If you’ve turned on the television lately, you’ve probably seen that commercial from the major insurance carrier telling us that people are remembering driver’s ed. Are you one of them? When we are learning how to drive a car, one of the first lessons we are given is about vehicle safety. Even if you aren’t 16 anymore, it’s still important to make sure that your car is safe to drive. Here’s what you should be doing.
Check Your Mirrors
If you’re the only person that drives your vehicle, chances are high that you don’t check your mirrors before you pull out of your driveway. It’s a habit that many of us never adopt. While your rearview mirror may stay in position, it may only take a slight bump to move your side mirrors. Before you put the car in reverse, check your mirrors and make sure that they are in proper position. You don’t want to be alerted to a mirror that’s out of whack when you cut someone off on the highway.
Check Your Lights
While you don’t have to check your lights each time you start your engine, you should be checking them once a week. Make sure that your headlights, brake lights and back-up lights are in working order. In addition, you should ensure that your turn signals are functioning properly. Did you know that you can be ticketed by the police in many states for burnt-out lights? Even if you can’t be ticketed, a missing light is all the reason that an officer needs to pull you over and make you late for work.
Check Your Fluids
Checking fluids isn’t often something that we do until a dashboard light comes on. Get into the habit of checking your fluids once a month. At a minimum, you should be checking your transmission fluid, oil levels and looking to see that you have enough wiper fluid. You may also want to learn how to check your brake fluid if you have an older or used vehicle. Learning how to check and top-off your fluids can prevent major headaches down the road.
Look for Cracks
A vehicle inspection mirror can be an invaluable safety device. By utilizing one of these mirrors at least once every month or so, you can look under your car without having to put it on a lift or drive it up ramps. Look for any cracks or holes in your exhaust system, and be sure to look for any loose or dangling wires. Finding these things before you pull out of the driveway can literally save your life.
Check the Tires
Properly inflated tires not only make your car safer to drive, but you will use less gas when you’re driving on tires that have the correct amount of air. Look in your owner’s manual to see how much pressure your specific tires should have, and learn how to use a tire gauge to check your tires. You should understand that your pressure will be lower in the cold weather. Don’t panic if you have a pound or two less than you do when the weather is warm.
If you haven’t “remembered driver’s ed” yet, it’s time to start. Making sure that your vehicle is safe to drive not only keeps you and others on the road out of harm’s way, it can save you a great deal of money. When you’re alerted to a problem before it gets out of hand, you may only have to spend a few hundred of dollars for repairs compared to thousands.
Claire Taylor writes articles on safety products. Many agency’s use inspection mirrors, such as the police department, military and homeland security.