Summers are already here, and temperatures have already started going up in most Indian cities. The scorching sun often heats up the cabin of the cars parked outdoors and makes the life of the occupants even harder. These rising mercury levels become an even bigger issue when you are on a road trip. Here we have a list of things you can do to protect your car as well as yourself during this summer heat.
Protect Your Car
We’ll start with a list of things that you should do to ensure that your car is in perfect shape for your road trip.
General Checkup
One common problem that many car owners face during summers is the overheating of the engine. This often leads to breakdowns. To ensure that this doesn’t happen, ensure that the level of coolant is not too low, and if it is getting low, refill it. Check for any leaks if the coolant levels are dropping drastically.
If you are planning to take your car for a road trip, ensure that you check the engine oil levels and also do a general checkup of the vehicle to see if any part needs attention. Also, check the brake fluids, power steering fluid, and transmission fluid. Also, inspect the rubber parts in your car as heat often accelerates the rate at which these parts degrade.
AC Checkup
This is one thing in your car that you don’t want to stop working during summers. Check if the AC gas levels and filters are in good shape and also check for any leaks which would affect the overall performance of the AC.
Tyre Checkup
During summers, always ensure that you maintain the correct tire pressure. On a hot summer day, if you are running on a tire with low pressure, it would damage the sidewalls. Also, if you are driving on cemented roads, ensure to lower the tire pressure as the chances of tires bursting due to overheating are more. You must also ensure that your tire is in good shape for a long drive and has enough tread left in it.
Paint Protection
The scorching heat also affects the paint job of your car. If you park your car outdoors on a regular basis, the paint is likely to fade away. There are lots of solutions available in the market for paint protection like ceramic coating, PPFs, or else you can opt for a good quality cover to protect the paint on your car from heat and dust particles.
Protect Yourself
Now we have a list of accessories that will help you beat the heat while traveling in a car during the summer season.
Suction Cup-based Sun Shade
We all know that tinting the car windows is not allowed and is considered illegal in India. Driving a car without sun films isn’t very enjoyable. The heat from the sun also affects the AC performance. You can buy the suction cup-based sun shades that are commonly sold at traffic signals. These sun shades are not very expensive, and you can buy a set for less than Rs 200 (if you are good at bargaining) You can also buy the same thing online.
Roll-on/Roll-off Sun Curtains
Another type of sunshade or curtain to keep the sun away from your car cabin is the roll-on ones. These can be fixed at the lower part of the window, and they will automatically go up or come down when you roll down or roll up the windows.
Cooler
Who doesn’t like to have a chilled can of drink or water while you are driving on a hot summer day? Usually, the water or any drink left inside the car cabin heats up almost instantly, and that ruins the overall experience. To solve this problem, you can buy and install portable coolers in your car. These can be bought online at a nominal price. You can connect the cooler to the 12V socket in the car and enjoy your drinks.
AC Vent Cup Holder
If you are not very fond of a huge cooler taking up space in your car, you can look for AC vent cup holders, which can maintain the temperature of your drink. Mind it that this is not going to be as effective as a cooler.
Dashboard Cover
Exposed dashboard absorbs heat from the sun. Most cars sold in our country come with black or grey colored dashboards, which are good at absorbing heat. This brings down the life of the dashboard and plastic trims, and we have also come across studies that say that the plastic trims on the dashboard often emit toxic gases. You can always go for a good quality dashboard cover to bring down the level of heat absorption.
The post How To Protect Your Car And Yourself In Summer Heat first appeared on Cartoq.
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