How to Prepare Your Car for Winter
Winter weather is often unpredictable, where black ice and sudden snowfalls are not uncommon and can cause problems for those who are not prepared. And to make sure you are not caught off-guard by slippery roads and frosted windows, you need to be prepared.
Frost-covered windows - Invest in a good ice scraper.
Be prepared - Prepare the car for all possible scenarios.
Change tyres well in advance
According to the swedish law, your car must have winter tyres from 1 December to 31 March, if there are winter road conditions. But don’t wait for the first frost on the road, change to winter tyres well in advance. Because you never know when the cold will suddenly pay a visit.
Winter tyres have deeper tread and a different type of rubber compound than summer tyres. The rubber compound in summer tyres becomes too hard when the temperature drops, so it’s good to have winter tyres on your car when the temperature starts dropping below +5 °C.
Ensure good visibility
Winter weather often means frost on the windows, snow and wet road conditions. It is important that you have prepared your car to ensure good visibility despite all the challenges of winter. For example, do not forget to top up with windscreen wiper fluid that can withstand lower temperatures. And in addition to the windscreen wiper fluid, it is also important that you have a good ice scraper and snow brush, so that you can clear snow and ice from the windows.
Spray away frost and ice
It can also be a good idea to get a de-icer, which is a spray that quickly removes frost and ice on glass and rubber. It can be a real life saver during early and icy mornings.
Do you want to be one step ahead?
Then you should buy a pre-icer, which you spray on the windows before the frost arrives. The pre-icer creates a coating that absorbs moisture and prevents it from sticking to the window. This means that frost can be easily cleared by the windscreen wipers or with a cloth.
You can also stay one step ahead with a snow cover that you put on the windshield, which protects against snow and prevents icing.
Chip in your windscreen?
Make sure to fix it before it gets frosty, otherwise the cold can make it worse!
Check your wiper blades for the winter
You also need to check your windscreen and wiper blades. During autumn and winter, the wear on the wiper blades is high due to road salt, snow and frost. Frost causes wiper blades to freeze on the window, which can cause wear. Therefore, check the condition of your wiper blades and replace them if necessary. Here at Biltema you will find high-quality wiper blades and wiper equipment, and you can easily search using your car’s licence plate number to find the right wiper blade for your car.
How to Fit Your Clear Vision Blades
Our Clear Vision wiper blades are innovative and optimised for all weather conditions, and they fit most car models. In our guide How to Fit Your Clear Vision Wiper Blades, we show you how to fit them easily.
Our guide is in swedish, but contains assembly videos for your wipers.
Give your battery some love
The car’s battery ensures that your car can start properly, and, as you probably understand, it plays a crucial function in your car. During the cold winter, the battery may discharge faster. In winter, the car’s starter also needs to work a little harder to start the cold engine, which means the battery must be able to provide enough power for this.
So, to avoid problems with the battery, you should occasionally drive longer distances with your car to recharge the battery. Also check that the battery terminals are clean and that the battery water covers the cells.
Do you have an electric car?
Keep in mind that the range of your electric car decreases in colder weather and always remember to connect it if you park outdoors. This is a way to pre-warm the car and the battery, thereby increasing the range since the engine is already warm at start-up.
Wax your car
It’s not only in spring that you should give your car a thorough wash and wax. In winter, road salt can cause rust on the car, and it is therefore good to protect all surfaces with a car wax. The car wax you use should be durable and long-lasting, so that it protects the car all winter. We promise your car will thank you.
Car wax creates a hard surface, water-repellent surface that prevents dirt and moisture from sticking to the paintwork as easily. Car wax also protects the paint from scratches that may occur when you clear snow from the car, which you should also do very carefully with a soft brush.
Keep winter equipment in your car
Winter road conditions can sometimes catch you off-guard. It can throw up many unwanted surprises, such as traffic accidents, traffic jams, frost, malfunctioning car batteries, and heavy snowfall. A tip is to keep some extra winter equipment in your car in case you get stuck in a traffic jam or need to dig your car out of a snow drift. It can also be a good idea to use snow chains if you are driving on very snowy and icy roads. Snow chains give the car even better traction for safe driving.
Good to keep in the car
- Lock oil
- Ice scraper and small snow shovel
- Snow chains
- Torch
- Blanket and warm clothes
- Proper warm gloves
- Tow rope
- Hi-vis vest
- Jumper cables
Psst... Do you want a really practical tip?
Keep a bottle of gravel in your car. The gravel can come in handy if you get stuck or want to prevent getting stuck after parking. Pour some of the gravel out and park with the tyres on the gravel, and you will hopefully get better traction in the snow when you drive off again.
