Winter weather can make driving a real challenge, especially when you’re not prepared for it. Without any preparations, you might find that every day spent on the road comes with a huge headache that you don’t know how to deal with.
So, find out how you can prepare for common winter driving problems this year.
Headache #1. A Snowed-In Car
You wake up to see that it’s been snowing all night. Your car is parked on the street, and it’s buried underneath the powder. You’re going to have to dig around your car in order to get it out of your parking space and onto the road.
How can you prepare for this? You should get yourself two shovels. One shovel is meant to be kept at home and the other should be kept in the trunk of your car (this one should be smaller or collapsible for storage purposes). You’ll need to use one of these shovels to dig up the snow settled around your vehicle.
Purchase a snowbrush with an ice scraper on the opposite end. The snowbrush will help you clean snow off the top of your vehicle, whereas the ice scraper will remove stubborn frost and ice from your windshield and windows. Replacing your windshield wipers with winter wiper blades can also help remove frost buildup from the windshield, giving you a clear view of the road ahead.
After using these tools, you should be able to warm up your car and leave your snowy parking spot. If your car is struggling to pull out of the spot, as if the tires are stuck, don’t keep pushing on the gas. It’s likely that your tires don’t have enough traction to move forward. You should have a box of kitty litter or sand in the trunk of your car. Sprinkle this around your tires to create more traction. This should help you drive out of the stubborn spot.
Headache #2. Slippery Streets
The roads are icy, and you’re worried that you’re going to slip and slide into an accident. The best way to prepare for slippery streets is to replace your car’s summer tires or all-season tires with a set of winter tires. Winter tires will have more tread on them, so they are designed to drive better over icy surfaces.
Headache #3. Stormy Weather
The weather could take a turn for the worse. A blizzard can blow in and completely reduce your visibility of the road ahead, turning your regular drive into a tense, white-knuckle marathon. What can you do in this situation? The best thing you can do is to try to find a safe place to pull over out of harm’s way and wait until the weather improves. Put your hazard lights on so that you remain visible to drivers, even through the falling snow.
To prepare for this situation, you should have an emergency kit that can help you safely wait out a storm inside your vehicle. Your emergency kit should include non-perishable food and bottles of water. It should also have winter accessories to keep you warm, like blankets, gloves, hats and hand warmers.
Headache #4. Roadside Emergencies
Regular roadside emergencies will turn all the more frustrating in the winter. When it’s freezing, going outside to change a flat tire or to boost your car’s battery will be a big challenge. You might not be able to do a DIY fix in this weather.
So, how can you prepare for this problem? Sign up for a roadside assistance plan. A roadside assistance plan will cover the costs of roadside assistance services, like replacing a flat tire, boosting your car’s battery or simply towing your car to a mechanic. So, you can feel free to call a professional to help you get out of these tricky situations, no matter the weather.
Without a roadside assistance plan, you may struggle to pay for urgent roadside services out of pocket. If you’re in this position, you could use credit to cover the expense. You could do this with your credit card, or you could go to a website like CreditFresh and try to apply for a fast online loan. With an approved online loan, you could use temporary funds to pay off the roadside service fees quickly. Then you could commit to a steady repayment plan for the online loan.
Only use borrowing solutions like credit cards and online loans when it’s necessary. These should not be used for non-essential expenses.
Stock up your car’s trunk. Change your tires. Sign up for roadside assistance. These are just some of the things that you can do to make sure that your driving experience is smooth and headache-free this winter.
