Write it down, print it out and keep it handy to make sure you have a safe road trip this coming Easter weekend.
We’re already three months into 2024 and phew, do we need a long weekend. Luckily for us, the Easter Weekend marks 4 days of freedom, and many people like to go away during this time. We’re breaking down some essential Easter weekend road safety car checks to do before you set off on your holiday.
Whether you’re packing the trailer for a 4×4 trek across a border or you’re taking a four-hour drive to the beach, you need to know what’s going on with your car. Doing safety checks on your car means you limit the chance for scary surprises when you’re on a packed highway or in the middle of nowhere. Hopefully, you’ve given yourself some time to do your checks.
We would advise 7-10 days before you leave. This leaves you time to get any issues fixed. Major checks we would suggest doing 2 weeks before. Remember: check your owner’s manual to see if you have a service coming up. If so, this would be a good time to get one!
Read this: What is distracted driving?
Your Easter weekend road safety car checklist
Lights
You have no business being on the roads if your lights aren’t working. Even if you aren’t planning on driving into the evening or through the night, your indicators are how you communicate with other drivers and you never know when weather conditions may turn.
Check your lights by taking a quick drive around at night and checking headlights and indicators (left and right and simultaneous hazard flashing).
Tyres
Your safety depends largely on the condition of your tyres. You (or preferably your mechanic) need to check:
Wheels & Tyres
All wheels are tightly fastened. Your wheels are aligned. The tread of your tyre (under 3mm is considered risky to drive on). The evenness/unevenness of your tread (uneven isn’t a good sign). Check your spare tyre and ALL of the components you need to change or repair a tyre.
Wipers & Windows
There are few things that make your palms sweat (and go cold at the same) like losing your windscreen wipers in the middle of a rainy drive. You want to make sure you have guaranteed visibility for your trip.
The other thing that makes your palms sweat? A small stone falling off the back of the truck in front of you and causing a tiny chip to crack into a massive problem. Look for cracks and chips before you leave and get them sorted ASAP.
Brakes
Have a professional mechanic check your brakes. Also, keep an eye on the sounds your car makes when you come to a halt. Your brake fluid levels are important, too.
Battery
A well-looked after car battery is a battery that will help you travel thousands of kilometres. Use a charge meter to check that your battery has the right amount of charge available.
Coolant
Your car is going to be working hard to get you from A to B so keeping it cool is definitely on the checklist. This means checking your radiator and coolant levels. Check your coolant levels when your car has been parked for a while and make sure you have enough to stop your car from overheating.
Filters and fluids
This check includes some small checks. You need to check all your fluids and filters in the car:
- Oil
- Petrol
- Air filters
- Water
Car emergency kit
No matter how prepared you are, you can never guarantee that nothing will go wrong. You can’t control the weather, dodgy roads or other drivers but you can control what tools you have in your arsenal to support you during emergencies. Here’s what we would recommend you have before you hit the road:
- Car manual
- All the tools to change your tyre (jack, spare tyre, wrench)
- First aid kit
- Torches and independent charging ports
- Jumper cables
Car insurance
An expensive inconvenience at the least and a fatal outcome at the most, car accidents happen often during long road trips. People get tired, drive poorly and sometimes drive inebriated. You can’t control what happens on the roads and that’s why you need to make sure your car insurance is up to date or that you have car insurance in the first place!
With Oneplan Car and Household Insurance, you’re able to choose your cover and your excess amounts with our nifty cover slider, plus you can change these amounts at any point using the Oneplan App – and did we mention you get R2.5 million third party liability cover? What more could you ask for?
Click here for a custom, obligation-free quote for Oneplan Car and Household Insurance.
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