Irish winter doesn’t need snow to cause chaos. Persistent rain, cold snaps, grit on the roads, low winter sun and those long, dark evenings are enough to turn small car niggles into proper problems. The good news is that you can do most winter prep yourself, and all of the following checks will take less than an hour.
Here are 10 checks to do now.
1 - Lights
Do a full lights check: dipped beam, main beam, indicators, brake lights, reverse light, fog lights and number plate lights. Then clean the lenses. Road film builds up fast in winter, and dirty lenses can undo the work of perfectly good bulbs. If your headlights look weak, it might be as simple as cloudy plastic or misalignment. Both are fixable, and both make a significant difference on unlit roads.
2 - Washers and wipers
In winter, you’ll use your washers constantly, and plain water can freeze when temperatures drop. Use proper screen wash and top it up before it runs low. The chemicals in screen wash also cut through grease, grime and dead bugs, which improves windscreen visibility. Then test the jets. If they’re blocked or spraying too low, a pin inserted into the little holes can often clear them. But if the pump sounds strained or nothing comes out, get it looked at.
Wiper blades don’t always look broken; they just stop doing the job properly. As a rough guide, change them about once a year. Summer heat and strong sun can dry out the rubber, making it hard and brittle, so it’s worth checking them before the proper winter rain arrives. If they streak, judder, or squeak, replace them.
3 - Windscreen
Give the windscreen a proper clean. Even a thin film of grease or smears can turn the low winter sun into a blinding glare, especially when headlights hit it at night. Use a decent glass cleaner inside and out and keep sunglasses within reach. Your sun visor is there for a reason, too, so don’t be shy about flipping it down when the light is right in your eyes.
Bonus tip: When defrosting your windscreen, we don’t recommend using hot water. A scraper or de-icing spray are safer solutions. If you are concerned about using too many chemicals, you can make your own de-icer by mixing three parts white vinegar with one part water. You can spray this onto your windscreen when it is iced over, and you can also use it preventatively by spraying the windscreen the night before a frost is due.
4 - Heaters and demisters
A working heater is nice. A working demister is safety equipment. Make sure the fan works on all speeds, the windscreen clears quickly and the rear demister actually warms up. Don’t ignore the air conditioning either. It helps dry the cabin air and can clear fogged windows faster, even in cold weather. If your heater or demisters feel weak, clean or replace the cabin (pollen) filter, and if it’s still not clearing the glass, book a quick check in with a garage.
Bonus tip: To demist your windows properly and quickly, use warm air with the fan turned up high at first, because it shifts damp off the glass faster than cold air. Hit the front demist button (a curved windscreen graphics with wavy arrows) and the rear demister (a rectangle with wavy arrows) and keep the air conditioning on as it dries the air even in winter. Make sure recirculation is off, too; that’s the button with a car and a looping arrow, because it traps moist air inside, and the windows will just fog up again.
5 - Coolant
Coolant isn’t just for summer overheating; it also helps stop the system from freezing and protects the engine from corrosion, so it’s worth a quick glance at the expansion tank - do this when the engine is cold - to make sure it sits between the MIN and MAX marks. If it’s low, you can top it up with the correct premixed coolant for your car, but if you find yourself topping up again a few weeks later, don’t ignore it, as that usually points to a leak that’s cheaper to sort now than during a cold snap.
6 - Tyres
Yes, the legal tread limit is 1.6mm, but once the tyres get down to near 3mm, you’ll feel it in heavy rain. The tyre can’t shift water as well, and that’s when the car starts to feel light on standing water. Not what you want on a dark road with puddles you can’t judge. Ideally, you should change your tyres well before they get this worn down.
Check your tyre pressures too. Cold air makes them drop. It’s a small thing, but it changes how the car grips and steers. Then have a quick look at the tyre sides. Any splits, lumps, or damage from kerbs and potholes, get it sorted. And if you’ve been half-thinking about all-season tyres, winter is when they start to make sense, especially if you’re not just pottering around town.
7 - Battery and key fob
If the car is slow to turn over, or it sounds a bit weak when you start it, don’t brush it off. Chilly weather is tough on batteries. Short trips don’t help either, as the battery never really gets a chance to top itself back up. We recommend just popping into a garage and asking them to test it; it takes just a few minutes. And don’t forget the key fob. If the range has got worse, or you’ve had to press the button twice a few times lately, change the little coin battery now.
8 - Brakes
If your brakes squeal, scrape, or feel odd under your foot, don’t wait to get them checked; do it asap. Same if the pedal feels soft, or the car drifts to one side when you slow down. Give the handbrake a check, too. If it doesn’t hold well on a hill, or it feels looser than it used to, have it looked at.
9 - Door seals
This might not be an obvious one, but you may not know there are any issues with your door seals until a cold snap. Cold weather can make tired door seals shrink and harden, which is when little leaks start, and the car can get damp inside. Wipe the rubber seals clean, then treat them with a silicone rubber care product to keep them soft and help stop them sticking to the door frame. If you spot splits, missing sections, or areas that have gone flat, it’s worth replacing the seal, because ongoing damp leads to constant misting, a musty smell and, in the worst cases, mould in carpets and under mats. If the car already smells damp, get everything as dry as you can straight away, lift and dry the mats, and check the boot and footwells for hidden wet patches so the problem doesn’t keep coming back.
10 - Exterior protection
This is more of an ongoing winter maintenance check. Road grit and salt (when it’s used) are rough on metal parts - they can cause corrosion. Regular car washes that include the underbody help protect against long-term damage, even if it’s just a decent rinse after a long motorway run.