How to prepare your vehicle for harsh winter weather

HOUSTON – Auto repair shops are rarely busier than right before severe weather hits. Forgetting to winterize your car can be an expensive mistake. Here are some of the basics:

Top off your fluids.

“The main thing to do is to make sure that your coolant is up to snuff so you can protect your engine block,” Michael Poutous, owner of Poutous Auto Repair, said. “And make sure you have washer fluid.”

Check your battery.

Don’t forget to change your battery too, Poutous said.

“If it’s three or four years old, it’s on its last leg,” Poutous said. “Get rid of it.”

You can also buy an ice scraper, if ice is in the forecast.

“Went ahead and flushed my system, put the antifreeze out there,” Houston firefighter Vince Arthur said at the Autozone in Bellaire. “Just trying to be proactive.”

Arthur’s son, Aldin, was by his side. It was time for a battery change.

“Right now, my car it is kinda shaky, kinda dying,” Aldin said. “I got to make sure it’s ready to drive in the morning.”

While they changed the battery, the Arthurs found out that Houston Independent School District canceled classes for the morning.

“At least I got it now,” Aldin said. “For the future.”

It is also recommended that you fill your tires with the correct amount of air.