Travel and Life Insurance

A road trip will be a bust if the summer driving is not picture perfect and there are obstacles everywhere. But hold up and go through the travel tips here for a minute.

Tend to your tires by switching your winter tires for summer or all season tires. With every passing month, the average tire loses about a pound of air pressure so check your tire pressure before you leave. Avoid tread separation and blowouts on the road by inflating the tires properly to allow the best tire to road contact.

Monitor the fluids. Car oil needs to be changed before heading out. The car owner manual lists oil recommendations by the manufacturer. Pop the hood and inspect the antifreeze coolant mixture in the radiator. The ideal ratio of coolant to water is 50 to 50 for optimal temperature regulation in both cold weather and hot.

Inspect what is left of the car. Hoses and belts need to be checked by a reliable auto mechanic. Although wiper blades seldom survive past one year some still work so just check if yours are still efficiently. A car battery that is four or five years old must go straight to the repair shop to be looked at and assessed for reliability in the long drive ahead.

Include emergency paraphernalia in the vehicle. Changing tires can mean soiled clothing prevent this from happening by taking along a blanket and storing it with other emergency items like flares and jumper cables or flashlights. Always pack additional supplies from extra washer fluid to jugs of water to basic repair tools like screwdrivers or pliers to paper towels and gloves to clothing.

Many of us are guilty of taking everything with us on road trips such as stuffing our vehicles to the roof with pillows, coolers, suitcases, and CDs. Our advice is to bring only what is necessary. Do you have to bring shampoo when it will be provided by your hotel? Do you really need to bring eight pairs of shorts when you will have access to a washer/dryer?

Never pack the items you decided to take along so high they block your external vision. It will be easier to lift the heaviest pieces if they are placed at the center of an SUV or pickup but for the other vehicle contents even them all around the vehicle.

Most accidents on the road are the result of people nodding off while driving. Get as much sleep as you can to avoid dozing off while driving on the day of the trip. A cup of coffee has caffeine to pick you right up but keep in mind that it does not last long. Pull over often and if there are two of you driving switch every hour so you can rest. Expressway fatigue risks are actually reduced thanks to tiny bladders since they force people to stop frequently and use the bathroom.

Just think you are exhausted and still driving after hours of even more driving and the kids are not exactly at their best behavior in the back of the car so you finally lose it and road rage takes place. Shake off the anger. No one likes a road hog so do not be one and just let that speeder pass you plus do not tailgate. Highways and freeways would be a lot less dangerous if people just lived in harmony. Hopefully you picked up enough useful tips here for your summer road trip to make it truly memorable.