Valentine’s Day is fast approaching and for some romantics, a road trip from Lagos to Abeokuta is the most ideal getaway for the weekend. Plus, there’ll be lots of traveling or most as there’ll be proposals and the elections to think of.
Apart from the already known approaching events, there are some individuals who have reasons to make long distance trips. In most cases, traveling long distances with a vehicle that hasn’t been serviced recently, is not advisable. However, if the vehicle is in good shape, then below are a couple of T’s you should cross before making the trip.

Vehicle Lights
Your vehicle lights re important especially if you’re driving at night. You can’t count on street lights to illuminate the roads you’ll be taking. It’s possible that the roads won’t even be lit. It would be wrong to count on them. It also doesn’t matter if you won’t be traveling at night. You never know if there’ll be a traffic that’ll keep you on the road till dark. You need all your vehicle lights to be functional, your pointers, brake lights and head lights need to be in full capacity.

Tyres.
There is no lifetime where you should ever consider traveling without checking your tyres. The Tyres are the direct connection with the road. Check the tread depth indicator to ascertain the condition of your tyres. Overinflated or underinflated are bad for your tyres, as it’ll cause the tyre to wear in the middle or on the sides respectively. Your car suspension gives your vehicle its stability allows maximum friction between the tyres and the road. So ensure that you invite your technician to check your suspension. Note that this information isn’t just for when you have road trips, bad tyres account for many accidents and these are the best ways to prevent them.

The Drive Belt.
Damaged drive belts can cause your engine to shut down and leave your stranded on the highway for hours. Once you notice that there’s a crack on your drive belt, please change it. Ideally, during servicing, it should be changed, but this shouldn’t stop you from checking too. The drive belt helps your car charge its battery. So if it is damaged, it could lead to overheating as the belt gives power to the water pump, which could have cooled the engine.

Brakes.
The brake is the component that helps the vehicle stop abruptly when the driver needs the vehicle to. You’ve heard people say their brakes failed; it means the vehicle didn’t stop when it was required. Brakes are a very important safety component and must be checked before driving. If you notice that the brake is not holding as firmly as it should, it is probably having issues that must be sorted. Failure to sort this out could cause a fatal accident.

Fluids.
As a maintenance requirement, you should check your vehicle for water and fuel every morning before you drive it out. Some of the fluids needed for the functionality of the vehicle includes, the engine oil, brake oil, and coolant. These oils are needed to grease the parts of the vehicle and aid its functioning. Ensure that you check and refill before you make start the trip.

Bonus Tip- Spare Tyre.
Traveling without a spare tyre is almost making up your mind to walk the rest of the trip if there are eventualities. You must have a spare tyre, a jack and a spanner in your vehicle. It doesn’t matter how good your tyres are, you need a spare. Also, ensure that the spare wheel you take is properly inflated and in good shape before you begin.

The most exciting thing about road trips aren’t the road trips. It’s the fact that the trips go on without a problem. Its safety first before anything else and for a vehicle to be safe, it must be in proper shape. For more maintenance information, please visit www.autoauctionmall.com

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