Winter Proofing Your Car for Alaskan Winters: A Guide

As an Alaskan, you’re probably aware of the challenges of maintaining a car in the cold weather. If you love your car, there is a chance you notice little changes that come with different seasons.

It needs regular servicing to make sure your car provides long mileage. The ideal way is to take a vehicle to the nearest car mileage interval service in Anchorage, AK. But there are a few hacks you can try to prepare your car for braving the winters.

It is wise to have a membership with a roadside assistance program like AAA for a sudden breakdown of your car out on the road. But here are the ways you can minimize the risk of this happening, and this article is precisely for that.

The Root Cause of Problems During Winters

Before taking precautions, it is wise to know what changes happen to your car during winter. Due to cold weather, The fluids present in the vehicle, such as the coolant, engine oil, and transmission fluid, increase in viscosity and density. This increases the efficiency of a car.

The increased fluid drag of the engine oil leads to a significant power loss. Even the internal seals and gaskets wear out due to this. These are a few things that can lead you into trouble.

But how to know when your car is down? Well, there are a few signs your car will give out; these can be:

• Clicking sound when you try to start your car
• Audible metallic noise generated from the starter motor
• Delay in starting the engine

And these are some common winter problems that you may face with your car:

1. Dead battery during winters: The charge in car batteries can decrease by 10 percent of their maximum capacity during winters. As most cars are seldom used during winters, your car battery quickly runs out of charge.
2. Reduced tire pressure: A sudden temperature drop during winter can decrease your car’s tire pressure. Cold temperature also causes contraction in the rubber, which softens it to produce cracks.
3. Thick fluid: As mentioned initially, the density and viscosity of your car’s fluids increase during winters. This causes an increase in energy loss and reduced efficiency.
4. Malfunctioning alternator belt: Extreme cold can cause your car’s alternator belt to break through cracking.

Also, follow these winter tips to take care of your car:

1. Preparatory car checkup: Before the start of winter, conduct initial car checkups. This helps you analyze the aspects that might require servicing, saving your money.
2. Regularly checking car tire pressure: Monitor tire pressure regularly and keep a tire pump handy. This can help you avoid being stuck with a flat or low-pressure tire.
3. Keeping a tab on coolant levels: During winter, regularly check and maintain the coolant levels of your car engine.

1. Warming up the car: Get into the habit of warming up your car’s engine periodically during winter. All you have to do is turn on the car for about 10 minutes.
2. Caring for your car battery’s health: Most importantly, you should maintain your car battery’s health. Apart from running your engine regularly, you can take care of the battery by following other tips. Make sure it has ideal amounts of distilled water and well-connected terminals,

The start of winter translates to more and more car problems. It is dreadful to be in a situation that gets where you need to be somewhere, and suddenly your car dies. Therefore, it’s essential to keep a list of reliable car mileage interval services in Anchorage, AK, handy.

To avoid such scenarios and save money, taking care of your vehicle is crucial. You can avoid these problems with little tricks and hacks and make winter safe for your car!