Crucial Car Tips Every College Student Needs To Know When They Head Off To College

Posted on: 1 March 2017

If your son or daughter will be leaving for college soon or if they are already there without your immediate assistance in case of car trouble, it is not too late to provide a few tips to extend the use of the car and prevent problems. For instance, a well-stocked emergency kit is a must and it is equally important to make sure that your college kid is familiar with its contents. In addition, a tire gauge is useful and your young driver may be more likely to use on a regular basis if it's kept in the car and visible. Make sure you talk with your child about the following:

Plan For The Right Emergency Kit

While the use of an emergency kit for the car is not new, the items it should be stocked with has evolved in recent years. For instance, water in case the car overheats, jumper cables for a failed battery and a first aid kit are obvious, but it is easy to overlook a portable battery charger so that it is never necessary to flag down strangers in the middle of the night. In addition, since a cell phone is useless if someone forgot to charge it, a portable charger that stores the energy for eventual transfer is an inexpensive item that nobody should be without. 

A sturdy umbrella and a waterproof flashlight is another good choice, since it is very difficult to assess the condition of a vehicle in pouring down rain or when there is insufficient light. It is also important to point out that the tire jack can easily injure someone if they don't know what they are doing, so make sure your college student is familiar with its use.

Provide And Schedule Regular Maintenance

Since you cannot be certain of the mileage that the car accrues each week for an entire semester, it is a good idea to refer to estimates when scheduling maintenance. Oil and transmission fluid changes and brake work all need maintenance at specific times. That means that instead of waiting for a certain number to appear on the odometer, it may be better to assume that the necessary work should be done every three months, six months, etc. 

Another option to consider is signing up for alerts from your mechanic to advise you when maintenance needs to be done. By having that information emailed or texted to your child, you are empowering your college student to make responsible choices and also preventing the need to repair an engine because the car accidentally ran out of oil.  

In conclusion, when teenagers go off to college, they often do so with the car you bought them. Since it's probably their first time living on their own, it is all-too-easy to overlook car maintenance. Therefore, in order to make sure that your son or daughter is never left stranded on the side of the road, the tips shared above will be quite useful.

For more car maintenance tips, contact places like White Pass Garage.

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