There’s nothing like the excitement of heading out on a road trip, experiencing the open road and seeing where it takes you. There’s no doubt that the sense of freedom and adventure that comes with a road trip is a great feeling, but if things go wrong, those good vibes can quickly turn sour. To prevent your road trip turning from a dream into a nightmare, it is a good idea to get prepared. Knowing that you have everything that you need with you in the vehicle, will give you the peace of mind of knowing that if anything were to happen, you would be prepared.
Of course, it’s not possible to plan for every single eventuality, unless you can see into the future, but being as prepared as you can be is a good idea. Here are some of the ways that you can keep your road trip moving:
Maintenance Before You Go
Everyone knows that they should perform some maintenance checks on their car before heading out on a long journey, but not many people actually take the time to do this. Make sure that you do some pre-journey checks because you will be really annoyed with yourself if you don’t and then something goes wrong that could have been avoided! Here are some of the things that you will need to check in preparation for your journey:
Check your tires – Make sure that they have the correct amount of tread, and that they have the proper tire pressure.
Check your fluids – Make sure that you have enough oil, brake, screen wash, and radiator fluids in your car. Don’t forget that the engine needs to be cold before checking these. If you discover these need topping up or changing then make sure you do it before heading off on your journey.
Check your lights – Check that each one of your lights is working properly before starting off on your trip. Having a light not working can be really dangerous and could lead to an accident. As well as checking headlamps and brake lights, ensure you check the indicator lights are working both at the front and the back of your vehicle.
Check your wipers – if you haven’t needed to use your wipers for a while, it’s well worth checking them before you head off. Even if rain isn’t forecast for your journey, your wipers will be needed for wiping away the dust, dirt, and bugs that inevitably end up on your windshield during your drive. Check that the wipers are in good working order and that the wiper blades have not become detached from the wiper.
Final checks – if your brakes haven’t felt quite right, or you have been hearing a strange noise emanating from your car, but you have just been trying to ignore the noise, now is the time to get is sorted. Don’t ignore these signs any longer, and definitely get them sorted out before your road trip. Ignoring warning signs could put you in danger.
Prepare and Pack
Once you have checked that your car is ready to go, you need to pack it with everything you need for your trip. As well as comfort items, there are essential items that you will be glad you packed if anything goes wrong on your journey.
In Case of Emergency:
If you are unfortunate enough to find yourself in an accident or broken down during your trip, these items will come in handy:
- Cell phone and in-car charger/power bank
- Notebook and pen, so that you can record essential details from the accident for your insurance company and car accident attorney
- Basic first aid kit
- Warning triangle
- Fire extinguisher
- Blankets
- Basic tools or multi-tool
- Jumper leads
- Carjack
- Spare tire
- Tire pressure gauge
- Pump
- Flashlight
- Flares
In Case You Get Lost:
Sometimes getting lost leads you to the very best places, other times, it is just plain frustrating! Stay on the right track by making sure you have the following covered:
- Satellite Navigation
- Map – sometimes technology can fail, so relying solely on your GPS is not the best idea, going old school and bringing a map as a back-up is a good idea
- Fuel, make sure that you start off with enough fuel, and that you know where you can get more should you need it. Being stuck in the middle of nowhere with no gas is no fun at all
- Water and snacks are a great addition so that you are not hungry, thirsty and lost.
