its good to see someone's thinking about the coming winter. salt is a cars worst enemy and the government thinks its reasonable to spread salt all over the road every day all winter. and the salt is only a few weeks away so its time to act now.
on moving parts you need grease oil or lubricant. on the rear wiper motor you should apply grease to the shaft. all hinges, locks, check straps and similar moving parts will need lubricaiton as the friction of moving parts removes paint and can leave bare metal exposed.
coolant should be tested before the freezing temperatures arrive, and replaced if in any doubt. a frozen radiator is a sure way to serious problems like water pump failure, overheating and head gasket failure.
you should clean the wheel arches and anywhere else that has developed a coating of crap. some people say leaving a protective layer of dirt will prevent rust. the truth is that a layer of dirt will hold moisture all winter long and never allow the area to dry, causing rust much more quickly. you need to get things cleaned up and then keep them clean.
paintwork preparation is important. any stonechips must be painted before the salt causes them to rust. once a chip starts rusting it'll only get worse. you should give the car a good pre-winter once over to make sure all damaged paint is sorted. once the paintwork is done you should give the whole car a good wax, use something with carnauba wax. once waxed you can apply a quick layer of paint sealant, autoglym finishing fluid is good for this. if you do it well it will last all winter and not need another polish till march next year.
the time to buy tyres is now. low tread is fine in the summer, even bald tyres can grip fine on dry roads, but wet salty roads are far more dangerous, if you've got any tyres that arent in good condition replace them now. its better than hitting curbs all winter.
as winter is a dark time of year you should replace any suspect or dim bulbs, keep some spares in the car. make sure you have spare fuses too.
winter is the time of year that exhausts die, the salt and extreme temperatures make them rusty and brittle. the most common months for snapped exhausts are january & february. unless you want to be under the car with freezing cold hands early next year you should double check the whole exhaust and make sure it looks as though the full lot will last till the spring comes.
in the winter oil is thicker and takes longer to warm up. if you do a lot of short journeys thats not good for the engine as oil will have a hard time getting circulated, especially around the head. i make sure i let my car warm up well before setting off, especially the first start of the day. using synthetic oil is advisable at all times but especially in winter. if you do only short journeys in winter and cant be bothered to get your car warmed up you can use 5W/30 oil desinged for ford zetec engines. but only use it during winter's coldest months and only if you do short journeys. using it on long journeys wiht a hot engine can cause the oil pressure to drop as the pump is using thinner oil that it is designed for. low oil pressure can cause premature wear and hot spots, especially in the head.
gearbox fluid changes are always worth doing if it hasnt been done recently. in winter i'm sure everyone has experienced a notchy or stiff gearchange. using a fully synthetic gear oil, like castrol, makes a noticable difference.
i'm sure i'll think of more but thats what i think about in preparation for winter.
