Paul Cowland’s top tips for Winter motoring

Winter motoring can be a true pleasure. Cold, crisp and clear mornings, driving to your favourite destination with the heater on full. But, fail to prepare, and these trips can become a nightmare. Envoy ambassador and winter driving enthusiast Paul Cowland gives us his top tips for making every journey epic during the chilly season. 

Who doesn’t love loading up the kids, dog and luggage to see the in-laws during the holiday season? OK, you don’t have to answer that one, but winter motoring can be fun. It’s just a case of what you do before you set off that dictates what state you’re all in when you arrive at your chosen destination. So, buckle up, here are my top tips to ensure that every drive in the winter chill is simply a walk in the park.

Tyres

Naturally, I’m going to start with tyres, and it’s always good to remember that the newer and fresher your rubber is, the softer and grippier it is, allowing your car to find its feet in slippy conditions. Take time to check for adequate tread depth, right across 3 points of the tyre. While minimum legal tread depth is 1.6mm, I wouldn’t venture out without at least 3mm in this weather. Deeper tread grooves shift more water and help to bite into soft snow, so just like my winter diet, when it comes to tread, the chunkier, the better!

If your tyres are over 5 years old, they’ll be getting harder, less compliant and will offer less grip in extremely cold conditions. Upgrading them to brand new, or even considering All-Season or Winter tyres if you live in a particularly cold or remote area will be a very sensible investment. Whatever rubber you have fitted, take a moment to check the sidewalls for any damage before you go, and of course, set your pressures to precisely what your owner’s manual suggests. 

Fluids

When did you last check your engine oil or anti-freeze? Now would be a great time to lift the bonnet and dip those sticks. Also, it’s a wise move to fill up with fuel or amps before every long winter journey, too. Who knows what delays you might face? And with a full ‘tank’, you can happily sit there with the heater on full blast, and your favourite podcast on, no problem.

It’s also worth checking that your coolant is able to cope with sub-zero temperatures. If you topped up your radiator with water in the summer, now would be a great time to swap that for proper anti-freeze. Frozen pipes on a car are no joke! Likewise, use a winter-spec screen-wash to give you crystal clarity for the road ahead.

Electrics 

Winter is invariably dark, foggy and grim, so a quick light test before you set off is always a great pre-flight check. Test all lights (headlights, indicators, brake lights) and windscreen wiper operation. Also, have a think about the last time you checked your 12v battery. Are the terminals clean? How old is it? Does the engine crank over quickly? If it’s starting to sound a little sluggish as it turns over, that’s the battery giving you an early warning. Try a long, deep charge to nurse it back to health, but if that doesn’t work, invest in a new one. Batteries are only really designed to last 3-5 years, so if you haven’t forked out for one for a little while, perhaps it’s time that you did!

If you’re driving an EV, don’t forget that colder weather can drastically reduce your battery range, so give yourself a little extra margin between charging stops, particularly if you’re running heaters and heated seats. 

Basic maintenance

With the above sorted, you’re looking good. But have you checked your brakes recently? Discs and pads are made from iron, and salted roads can quickly cause them to deteriorate. If they’re getting towards the end of their service life, a couple of long drives might just finish them off. Check their condition, or invest in an hour at your local garage to get a full health check.  

Are your wipers shiny and new? Like tyres, older rubber on wipers simply can’t cope with the cold, so treat yourself to a fresh set. They’ll probably only set you back less than the cost of a motorway service station sandwich, anyway!

Make sure your car is clear of frost and snow before you set off. Don’t be tempted to drive through a windscreen ‘porthole’, even if spending an extra 5 minutes clearing the car makes you late for work. Better to have an awkward conversation with your boss, than an expensive one with a policeman. Or, worse still, a painful one with an ambulance driver. The further you can see, the safer you are… so take your time. 

It’s a wise move to make sure you have an emergency kit in the boot, too: Include de-icer, an ice scraper, a fully charged mobile phone, warm blankets, food, and a warning triangle. 

Plan ahead

My final bit of advice is to plan your journey thoroughly. Even if you know the route well, it’s worth running a sat-nav app like Apple Maps or Waze to look ahead and re-route you around any accidents or diversions. Allow extra travel time as winter conditions can often slow you down significantly, and it’s always worth checking local road conditions before setting off. It could save you hours stuck in a jam. Try sites like Traffic England and One Network to have a detailed look at where you want to go, or to plan an alternative route if it all goes a bit Pete Tong. Or you could even go old school like me and keep a Road Atlas in the car!

Armed with that info, every winter journey will at least be bearable, and you never know, possibly even a pleasure. Wrap up warm, fill your tanks, check your tyres… and drive safely.