Getting a vehicle ready for winter driving comes down to checking the parts that cold, wet and dark conditions test hardest. Tyres, lights, wipers and the battery all work harder in winter, so they’re worth sorting before the first frost. Doing the checks in one go also makes it easier to spot which jobs need a garage and which ones you can handle yourself.
Tyres and Roadside Help
Start with tread depth, because tyres are the only part of the car touching the road and the grooves are what clear water and snow. The legal minimum is 1.6mm, but grip drops away quickly, so replacing them at 3mm is a sensible winter cut-off. A 20p coin gives a quick check, since the tread is at or below the legal limit if the coin’s outer band stays visible when it sits in the groove. Check pressures at the same time, using the figures in the handbook rather than the number printed on the sidewall.
If you drive often in cold or snowy conditions, winter tyres give far better grip once temperatures fall below about seven degrees, which suits drivers who regularly face frost and snow. Saving the number for a 24-hour mobile tyre fitting service in your phone also means a fitter can come to you at home, at work or at the roadside, whenever a tyre needs attention.
Visibility, Battery and What to Carry
Lights: Check every bulb, including brake lights, indicators, fog lights and the number plate light, and wipe the lenses clean so grime doesn’t dull the beam. Winter brings shorter daylight and more spray, so a dim or failed bulb matters more than it does in summer, and a helper standing behind the car makes the rear lights easy to test.
Wipers and screenwash: Replace blades that smear or judder, and fill the reservoir with screenwash rated for low temperatures, since plain water can freeze and damage the system. If the wipers have frozen to the glass, free them with warm, not boiling, water or de-icer before switching them on.
Battery: Slow starting or dim headlights are worth acting on early, because batteries work harder in the cold and a frosty spell can leave the car refusing to start. Most garages can test a battery quickly, and replacing a weak one is far easier than doing it in freezing weather.
Emergency kit: Keep an ice scraper, de-icer, torch, warm clothes or a blanket, a charged power bank and some food in the car, plus a shovel and high-visibility vest if you travel rural roads where mobile signal can be patchy. Being stranded in winter is more dangerous than at other times of year, so the kit is worth carrying throughout the season.
Working through these checks over the next few weeks leaves time to book repairs or order tyres before the cold sets in. After that, a quick monthly look at pressures, lights and screenwash is enough to keep the car ready until spring, with the battery and emergency kit worth rechecking if the weather turns severe.