A road trip is a great way to create fond holiday memories with your family or friends. Unfortunately, it is also reasonably easy to turn those supposedly fond memories into a horrendous nightmare when you are in the middle of nowhere with a broken-down vehicle and no tools to fix the issue. So, while it is essential to plot out your route maps and carefully plan your itinerary and budget, Lincoln car dealers say it is also necessary to check your vehicle’s readiness before going on a long road trip.
Prepare your vehicle weeks before the trip to avoid unwanted incidents. Here is a list of things you need to check and the timeframe for each task for a guaranteed fun road trip.
At least four weeks before the road trip:
If you haven’t already, this is the perfect time to send your vehicle to a trusted mechanic for thorough preventive maintenance. This will help you check if any significant issues need fixing or repairing before hitting the road. It’s best to prepare early because most major repairs often take a long time to finish. Setting this nearer your scheduled outing might lead to missing the trip altogether as you try to fix your vehicle.
Car owners who have completed preventive maintenance several months before the scheduled road trip should still consider getting a basic maintenance checkup to ensure that their vehicle is still in good working order. This includes checking all fluids and topping (or replacing) them if necessary, replacing worn-out belts, spark plugs, brake pads, and batteries, and cleaning (or changing) dirty filters.
Aside from looking for possible mechanical problems, this is also a great time to check if your tires are still road-worthy. This includes the inspection of your spare tire. Also, depending on the season and weather conditions during your road trip, you might want to consider changing them to prevent accidents on the road.
At least three weeks before the road trip:
Lincoln dealerships near Covington, LA, recommend checking your vehicle’s documentation to avoid nasty, unwarranted penalties just in case. This includes your vehicle registration, insurance, emergency information, and driver’s license. Many car owners, either by accident or negligence, forget to update their documentation which ultimately leads to severe problems with authorities in some cases.
At least one week before the road trip:
Check if you have an emergency kit in your trunk. Most emergency kits contain a first aid kit, flashlight and extra batteries, jumper cables, a toolkit, a compact fire extinguisher, a blanket, non-perishable snacks, and a couple of drinking water bottles. You might also want to sign up–if you haven’t already–for some road assistance program to prepare you for whatever may happen when you set out on your much-awaited road trip.
A day before the road trip:
Give your car a nice wash to ensure that you’ll have clear visibility when you drive. This is also the time to pack and load your luggage to guarantee that nothing important gets accidentally left behind. Heavier loads should be placed near the front of the trunk with their weight distributed evenly on the sides. For those who will use a rooftop cargo carrier, make sure that you will only fill it up with large but light objects. Putting heavy items on a rooftop carrier will make your vehicle difficult to handle.
Lastly, fill up your tank and relax. Knowing that you have done everything necessary to prepare your vehicle guarantees an easy and fun road trip. Check out Baldwin Lincoln car dealer in the New Orleans, LA area if you want more practical tips.