Driving a car in winter is complicated by the presence of snow and frost. To reduce the danger of driving at this time of year and ensure the safety of your car, you need to follow the advice of experienced drivers.
Remove snow from wheel wells in the evening
When driving in wet snow, it packs into the wheel arch, gradually compresses and freezes. It is better to remove it in the evening, and while it is still loose, you can get by with a plastic spatula and not damage the car parts.
By morning it will turn into ice and cannot be removed with a plastic tool. You need to use a powerful screwdriver or even a pry bar, which can damage the plastic elements of the wheel well and bumper, and even break their fastening.
Turn off your wipers at night
In the evening, before turning off the ignition, make sure that the wipers are turned off. Otherwise, they will freeze to the window overnight, and in the morning when you start the engine, the drive will turn on, but the brushes will remain in place. As a result, the electric motor may burn out, the gearbox may be damaged, or the drive mechanism may fail.
Leave windshield wipers upright
When installing the wipers on the windshield vertically, the snow that has melted from the outside and turned into water will not remain on the blades, but will flow down along them, and the wipers will not freeze to the glass, which will protect them even if they accidentally remain on.
How to protect your windshield wipers from snow drifting
To prevent them from being covered with snow, it is necessary to raise the wipers up, and they will be fixed in this position with a pressure spring. This will also prevent them from freezing to the windshield. If snowfall and severe frost are not expected at night, it is better not to raise the wipers, because if this is done often, the spring may stretch and poorly press the blades to the glass.
When you get into the car, shake the snow off your shoes.
Having opened the door, we sit down on the seat, but our feet and shoes must be outside in order to shake off the snow from them, tapping each other. This will reduce the amount of moisture in the car, which will preserve climate control and improve the microclimate in the cabin. It would be good if passengers did the same.
How to prevent car door locks from freezing
If it's a wet day or you wash your car, water can get into the door locks and freeze. Then the door cannot be opened either with the outside handle or with the key. To prevent this unpleasant situation, you should inject an anti-icing, water-repellent or defrosting liquid, such as WD-40, into the lock blade. It won’t hurt to turn the key in the lock a little after this to disperse the liquid through the lock.
But it may be that the lock on the driver's side door is frozen, but not on one of the passenger doors. Once through it into the cabin, you can start the engine and turn on the heating. After some time, the lock will thaw and start working again.
How to defrost a car door lock
When you only have to state the fact that the water in the lock is freezing, the presence of defrosting agents inside the machine does not help. After all, you can’t reach them anyway. Therefore, in winter you should carry a small container with anti-icer or defroster in your pocket or purse.
How to prevent door seals from freezing
Water can also get on the seals. Once you open the lock, you pull on the door and tear or even tear them off. To prevent this from happening, you should apply wd-40 to a cloth and wipe the seals along the entire length with it. This will prevent them from sticking to each other.
How to prevent your windshield from freezing
In winter, the windshield is blown with warm air to prevent it from freezing and reducing visibility. But if you don’t turn off the airflow right up to the parking lot, the glass will quickly become covered with a crust of ice on the outside.
To prevent this from happening, you need to turn off the windshield blower before stopping and open the door windows slightly. As a result, by the time you stop, the temperature outside and inside the cabin will be equalized and the glass will not become covered with ice.
How to park in winter
When parking, you need to pay attention to ensure that the car’s wheels do not end up in slush or, especially, a puddle. If frost hits, they will find themselves in an icy trap. In the morning, no matter how much you accelerate, the car will either not move, or the wheel will become beaded and it will go flat.
