With longer nights and less visibility, it’s imperative that you make sure your lights and wipers are in working order. You can have it inspected by a repair professional before the temperature drops and potentially causes major damage to your engine. Inspect your coolant reserve bottle – is the fluid clear? Is it maintaining level? Cloudy coolant or dropping levels can signal problems with your cooling system. COOLANT CHECKĪll coolants require a specific dilution rate with water to provide maximum protection from freezing and overheating. This will ease some of the burden on your battery to start your car. Oil thickens in colder temperatures, consider having a lighter weight oil installed during the winter, especially if temperatures are below 32 degrees.
Schedule one of our professional Battery Service Technicians to come out and check your battery and starting system or get a quote for a new battery and have us install it. Vibration and heat are the two biggest factors for battery damage and often you won’t notice the damage until trying to start your vehicle on a cold, winter morning. If you drive often in snow consider installing a set of winter traction tire, visit our Winter Tires FAQ. A 10 degree Fahrenheit drop in temperature causes a 1 psi pressure drop and under-inflated tires can cause damage to the sidewalls and increased wear on the tread shoulders.
You’ll also need to check your tire pressure (including your spare) and set them to the pressures listed on the decal attached to your driver’s door or door frame. Uneven wear of the tread can signal alignment or suspension problems – if you find uneven wear have the alignment and suspension checked by a professional. Check your tread depth and wear patterns – properly wearing tires maintain a smooth tread across the face with consistent tread depths across the entire width. Tires start to lose traction and resistance to hydroplaning with as much as 4/32” tread remaining. The condition of your tires’ tread directly affects whether your safety in winter conditions. Winter Vehicle Checklist TIRE DEPTH, WEAR & TREAD These steps will help you be better prepared for unexpected cold weather and winter mishaps. Keep vehicle lubricants working smoothly at Lube City: Earn 15% back in reward dollars on most products and services, plus you can also earn an additional 5% in reward dollars back if you get a re-loadable Lube City gift card purchased from AMA.Prepare your vehicle for the winter with this simple maintenance checklist.Make the switch to winter tires and save 5% on all products and services at Kal Tire.Make sure belts, hoses and wipers are in tip-top shape: Save 10% on regular-price NAPA parts and accessories.Switch to synthetic oil: Save 10% on services at Mr.Because every AARS shop is also an AMA Rewards partner, you’ll get a discount or earn AMA reward dollars on service, labour, parts or accessories.
Need a winter tune-up? Save some dough when it snows with AMA Rewards partners: And all work is backed by a 12-month or 20,000-km warranty. AMA’s AARS partner shops offer complete inspections by expertly trained auto techs. Get a seasonal check-up with an automotive professional. Make sure you don’t have any cracks or tears in the cord, heater or outlet. With their deep tread design, winter tires provide up to 50 percent better traction on cold, wet, icy or frosty roads.Ĭheck it with a block-heater tester before icy conditions and frigid temperatures set in. Rubber designed specifically for snowy and icy conditions will perform better than all-seasons. Learn how winter weather can affect your car’s high-tech features Get one at an AMA centre or from your CAA Battery Service professional. Heading south for winter? If you’re leaving your vehicle parked for an extended period, a tender will keep it charged at the proper storage voltage. CAA Battery Service will test your battery for free so you’re all charged up. When temps dip below –15 C, battery power weakens, so keep it plugged in during cold spells. If you spot a problem, get your technician to take a look. Visually inspect them for cracks, bulges and leaks, which can form in temperature fluctuations. Top up with winter-grade washer fluid-it won’t freeze in the reservoir and damage hoses when below-zero temps hit. When temperatures drop, it won’t thicken up like conventional oil, allowing it to flow better to reduce engine wear during winter months. Follow these tips to help ensure your vehicle is in tip-top shape to handle the season’s harsher driving conditions. With the arrival of cold weather, it becomes essential to properly prepare your car for winter roads.