Preparing for winter driving – our glovebox guide

Use a trickle charger to keep the battery in optimum condition when you’re not using your car for long periods, and beware that the cold weather always affects battery performance. You rely on its power so much more in the winter, what with lights, heater and wipers all going at full tilt. Keep on top of it so it doesn’t let you down.

Once you’re actually on the road in adverse conditions, you need to adapt your driving habits to be safe. You would already have checked over your braking system – wouldn’t you! – but remember to leave bigger gaps between you and the car in front to allow for the greater stopping distances that go hand-in-hand with wet, icy or snowy road surfaces.

Seeing where you’re going is just as important. Clear muck and salt off the light lenses frequently, and carry spare bulbs if changing them doesn’t require you to remove half the car’s panels – this is never convenient on the roadside... There are a host of more powerful aftermarket bulbs on the market to boost your visibility on a dark night, too.

Deal with any cracks in your windscreen now, before the icy conditions make them worse – much worse – and avoid damaging brand new wiper blades on an iced-up screen. Instead, make sure you’ve got a suitably strong solution in the wash-wipe bottle and then tackle the glass with a hard scraper first. This will ensure you get longevity from the blades.

Use appropriate cloths to clear fogging on the inside of the screen, and polish off any grease or residue that could cause smearing and affect your view out.

Specialist products such as Gummi Pflege and silicone lubricant will keep your rubber door seals and hinges from sticking or going solid, another bugbear in extreme winter weather.

It’s not overdoing things to keep a survival kit in the boot. A freak snowstorm could catch you out on the motorway in even the most populated areas of the UK. Pack chocolate and nuts, bottled water and extra-warm clothing, plus a phone charger, high-vis vest, torch, jump leads, shovel and rope. They could help you or someone else get rescued.

Finally, don’t head out on to the ice with worn tyres. Update and possibly upgrade them now, before the worse of the weather arrives.

Snow chains or socks work well, although you mustn’t drive on them on clear surfaces, but winter tyres are the wisest investment; their efficiency and safety over normal all-season rubber is undisputed.

Take the cue from our European neighbours, where these specialist products are much more popular than in the UK. They’re one of the best ways of keeping you safe on the road when the going gets tough.