Getting your car ready for extreme desert heat

From June to September, Las Vegas regularly tops 110 °F. Battery, tires, coolant and what never to leave inside the car. And if you head up to Reno or Tahoe in winter, chains.

In Nevada summer is not a season: it is an endurance test for the car. At 113 °F the asphalt passes 160 °F, the inside of a closed car exceeds 140 °F in 20 minutes, and every rubber, plastic and battery component ages twice as fast.

Before summer (April)

• Battery tested. Heat kills it before cold does: here they last 2–3 years, not 5.
• Tires: pressure checked cold, in the morning. Heat raises it 4–5 psi; an old or low tire blows out on the highway at 105 °F.
• Coolant at level, hoses without cracks, radiator fan working. Overheating is the number-one summer breakdown.
• Air conditioning checked before it fails, not after: in July A/C appointments take weeks.
• Windshield sunshade and light seat covers: they lower cabin temperature 20–30 °F and protect the dash.
• Water in the trunk, always. Being stranded at noon without water is a medical emergency.

On extreme-heat days

• Never leave a child or a pet in the car, not for a minute, not with a window open. The temperature climbs 20 °F in the first 10 minutes.
• Park in the shade or facing the setting sun. If there is no shade, windows cracked a finger and a sunshade.
• Watch the temperature gauge on climbs and in traffic. If it rises: A/C off, heater on (it pulls heat from the engine) and stop somewhere safe.
• Don't open a hot radiator. Wait 30 minutes.
• Phone charged and a charger with you: a tow truck in full heat can take a while.

What heat does over the long run

• Paint and dash: the sun fades and cracks them. Wax every 3 months, plastic protectant, covered parking when possible.
• Rubber and hoses: yearly check; they dry out early.
• Buying used in Nevada: a cracked dash and dry rubber say "it lived in the sun" even with low mileage. Check the A/C thoroughly.