Planning a Road Trip? Read how to prepare your Car for it

 Who doesn’t love an adventurous road trip? Driving beside a coastline or between a valley, both of these can be a fun and memorable experience. Driving away from the city crowd on the expressways with fun-loving companionship and taking halts on roadside dhabaas for flavoursome meals is everyone’s favourite thing to do.

In the excitement to go shopping, booking hotels and plan other events people often neglect their car’s condition, which is the most important part of the entire trip.

Trust me a car breakdown during a road trip can be the biggest nightmare and mood killer for you, hence it’s extremely important to check your car thoroughly. Don’t know where to start from? No worries! we got you covered with a checklist to follow.  

1.     Check for due Service

Take your car to the service centre if its service is due. Reach the service adviser if you are facing any specific issue in your car. Once your car’s service is done take it for a spin to inspect any issues in the car.

If your car is serviced recently then it’s almost ready to hit the roads and there won’t be a lot to check before a road trip.

However, if you got your car serviced more than 3 months prior to the trip, it’s better to follow the below checklist;

2.     Check the Battery

Your car’s ignition system can’t work on a dead battery.

Mostly a car’s battery has a life of 3 to 5 years, if it’s older than that get a new one installed in your car. If the battery isn’t too old and is not working efficiently get it checked. This could be due to a drained-out battery and would be back to life once serviced and charged.

Lead deposition on the battery terminal can also be one reason that may disrupt the current flow. Use a brush to remove such deposition and apply grease later to avoid such deposition in future.

3.     Check the Fluid levels

A car requires various fluids such as engine oil, coolant for radiator, fluid for steering, brakes, transmission and windshield. Low levels of fluids can result in a breakdown and might take a day or more to get repaired, eventually ruining your planned trip.

You can easily check fluid levels yourself in less than 10 minutes after opening the hood. In most new-generation cars there are indicators on the instrument cluster.

4.      Check Tyres and Air pressure

Always maintain appropriate tyre pressure as mentioned in the owner’s manual or on the driver’s side door. The underinflated tire causes more wear & tear and results in the consumption of more fuel while the overinflated one will cause a bumpy ride and inefficient braking. The inappropriate tyre pressure causes the tyre to overheat and may lead to a blowout.

Check for punctures and get them repaired. Keep the spare tyre inflated and carry the toolbox in the car that will be needed in changing tyres.

Also, it’s better to get a new set of tyres installed if they have exceeded 70 per cent of their life.

5.      Check Brakes

Of all, your car’s braking system is the most crucial safety feature. A road trip means cruising at higher speeds on expressways, driving through hill elevations, and encountering heavy rain. Obviously, no one would want their brakes to fail under such conditions.

Get your car’s brake inspected for brake fluid, pads, drums and rotors.

6.      Check Air filters

The air filters are installed in your car to filter the impure atmospheric wind containing dust and insects. After a point, these air filters gets clogged and if not replaced will cause unsatisfactory performance, fuel efficiency and interior air quality.

Apart from poor performance and fuel efficiency, a clogged air filter can result in an unbearable smell inside a car’s cabin, blowing away your comfort levels.

7.      Check Major Functions of Car

Don’t forget to check things like well-working and adequately illuminated headlamps, taillamps, and turn indicators. Ensure that wiper blades, windshield washers, defoggers and rear-view mirrors are in good condition.

Always remember, poor visibility can cause more exertion on the driver and can be an invitation to an accident. 

8.      Fill up Car’s Fuel Tank

This might sound lame to people but trust me I have seen people ignoring this when their car’s tank is half-filled. They plan to visit the fuel station when their car will be on reserve, but think what if there is no fuel station nearby or is shut down due to non-operational hours. I have faced such a stressful situation once and reached a fuel station when my car’s distance to empty indicator was showing just 4Km.

I would also advise you to top up fuel from fuel stations within city limits and not from highways, to avoid adulteration.

9.      Wash and Clean your Car

Make sure your car is cleaned nicely to avoid a smelly cabin throughout the trip, spending hours inside a messy and stinking car can be a disastrous experience. Pull out floormats of your car and wipe them out, use a clean cloth to wipe out seats, dashboard, door bins and glove box and get rid of any unnecessary wrappers and other garbage. Aftermost, don’t forget to place a new air freshener into your car.

Also, give your car a good wash from the outside, and make sure to use appropriate fabric and solution while washing. A car with cleaned mirrors, highlights, and front and rear windshield can increase visibility making driving easy and comfortable.

10 Check for the required Document

After following the above checklist and making your car ready for the road trip don’t forget to carry the following documents to avoid challans:

·       Driver’s Licence

·       Valid Car insurance

·       Vehicle registration certificate

·       Pollution under control (PUC) clearance slip

Few other suggestions;

However, the above list has prepared your car for the adventurous road trip still there are a few things that you may consider doing before your road trip.

·       Carry a first aid box with some extra medicine for headaches, stomach aches, and pain-relief spray.

·       Keep adequate drinking water, at least 1 litre for a person and don’t forget to refill it when you take halts.

·       Plan your route in advance. Taking an unplanned road trip sounds cool only in movies and web shows, while in reality, it’s an unmindful decision to take.