SAN ANTONIO – Freezing temperatures have arrived, and while we won’t need an ice scraper, you will need to ensure your vehicle is ready to handle the weather.
Here are some things you need to know before driving off this holiday weekend.
First, you’ll want to make sure your battery is good to go.
“Make sure the batteries are healthy battery, and if the batteries are already weak in the cold weather, it’s going to go out pretty quick,” said Nannette Neugart, owner of O’Brien’s Automotive.
Neugart also pointed out to make sure you have a good antifreeze and never put water in the system or use water as wiper fluid.
“There’s special washer fluid you can put in there that does not freeze as well,” Neugart said.
If you noticed the last few days that your tire pressure light might have gone on, you mustn’t ignore it.
Your tire’s pressure can drop up to 20% of its air when the temperatures plunge.
Finally, make sure you give your vehicle time to warm up before hitting the road.
“It is important to let you run your vehicle -- run about a minute and a half in the very cold weather because you do need everything to warm up, and you need all those fluids to start running properly in the vehicle,” Neugart said.