If you’re planning a road-trip you’ll have no doubt been thinking about the things you need to buy and do before you go, the in-car entertainment, snacks and drinks for the journey and planning your pitstops. On top of these extremely important considerations, you should also be ensuring that your car is in peak condition for it’s upcoming voyage. If you fail to prepare your car before you leave then you are leaving yourself open to the risk of break-down and vacation failure, the same goes for those who ride a motorbike, checking is important. To help you avoid this here are some tips to get your car ready for it’s journey.

Tires

Checking your tires is very simple and can be done in a short space of time, the two things you want to be looking at are the level of wear on your tires, and the level of air inside them. For the wear, you can do one of two things, either take a look at how much tread your tire has and make an assessment yourself or purchase an inexpensive tire gauge and get a more accurate measurement. For tire pressure, you will need to check your manual, all cars and tires have varying recommended pressure, once you find the correct level for yours, head to your local gas station and check to see if your tires comply, most gas stations will have a gauge.

Fluids

There are several fluids in the car that you should check before you hit the road and they can all be checked by you, no need for a mechanic. Brake fluid, oil levels, power steering fluid, windscreen-wiper fluid and coolant levels can all be checked from under the bonnet of your car. Almost all cars have easy access to check these fluids and are clearly indicated on the caps that you see beneath the hood. If you are in any doubt how to check your car’s levels then consult your manual, or have a search online for your make and model.

Lights

The last thing you want on your road-trip is to be pulled over by a police officer and being fined for having a faulty brake-light. To avoid such embarrassments, make sure that you check out all of your lights and indicators before you go. Make sure you grab someone to help out and simply turn the ignition on and test the brakes, indicators and lights of the car whilst your assistant watches to see if they work. To replace bulbs is really inexpensive, far less expensive than a fine would be so if you have an issue then you are far better fixing it before you go.

Boot Survivial Kit

It is recommended that in the boot of your car, you carry something of a survival kit should the worst occur and you break down. Within the kit you should have some first aid supplies, some warm clothing, tools for a tire change, a spare tire and a warning triangle in case you break down in the dark. A kit like this will give you a little peace of mind and can be a god-send if something untoward happens on your trip.