Summer road-tripping and keeping your car happy


Photo credit: Pixabay


Well, this heatwave is getting a little excessive isn’t it?! I’ve honestly never known such consistently hot weather and I’m the first to admit that I wasn’t emotionally prepared for this weather. In between complaining that I’m too hot and trying to sleep through the noise of the cheap desk fan I panic bought from Argos, I’ve actually tried to embrace the weather a little by making some summer plans.

A few months ago, I brought my precious Polly (aka my Hyundai i10) over to Leeds and I must admit, having my car over here gives me a new found freedom. I mean, for the first time in nearly 4 years, I’ve been able to go to a supermarket for a weekly shop – I know how to live life on the edge. I’m quite lucky in that I have a space in the carpark underneath my building as whilst I pay over the odds for it, I don’t run the risk of her getting her windows smashed (which happened the last time I parked her out on the street here, still fuming).

Car maintenance is just as important in summer as it is through the winter as nobody wants to end up cutting a roadtrip short by ending up stuck on the hard shoulder with a car that has overheated so here are my tips to keeping your car in tip top condition.

Check your fluid levels
It’s not just important to keep you hydrated but your car needs it too. Check your oil, transmission fluid, break fluid and power steering fluid periodically to make sure they’re all topped up to where they need to be so that your car doesn’t overheat.

Keep your car hot-weather friendly
If your car has air con, use it! Take cold drinks with you for long trips and switch your coffee for an iced latte so that you’ve got some caffeine in you to keep you perked up for long journeys. Hot weather can easily make you sleepy which is really dangerous, especially if you’re driving a long distance.

Make sure your tyres are summer ready
Once the temperature is regularly over 10 degrees, you can switch back to summer tyres which will perform better on both wet and dry roads. In hot weather tyres will lose twice as much pressure than when it’s cold and deflated tyres work harder, get hotter and therefore are more likely to experience a blow out. By checking your tyre pressure, you can reduce the risk of a costly repair.


As this heatwave is showing no signs of relenting, pick up your summer car tyres at Jet Wheel Tyres and they'll be able to sort you out.


*This post was sponsored by Jet Wheel Tyres but all thoughts, opinions and road trip plans are my own.

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