they all have a decent depth of tread on all used and spare tires and that they are fully inflated to the recommended pressure.
Lights:
Check that they are all working as they should when it’s not sunny - whether this means getting a friend to stand outside and watch them all be checked, or reversing up to a window in the evening and checking them yourself: front and back!
Windscreen:
Any cracks or chips in the front windscreen should be treated by an expert to make srue that they stay the same size! Untreated cracks and chips can easily spread at any time into something that makes seeing out of the front window impossible and/or dangerous.
Getting a chip fixed is usually free with your insurance - but a new windscreen isn’t!
Your window-washing liquid and wipers should be checked too as they can make driving impossible under some conditions. My windscreen got totally covered in road grit during a cold spell, and it didn’t seen a problem until I turned a corner into bright sunshine - I couldn’t see a thing - not a thing: then I found out that my windscreen water was empty and I literally had to put on my hazard lights and stop there and then, right in the middle of the road!
Seat Belts:
Make sure that all your seat-belts work properly even if you are not intending to use them, as you never know when you will need them - and you could be very far from a garage! And of course, seat-belts are a way of saving lives - so your friends and family will be a lot safer with them working correctly.
Doors & Windows:
For your own safety and comfort, you should make sure that all doors and windows work correctly as you never know when you need to get out of the car quickly and when you might need to open your windows.
Both have happened to me, as my drivers door was being fixed over a period of a few days as the electric windows had stopped working. Then I pulled up at a busy motorway toll booth! I had to get out of the car using the passenger door (!) and walk all the way around front of the car to pay the cashier, then walk all the way back around with more than 5 cars I could see watching me!
I will certainly make sure that never happens again!
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