Best Preparations for Winter

Make sure that your engine's antifreeze is topped up; a lack of it could cause untold damage to the engine. If you're not sure what antifreeze to use, go along to your dealer and ask them to check and refill where necessary.

Better still, see if your car maker is offering a winter check-up. For example, Vauxhall sells a Safety Check & Top Up service for £35 which includes checks on all vital elements such as brakes, steering and lights plus they'll top-up your coolant, brake fluid, screen wash, engine oil and tyre pressures.

Engines can get cranky when starting in bad weather and may require a few attempts. Always leave thirty seconds in between each attempt so you don't drain the battery, and make sure each attempt lasts a maximum of five seconds only.

Thoroughly clean your windscreen. Good visibility is obviously essential in wintery conditions while driving through thick snow and once the sun is up, a clean windscreen will help in part deal with wretched sun glare.

Strange as it may seem we also recommend a pair of sunglasses. Ensure that you also clean the inside of the windscreen to help with that glare and to avoid the window steaming up so much. Finally, check that your lights are clean and that they are all working; after all, your lights are the only way other drivers will see you coming when out in heavy snowfall.

The state of your car's tyres are essential. You can have all manner of tricksy stability systems and all-wheel-drive but a set of shonky tyres can render them next to useless. Check that there is at least 3mm of tread left on each tyre and that their pressures are correct.

There is an urban legend that letting your tyres down slightly can help deal with snowy conditions. It is not true and will negatively effect your car's handling. Instead, for added peace of mind, consider fitting winter tyres to aid traction, and for particularly torturous conditions, head along to a specialist to buy some snow chains.

Ensure you have an emergency package in the car. This should contain the bare minimum of a first aid kit, jump leads, torch and spare batteries, an ice scraper, a de-icer and screenwash (and cloth), proper winter wear (including boots), a shovel, a tow rope plus food and a thermos of soup or warm drink. Ideally, you should also have sleeping bags for everyone travelling; they are far more effective than a blanket. Make sure that your mobile phone is fully charged in case you need to call out the road recovery services or in worse case scenarios, the police to come and rescue you!

Finally, if you feel that your car is becoming a liability in bad weather because of its age and condition, then read our recommendations for winter-conquering cars here. For information on safer driving in winter, click here here.

Keep up to date on the latest weather and traffic developments with the Met Office and the Highways Agency traffic information service.