Drivers often encounter mechanical car issues when it rains. Typically, rain does not require you to make major car modifications, but having a few tips up your sleeves can help you avoid some common car problems faced during rainfall. Although it rains seldom in the UAE, it is never too early to prepare your car for rain. You don’t want to wait till it’s raining to prepare your car for it.
Protect Your Car from Rain
To prepare your car for rain, we have detailed some commonly faced car problems and how to avoid them.
DEAD BATTERY
During the rainy season, drivers often encounter a dead car battery. One of the reasons can be the strenuous efforts of a car battery to start the engine due to a drop in temperature.
A battery can go dead as more power is needed to operate the various car systems while it pours. These car systems can include the engine control unit, car heating or air conditioning system, infotainment system, and even the headlights. Another reason for a dead battery can be its ill-maintenance or completion of its lifespan.
Tips to Avoid
To avoid a dead car battery make sure you have it maintained in routine car maintenance. During the rainy season, inspect your car battery before hitting the road. Ensure that the battery has enough capacity to pull through the rain.
Keep a check on your battery’s lifespan. Buy a new one if it has already been used for more than 2 to 3 years.
IRREGULAR TYRE PRESSURE
Improper tyre pressure can cause irregular or rapid wear leading to internal tyre damage. The tyre pressure can fluctuate during the rainy season due to the decreasing temperature. The environmental temperature has a major effect on the car’s tyre pressure as it can cause car problems related to high or low tyre pressure.
Tips to Avoid
To prepare your car for the rainy season, make sure you check the car’s tyre pressure before heading off. Include this check on the car maintenance checklist as well to avoid fluctuations in tyre pressure.
Keep an eye out for the tyre pressure indicator. The tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS) detects low tyre pressure. When the air pressure falls below 25% of the manufacturer’s recommended air level, the tyre pressure indicator lights up on the car’s dashboard.
FOGGY WINDOWS AND WINDSHIELD
One of the common car problems faced during the rainy season is foggy windows and windshield. This happens due to the difference in air temperatures, inside and outside the car’s cabin. Or simply, fog appears on the car windows and windshield due to the cold environmental temperature and warm cabin temperature.
The driver’s road visibility is impaired when the car windows and windshield fog during the rainy season.
Tips to Avoid
To avoid the foggy windshield and windows during the rainy season, you can lower the car’s cabin temperature to match that of the outside air. This is the quickest way to reduce the fog.
Another way to defog the car windshield and windows in no time is to simply press the defogger button. The car’s climate control system is one of the modern safety features that regulate the cabin temperature.
FAILING WINDSHIELD WIPERS
Another factor that contributes greatly to the driver’s visibility impairment is the failing windshield wipers. The car windshield wipers play an important role in improving driver’s visibility, especially during the rainy season. The windshield wipers may not work if their blades are worn or broken.
Symptoms of failing windshield wipers include unevenly wiped windshield, haze on the windshield, stuttering of blades, and streaks on the windshield after wiping.
Tips to Avoid
To prepare your car for the rainy season, make sure that the windshield wiper blades are well-maintained. Manufacturers indicate that the wiper blades have a lifecycle of about 1 year or 500,000 cycles. However, many factors can affect the longevity of wiper blades, such as bad weather or pollution.
It is recommended to replace the windshield wipers replaced every year or when they start showing failing signs. By doing so, you can ensure maximum visibility on the road and the safety of car occupants.
THICKENING FLUIDS
The drop in mercury observed during the rainy season causes the thickening of the car’s fluids by increasing viscosity. Such fluids are the engine oil, and the antifreeze and lubricating fluids.
The thickened car fluids can cause wear and tear due to inconsistent lubricating film. It can also result in a reduced fuel economy as the engine will waste energy pumping the thickened engine oil.
Tips to Avoid
To avoid the thickening of car fluids due to low temperatures in the rainy season, it is best to idle your car for a few minutes. Warming up your car will prevent engine oil congealing allowing the car components to lubricate properly.
Also, make sure that the car fluids are maintained to their recommended levels before hitting the road in rain. You can experience poor car performance or an engine failure in the worst scenario if you delay changing the car engine oil.
CAR LIGHT ISSUES
To prevent possible road fatalities during rainfall or foggy weather, the car lights must work their best. Failing car lights can reduce a driver’s road visibility and also makes it difficult for oncoming vehicles to judge your location.
The car lights can fail due to a burned-out light bulb, corroded socket or loose wires in the socket, or due to an electrical issue.
Moreover, car lights in the UAE are important as there are strict laws for their proper usage. Failure to follow these rules results in fines and black points for the driver.
Tips to Avoid
The best way to avoid failing car lights during the rainy season is to check all the lights once before travelling. Make sure you clean the headlights and replace old light bulbs timely to avoid dim or fused lights on the road.
That is all about how to prepare your car for the rainy season. You can avoid some common car problems detailed above by practising the tips to avoid them. Keep track of your routine car maintenance to avoid car issues.
However, if you are facing recurrent car problems, you can consider switching to one of these used cars for sale in the UAE. Also, this can be your time to turn over a new leaf and go green with the range of used electric cars for sale in the UAE under the following listings:
- Used Tesla Model 3 for sale in the UAE
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Stay tuned to UAE’s leading car blog for more useful tips on resolving car issues.
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