What is a winter car check?

A Winter car check proves to be one of the most essential investments a vehicle owner can make. Winter tends to be a difficult season for vehicle owners; with the dark afternoons creeping in earlier, frosty temperatures and riskier road conditions on even the shortest of journeys. These harsh conditions take their toll on your vehicle, particularly targeting the tyres and battery.

Your car’s performance dictates your overall safety whilst on the road, so ensuring its optimum condition is crucial. Just as your home needs that extra TLC, such as the heating on more, your car may require a winter check.

What does a winter car check include?

You wouldn’t be alone in perhaps not being aware of the process involved in your winter check. It’s often confused with that of an MOT. However, there are distinctive differences.

A free winter check with us involves our qualified technicians performing a safety and function check of your vehicle, focusing on the following aspects:

• Battery – a thorough inspection of it and its current charging capabilities
• Tyres – overall condition, including each tyre’s pressure and tyre tread depth
• Windscreen wiper blades – identifying any splits or other potential damage and also checking the levels of washer fluid
• Coolant – observing the levels and the strength at which it operates
• Lights- to assess how they’re working and if bulbs need replacing

The expert engineer will also examine any other potential issues during the winter car check.

Top tips for winter car health

Our main tip is always to book your free winter car check. However, there are other winter tips that we can offer you to ensure optimum winter health for your car.

There are certain simple checks you can conduct yourself at home, including:

• Checking your tyres, in terms of their tread depth and pressure. The current legal minimum tread depth is 1.6mm deep across the central ¾ of the tyre’s width, around its entire circumference.
• Be mindful of your battery and its charge and look after it as well as possible. Try to minimise unnecessary uses of additional electrical components (such as lights, charging devices, etc). As soon as an issue arises with your battery, take it to a reputable garage.
• Check fluid levels and be mindful of warning lights that will indicate there is an issue on your dashboard.
• Keep your car in a good level of cleanliness, especially important for the windows, lights and number plates. Excellent visibility is needed at all times, particularly in harsh winter conditions.
• Keep your fuel (or battery charge) levels at a sensible level. Avoid running the risk of breaking down due to a lack of fuel.
• Always have an emergency kit to hand, or stored somewhere easily accessible within the car (the boot, for example).

How long does a winter car check take?

A check can be completed in as little as 30 minutes. We offer the option for you to leave your vehicle and come back, or you can wait in reception and be notified as soon as your check is completed, whichever is most convenient for you. All we ask is you pre-book your check, so we can guarantee our expert’s availability.

The risks of missing your winter car check  

There are real hazards and risks associated with winter driving. Skipping your winter car check could result in avoidable situations occurring, which will cause huge stress and costs to you. According to The AA, battery faults are the single most common reason for vehicle breakdowns, especially in the winter period. This is one of the main components which are thoroughly checked during a winter car check. Your free car check will thoroughly assess the performance and lifespan of your battery, ensuring its health and longevity to see you through winter. The battery’s charging power will be assessed, to be certain it has enough charge to turn over the starting motor. Especially in the winter, additional electrical components, such as charging your phone and using internal lighting really can put a strain on the battery overall.

Trust the experts

At Delany Motors we prioritise your health and safety, by ensuring your car is running to its optimum performance, all year round. We strive to save our customers as much as possible and really urge you to book your free winter car check, to avoid a costly, avoidable breakdown and recovery.   Feel free to get in touch with one of our friendly experts and book your free winter car check with us today .