In our isolated little bubbles on a road trip we do want to be as self reliant as we can be, make these checks before departing

  While on a road trip we often enter a world of "false security", the cars are built like isolated

We're Off and running, we'll be there in
Six days! Oh Boy. 

bubbles. Air conditioning, good sound systems, comfortable seats and more, yes we get pretty comfortable in our little traveling units. There are tasks and inspections we should be performing on our vehicles regularly. I am suggesting three, prior to leaving on a road trip or once a week perform the following three check's:

1) To check your tires you will need a Lincoln head penny, and perform 3 steps. * Hold the penny between your thumb and forefinger. * Look at the treads on your tire, find which appears to be the lowest amount of tread. * Hold the penny inside one of the grooves, if any part of Lincoln's head is covered your tire is legal and you have a safe amount of tread. If your tread is not covering any part of his head, about 2/32" deep, the ability of your tire gripping the road is compromised, new tire decision time. Read more tire information click here.
  Tires lose pressure monthly and should be checked regularly either by you or the company you bought the tires from. *Check your tires when they are cold, they have not been driven on for several hours. Next. * Connect the pressure gauge to the valve stem, normally they are held by hand. A tire pressure gauge is a good investment. Then. * Check the pressure level with the required psi listed in your owners manual or on a tag on the inside of the drivers side door, do not use the air pressure stamped on the tire's sidewall. If the pressure is high release air until it is correct, if it is deflated add air. Some tire company's have started to use nitrogen instead of air, nitrogen and air can be mixed if needed.

Learn to use your vehicle jack before you leave the house,
practice with it before you may need it.

2) Check the Fluid levels, * Window washer solution fill to the "full" line with commercial solution or make your own with two drops of liquid soap in a gallon of water. * Oil level, check it when it is warm, it can be checked when the engine is cold however the level of oil will be higher than the full mark. Remove the dip stick, the owners manual will have a section on this, wipe the oil off with a paper towel, it's lint-less. Insert the dip stick, bottom it out and withdraw it. Hold the dip stick horizontally with the towel under it to catch drips. There is a notch or a line on the stick approx. 1-1/2" from the end, if the oil level reaches the full mark, (it too is in the owners manual) the oil level is correct, if it is low add until it meets the full line. If you are close to an oil change, now is the time to do have it done. A good write up on general engine inspection may be read here.
* Check your Transmission fluid level, it is checked in the same manner as the engine oil with one exception, the transmission oil must always be checked warmed up. The interval for automatic transmission oil changes is far longer than for the engine, some manufacturers suggest 50,000 mile or more. It is important to check your manual for the interval, the most common cause of transmission failure is not changing the oil. It is easiest to have it serviced in a mechanics shop. While the fluids being changed have them grease all the fittings under the vehicle. * Engine coolant is designed to be effective for up to 150,000 miles, if your car is four years old and it's never been changed, it will be prudent to do it now. To add coolant merely add it to the reservoir on the side of the radiator, it's normally a white plastic box with a small hose from the radiator to the cap which will have "engine coolant" stamped on it. On the side of the reservoir are lines marking the "full" level, that's where you need to fill it to. If your coolant is murky or rust colored, change it, you've taken it's entire life from it. Don't mix the orange and green, in a pinch it will work, but strive not to do it due to different additives in each which may not be compatible.
    On a Safety Note: Never Ever remove the radiator cap while the engine is hot or warm, the coolant will geyser out of the fill cap and it will cause extremely serious burns to the face. It's ambulance calling time if it occurs. If you are alone and in the middle of nowhere you are then in a serious survival situation.

Never Ever remove the radiator cap from an overheating engine, it will burn your face and hands to the 3rd degree. 

3) Hose's would last forever if they never conveyed and liquids, especially at the pressure's and temperature a vehicle engine operates under. A car's cooling system runs it's best at 212 degrees F, boiling water under pressure not allowing the water to turn to steam and vaporize. Squeeze the hose, (while cold), if it is hard as a piece of plastic, or soft and squishy it is prudent to replace it. A hard hose is susceptible to cracking, a soft hose can burst or pop a hole in it. Check each end of the hose where the clamps are, if there are splits, tears or a bulge appears on the pressure side of the clamp, change the hose. If none of these condition exist your hose is fine.
Check your Belts simply by turning them sideways so it's possible to see the contact side, some contact on both sides. Look for ragged, cracked, torn, missing cogs or fiber cording showing. If any of those is the case, change the belt, it's just simply not worth the gamble. Some vehicle's have a single "serpentine" belt that drives the air conditioner, steering pump and alternator as a minimum. Most older cars and trucks have more than one hose to run accessories. A loud screech, I believe we've all heard them, is the sound of a loose or glazed over belt. If when you push down with a finger in the center span of the hose and it deflects more than 1/2-3/4" the belt needs to be tightened, if within a week the deflection is back the belt has stretched and needs replacement. No one wants a belt to break on a two mile long bridge or tunnel, nightmare time.

4) Have your battery checked at a service center, if it's over two years old plan on buying a new one. If it's heading into winter and your battery is two years or older, change the battery, cold weather will sap it. Triple A's busiest days are also the coldest days on record. Don't mess with a battery just change it every two to three years, do go over three. See how to inspect a battery here.

OK! The car's been checked out and
we are free to get started, let's go!

 Four very basic checks that may be the most important checks of your life, the good thing is if you stay up on the inspections and repairs successful road trips are much more likely. You can perform the checks your self, or have it done at a garage where the advantage is they can fix it all immediately.
  Thanks for reading I hope you found this helpful in our quest to be as self reliant as we possibly can be. Leave a comment, suggestion or correction I appreciated the input.

JacquesandKate  emergencykitsplus.com