Whether we like it or not, “winter is upon us,” and safety should remain a top priority! Gearing up your vehicle – and yourself – for a smooth winter drive is easy with our tips below.

• Check your cars’ liquid levels frequently – especially engine coolant, as this prevents your engine from freezing and cracking. And you certainly don’t want to run of windshield wiper fluid in an ice storm.

• Make sure your hood lifts are in working order – hood lifts can freeze up and stop working in cold weather, it’s a good rule of thumb to have them checked at the same time you switch over to your winter tires.

• You NEED winter tires – we can’t stress this enough – winter tires are specially crafted to perform best in cold and icy conditions, in some provinces they’re even mandatory, and for good reason! Changing your vehicle over to winter tires is a life-saving effort.

• Make the switch to snow tires early – a good rule is to change to your winter tires when the weather dips below 7 degrees C. No matter if you have all-wheel drive, front-wheel drive, or rear-wheel drive, you must install all four winter tires – not just two – this is not only inefficient but is also very dangerous.

• Do the toonie test – check your winter tires frequently – slip a toonie in between your tire tread block, if the tread reaches only as far as the letters (‘CANADA’ or ‘DOLLARS’), your tires are worn and need to be replaced.

• Check your cabin air filter – a new filter ensures strong cabin airflow, keeping you warmer and preventing your vehicle’s blower motor from overheating.