It’s that time of year! The sun is out, the weather has warmed up, and it’s time to plan for those exciting summer road trips. While you may be ready to hit the road, you need to make sure your car is ready too. The team at Joe’s Auto Sales recommends these three tips for a safe and enjoyable summer adventure.

Prepare Your Car for a Summer Road Trip with These 3 Tips

1. Conduct Regular Maintenance

To make sure your car is running at optimal performance, and for less of a chance of a breakdown on the road, catch up on any necessary maintenance. You can either conduct these maintenance checks yourself or make an appointment at our service department with our expert auto technicians. 

  • Check and change the oil.
  • Inspect the battery.
  • Check tire pressure and tread condition.
  • Check headlights, taillights, brake lights, and turn signals.
  • Inspect the condition of the brakes.
  • Check wipers and fill wiper fluid.

2. Pack an Auto Toolkit

While you can be as prepared as possible before heading out on the road, emergencies do unfortunately arise. To be on the safe side, pack an auto toolkit with these items that can help you when you’re in a pinch.

  • A quart or two of oil.
  • Funnel for adding oil.
  • Spare tire and tools to change the tire.
  • Jumper cables.
  • Tire pressure gauge.

3. Pack Safety Items

Now that you’ve packed a toolkit for your car, it’s time to pack a safety kit for yourself. These items will help you in the event you need to wait for an emergency tow truck, get into an accident, or become lost while driving.

  • Flashlight.
  • Paper towels or rags.
  • Safety flares.
  • Bottled water and snacks.
  • Fire extinguisher.
  • Trash bags.
  • Spare key.
  • Map or GPS app on your smartphone.

Make the Most of Your Summer

Are you now ready to get on the road? If you have any questions about car maintenance or car safety tips, give us a call. You can reach us at either of our Indianapolis locations by calling (317) 405-8545 (East) or (317) 756-9180 (South). If this will most likely be your car’s last summer adventure, be sure to ask us about our used cars, used trucks, used vans, and used SUVs for sale, as well as our quick and easy financing program.

Hauser, Elyse. “How to Prepare Your Car for a Road Trip.” Web article. Life Savvy Media. Life Savvy. 16 Mar. 2019. Web. 12 Jun. 2020.