Getting your car ready for an Illinois winter

Snow, black ice, road salt and sub-zero mornings from November through March. What to check beforehand, what to keep in the trunk and what to do if you get stuck.

In Illinois the car's enemy is not a one-day storm: it is four months of cold, snow and road salt. Cold kills batteries, salt eats the frame and ice turns a curve into a crash. Here is what costs little in October and a lot in January.

Before the first cold (October)

• Battery tested. At 0 °F a battery delivers half its power. If it is over 3 years old, replace it before, not after.
• Winter or all-season tires with real tread (more than 4/32"). Summer tires harden in the cold and don't grip. Where snow is serious, winter tires are not a luxury.
• Coolant at the right level and mix (50/50). Washer fluid rated to −30 °C, not the summer kind, which freezes in the reservoir.
• New wiper blades, lights checked, defroster working.
• Winter kit in the trunk: scraper, brush, small shovel, blanket, gloves, sand or traction mat, jumper cables, flashlight, charger, snacks and water.
• Tank always above half: it prevents condensation and gives you heat if you get stuck.

When it snows

• Clear all of the car before leaving: roof included. Roof snow slides onto your windshield when you brake, or onto the car behind.
• Double your following distance. On ice, triple it. Brake gently and early; in a skid, look and steer where you want to go.
• Bridges and overpasses freeze before the road does.
• If you get stuck: stay in the car, exhaust pipe clear of snow, engine 10 minutes per hour, window cracked. Carbon monoxide gives no warning.

Salt: the damage you don't see

Road salt and brine corrode brake lines, fuel lines, suspension and the underbody. A car that spent winters here without underbody washes can have a compromised frame by year 8 or 10.

• Undercarriage wash every two weeks in winter and a thorough one in spring.
• When buying used in Illinois: look underneath with a flashlight. Surface rust is normal; flaking rust or holes in the frame rails and jack points are not.
• Ask where it spent its winters. A "southern" car carries extra value here for that reason.