A quick pre-trip check can help you feel ready for wherever fall takes you.
Fall on the Grand Strand has a way of making a weekend away sound especially tempting. Maybe it’s Charleston for good food and waterfront walks, Charlotte for a change of scenery or Asheville for cooler temperatures and mountain views.
Before you pack the car and pick a playlist, give your vehicle a little attention first. If routine maintenance is due, Grand Strand Jiffy Lube locations offer oil changes and other vehicle maintenance services to help you get road-trip ready.
Here are a few things worth checking before you go.
1. Start With Your Tires
Check the tire pressure while the tires are cold, using the recommended number on the driver’s doorjamb label or in the owner’s manual. Take a quick look at the tread and sidewalls, too. If you notice uneven wear or know a rotation is due, handle it before the trip.
2. Check the Battery and Lights
A slow-starting engine may be a sign that it is time to have the battery tested. Before leaving, make sure your headlights, brake lights and turn signals are working properly, especially if part of the drive will happen after dark.
3. Give Your Wipers and Fluids Some Attention
October weather can change quickly. Replace wipers that streak or skip, top off the washer fluid and check your vehicle’s maintenance schedule for engine oil and other fluids.
If an oil change or other routine service is due, this is an easy time to take care of it instead of adding it to the post-trip to-do list.
4. Listen to Your Brakes
Squealing, grinding, vibration while braking or a longer stopping distance are all reasons to have your brakes checked before heading out.
That is especially worth addressing before a trip that could include long highway stretches, city traffic or mountain roads.
5. Be Ready for the Unexpected
Know where your spare tire or tire repair kit is stored, and keep your roadside assistance information somewhere easy to find.
Hopefully you never need either one, but figuring that out on the side of the road is not the ideal start to a fall getaway.
6. Then, Pick a Direction
Once the car is ready, the fun part begins. Head south to Charleston, spend a weekend in Charlotte or point the car toward Asheville for a little mountain air.
Bring water, check the weather before you leave and leave some room in the schedule for an unexpected stop along the way.
Get Road-Trip Ready With Jiffy Lube
Grand Strand Jiffy Lube locations offer oil changes and other vehicle maintenance services in Myrtle Beach, Surfside Beach, Murrells Inlet, Conway and North Myrtle Beach.
Before heading in, check the Jiffy Lube website for current coupons and local offers and confirm which services are available at your preferred location. Then all that’s left is deciding where you’re going.
