How To Ensure The Safety Of Older Cars

Most drivers will own a second hand vehicle at some point in their lives that requires a little maintenance in order to ensure smooth running and continued safety.

Maintenance is generally fairly easy to do and often doesn’t require much time to complete.

As long as this type of maintenance occurs regularly, you can be much more confident that your vehicle is safer to drive. While you can never make your car 100% accident-proof, these tips should make it less of a hazard.

Regular check-ups

If you feel your car requires it or it has repeated problems in certain areas, it may be a good idea to try and have it checked out regularly by trained mechanics. Though a car will always have to pass its MOT to be road legal, there is quite a bit of time between tests. Consequently, taking it in to be serviced regularly will give you peace of mind in-between tests.

Important features

There are a number of important features on all cars that should be checked regularly and replaced if necessary. These include things like your brakes, windscreen wipers, engine oil, tyre pressure and headlights.

A good car owner will perform regular tests on all of these features to ensure everything works as it should. Remember to look for the smaller things as well. Are your tyre treads deep enough? Does one of your indicators flash faster than the other?

Safety mechanisms

Another way to maximise your safety in a vehicle is to make sure mechanisms designed to prevent injury are functioning as they should. This includes testing seatbelts and airbags.

While this may require professional help, many safety mechanisms can be tested easily on your own. You may also want to check that you have the necessary safety equipment for an accident or breakdown. Do you have a spare tyre and is it suitable for use? Do you have warning triangles to use in the event of a breakdown?

Be a good driver

It doesn’t matter whether you’re driving a Mercedes CLC or a commercial van, your safety ultimately comes down to the quality of your driving. Avoiding reckless driving and making sure you are a sensible and careful motorist will keep you safer for a much longer period than most checks and alterations to your car.