There’s no better feeling than the excitement of going on a road trip with your friends or family. Whether it’s to the nearest city or across the country, you know it’s going to be an adventure.
Even though you might be driving a few hours from home, you don’t want to neglect your car for a maintenance check. Before jumping on the highway, you want to make sure your car is ready for the journey. Here are few tips to help you prepare for your road trip.
- Perform a basic check-up. You want to make sure all your lights are working; this includes: tail lights, blinkers, and headlights. Make sure your windshield wipers and fluids are all working well. And of course, make sure your oil changes are up to date.
- Check the battery. Make sure your battery is strong and has clean terminals. To help with this, a little baking soda and water will do the job.
- Bring a GPS. A GPS is what can save you on your road trip. Rather than trying to figure it out on your own by using your phone or use an old fashioned map, typing it in the GPS will be much easier. It can give you alternate routes if there’s construction or help you direct to the nearest mechanic if something was to go wrong with your car.
- Don’t pack your car to the limit. Although many people over pack because you never know when you’re going to need something, filling the trunk of your car to the maximum isn’t the smartest idea. You need to be able to see out of your back windshield so trying to stuff extra luggage or beach gear in your trunk at the last minute isn’t the best solution.
- Be ready for anything. Road trips might not always go the way you planned it, so be patient. If you get off course, pull over and re-type the address into the GPS. It’s also likely that you will run into traffic rather than trying to go off course and create your own route sit put and be patient.
- Lastly, be safe. Make sure you follow the rules of the road and look out for crazy drivers.
As long as you follow these tips, you should have a successful road trip!
