Making a journey this silly season? How to prepare your motor for festive travel

Christmas is almost upon us. Part of the joy of the season is the chance it gives us to meet up with family and friends, many of whom we might not have seen in a long time. This often means making a long trip to stay at the house of a distant relative – or perhaps coming home to stay at the house of a close one. So how should you prepare your car for Christmas travels to ensure safety?

For your Christmas driving experience to be as smooth and pleasant as possible, however, you’ll need to do just a little bit of groundwork. Let’s take a look at a few essential steps to take before you embark on the journey.

Vehicle maintenance checks

To get the most from the journey, you’ll need your vehicle to be in the best possible condition. That means checking that all of your fluids are suitably topped up, and that the car has been appropriately serviced over the last year. Test the battery and the lights, too.

The most important things to check, however, are your tyres. They should be adequately inflated. If the tread is near the legal minimum of 1.6 millimetres, they should be replaced. Look for a local vendor and fitter. If you’re based in Hampshire, you might look for tyre fitters in Basingstoke.

Planning your route and timing

You can expect to see increased traffic during the festive season. After all, at this time of year, just about everyone is travelling at once. In many cases, you can minimise delays by looking for alternative routes. In fact, there exist modern smartphone apps, like Waze, that will do this for you, while taking advantage of real-time data from other road users.

If you can make your journey earlier, or later, then you might avoid some of the congestion associated with peak season.

Packing an emergency kit

During winter, it’s easy to be taken by surprise by the weather. And if you end up stranded at the side of the road, you’ll be grateful that you packed essential items like blankets, torches, batteries, snacks, and first-aid kits. Bundle these items together in a special kit, and stash it somewhere in the vehicle itself.

Read more: how to practice safer driving

Adapting driving techniques for winter conditions

Driving techniques that are appropriate during summer will need to be adapted during winter. Generally speaking, you’ll want to drive as though your stopping distance has increased – because it has been. Make sure that you’re limiting your speed, and you’re not driving in a way that might necessitate sudden braking. Avoid tailgating, and slow down well in advance of a junction. The more experience you have driving in the snow and ice, the better – but even experienced drivers can be caught off-guard by adverse road conditions.