Before you think of driving your car away on a summer vacation, you need to prepare it for the long haul. Normally what happens is that in the excitement of packing your bags off for the long awaited trip you may forget to pay some much needed attention towards preparing your car for the long-distance trip.
And such attention is not only required, but also goes a long way in ensuring that you complete the travel in the car safely. By preparing your car beforehand, you will save yourself delays because of issues that may crop up right in the middle of the trip. And that last would spoil the vacation entirely.
So, the first thing that I would recommend and do a fortnight before I embark on the summer vacation trip is to test drive my car to check for any untoward noise, shaking, or vibration of gauge needles. If I find any such symptoms, I would definitely take my car to the nearest service center for some much needed repair work.
I would also check all the electrical systems for any issues as that could make my car blind to traffic during night. After ensuring the car battery is working optimally, I would then turn towards a mandatory inspection of car tires. Not only is the air pressure check important, to gauge how worn the car tires are makes for a car drive that is unhindered by change of tires midway during the vacation travel.
A related aspect is to get the alignment of wheels checked at a car service center. At the same time tire rotation and wheel balancing may be performed if found necessary. These corrections can make for an enjoyable trip unspoiled by needless stoppages for car maintenance during the trip.
Another important check that a car needs before a long trip on the highway is the one related to stopping a car exactly when you direct it to. Yes, I am referring to the brakes. Obviously, you and your family's safety is paramount, especially during long drawn out travel on highways, country roads, and dirt tracks and the correct and timely operation of brakes is required to ensure that.
The brake fluid plays an important role in its optimal and timely operation and therefore it needs to be checked for change in its properties. If required, the worn out brake fluid in the vehicle needs to be replaced with that from a fresh pack. You can even check out the mechanical operation of the brake pedal thereafter.
That brings me finally to the engine coolant. Especially in the hot summer, seizure-less car engine functioning is dependent to a large extent upon the coolant that helps cool it. The quality of the coolant, the quantity of corrosion inhibitor in it, the amount and the age of the coolant all affect engine operation. Unless the brake fluid is already from a fresh pack and in the proper amount and of the required quality, a change is recommended to ensure the car's engine does not hiccup to a stop during the planned summer vacation.
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