With these frigid cold temperatures, freezing rain and snow storms, it is important to be prepared for the worst. Whether you are a local driver or long distance commuter, always be prepared.

A roadside emergency can happen at any time, whether your car is new or old. A range of problems can cause it, from a tire failure or mechanical breakdown to running out of fuel. At best, it’s an annoyance; at worst, it can compromise your safety. Being prepared with a basic emergency kit can increase your safety, reduce stress, and help you get back on the road faster.

Even if you have roadside-assistance coverage or an automobile-club membership with roadside assistance, you usually need access to a phone in order to contact them and you may have to wait on the side of the road for an hour or more before help arrives.

Prepare an emergency car kit

A basic car kit should contain the following:

• Food that won’t spoil, such as energy bars
• Water–plastic bottles (replace them every six months)
• Blanket
• Extra clothing and shoes or boots
• First aid kit with seatbelt cutter
• Small shovel, scraper and snowbrush
• Candle in a deep can and matches
• Wind‑up flashlight
• Whistle–in case you need to attract attention
• Roadmaps

Items to keep in your trunk:

• Sand, salt
• Antifreeze and windshield washer fluid
• Tow rope
• Jumper cables
• Fire extinguisher
• Warning light or road flares

Survival tips:

• Prepare your vehicle: Make sure you keep your gas tank at least half full.
• Be easy to find: Tell someone where you are going and the route you will take.
• If stuck: Tie a fluorescent flag (from your kit) on your antenna or hang it out the window.
• At night, keep your dome light on. Rescue crews can see a small glow at a distance.
• To reduce battery drain, use emergency flashers only if you hear approachingvehicles. If you’re with someone else, make sure at least one person is awake and keeping watch for help at all times.
• Stay in your vehicle: Walking in a storm can be very dangerous. You might become lost or exhausted. Your vehicle is a good shelter.
• Avoid Overexertion: Shoveling snow or pushing your car takes a lot of effort in storm conditions. Don’t risk a heart attack or injury. That work can also make you hot and sweaty. Wet clothing loses insulation value, making you susceptible to hypothermia.
• Fresh Air: It’s better to be cold and awake than comfortably warm and sleepy. Snow can plug your vehicle’s exhaust system and cause deadly carbon monoxide gas to enter your car. Only run the engine for 10 minutes an hour and make sure the exhaust pipe is free of snow. Keeping a window open a crack while running the engine is also a good idea.
• Don’t expect to be comfortable: You want to survive until you’re found. Follow all of these tips and remember to be safe and cautious during the winter season.

The following things are required:

• A new battery
• Safety glasses
• Clean water
• A socket wrench or an adjustable wrench
• A can of Rust-O-Lieum primer
• Battery terminal cleaner or wire brush
• White lithium grease
• Rubber gloves (optional)

The need to replace your battery

For proper operation of your car, having a good battery is essential. If proper care and maintenance is given to the battery, it can last for up to 5 years. Problems and failures of batteries can take place in as sooner as three years and that too in places where weather conditions are extreme – either too hot or too cold as such conditions tends to impose a heavy toll on the battery of the vehicle. In addition to this, other causes of premature failing of the battery include undercharging, overcharging, vibration and abuse. The modern design of vehicles batteries is as such that a constant drain system is included even if the car is parked as well since long sitting time periods may also cause the battery to go dead thereby, requiring to be charged.

At one point or another, getting your car battery changed becomes empirical. Although, the task is simple however, severe corrosion can make it difficult. If your battery is also facing issues, take it to a professional who will fix it up for you.

Get your car battery under perfect working conditions. You can check a local auto spare parts store so as to get the right size and type of battery for your vehicle. Bringing in your old battery to get a new one is a good idea and you can also leave the old one in order to get it recycled. Also ensure that the new battery you purchased is charged completely.

WORK IN AN AREA WHICH IS WELL-VENTILATED AND HAVE NO SPARKS AND OPEN FLAMES. AVOID SMOKING.

• Get the negative cable disconnected first and then get the positive cable disconnected.
• Remove the hold down of the battery. It can be on top of the battery or on the tray which is clamped onto the side of the battery.
• Once free, lift it up carefully out of the tray.

VEHICLE BATTERIES CONTAINS SULFURIC ACID WHICH CAN BURN YOUR SKIN OR ANY OTHER THING WHICH COMES IN CONTACT WITH IT.

• Analyze the battery tray, if there is any signs of corrosion or rust clean it with water. Leave the tray to dry and the spray primer so as to prevent future corrosion.
• Place the new battery on the tray and the reinstall the hold own clamp.
• If your battery has a top terminal, remove debris from the cables within the battery and the battery posts with a wire brush.
• Make sure there is no corrosion on the cables of the battery.
• Join the positive cable first and then the negative cable. Tighten then but avoid over tighten.
• Coat the battery terminals with white lithium grease so as to avoid corrosion.
• Get the engine started and the task is completed.

Buying a new car can be stressful, especially if you haven’t done it in over five years. There’s the issue of choosing a colour, make, extra features (if you want them), and of course the messy business of negotiating a price. If you don’t do the research before heading to the dealership, you could fall into a trap many buyers before you have succumbed to and leave the dealership with much more than you bargained for, and not in a good way.

Before you even start talking to a salesperson, arm yourself with enough knowledge about the car to reduce the likelihood of you getting taken for a ride (no pun intended). The first thing you need to do is the research on the car cost. Canada dealers get their units at wholesale prices. You can find out more about this via invoice price reports. Companies like Car Cost Canada offer invoice price reports at $39.95 while Unhaggle.com lets you access it for free. Once you get the factory price of the car, factor in what the dealer needs to make in profit and you can start benchmarking your price for negotiation.

Next, it is also important to understand which fees are mandatory and which fees are optional dealer fees that can be negotiated out of your purchase. The more information you have, the better your chances are of getting a reasonable price, and one that you can be happy with.

Here’s a quick rundown of the mandatory fees you’ll need to pay when purchasing a car according to the Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry:

1. HST or Harmonized Sales Tax – 13% on car price
2. Air tax – Air conditioner excise tax of $100 for cars with air-conditioning
3. OTS tax or Ontario Tire Stewardship fee – For passenger vehicles and light trucks the fee is $5.84 per tire
4. OMVIC fee – A transaction fee to support OMVIC’s (Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council) dispute resolution activities
5. PPSA fee – If you finance/lease a car, the bank/leasing company will charge a fee for setting up the loan and registering the lien $50 to $75.
6. Licensing – Most dealerships will take care of this for you and will charge an admin fee of $50 to $75.

If it’s not listed above, consider it a dealer fee. An important thing to remember is that mandatory fees should not be added to the car’s price after you’ve negotiated it, it must already be included. The same goes for advertisements that include the price of a car – whatever is advertised should be the all-in price.

Don’t be pressured into buying additional products or features you don’t believe have value. If you’re being made to believe that a certain add-on is compulsory because it’s already been installed, you have the right to report them to the OMVIC for deliberately misleading you.

Dealer fees and add-ons like security packages which include a police traceable code in case of theft could already be part of your insurance coverage so make sure you do the due diligence and read your contracts before signing them.

A great way to avoid paying for more than the car is worth is to do extensive research online and see what other people are paying for the same car. Find out also if there are any on-going Canadian dealer incentives that you could take advantage of.