1. It's not suitable for one-way travel
Many go on road trip fans want the feeling of freedom by self-driving, which is mainly one-way. Usually, they go on the road with their family and friends in one car. In the event of vehicle failure during long-distance travel, their ability is limited. If a group of people and several cars start as a group, everyone will have a care, and they will not be at a loss like a lone ranger when they encounter some serious vehicle failures. At present, many car owners have joined the owner's club when buying a car, and there are also various car brand clubs. Although the cost may be considered as an investment at first, it will gradually experience the convenience and benefits it brings. You might as well contact the club or friends who have cars before you think about traveling by car, and organize a trip together, so that the feeling of fear on the road will slowly disappear and you will be much calmer.
2. Check beforehand and maintain afterwards
There are still many things to be done before go on road trip. First of all, the fuel and engine oil should be checked, especially the antifreeze. The weather in other provinces is unknown, and this is the preparation work that can be done now. Check whether the instrument has abnormal performance and check the tires, which requires you to be careful, in case there is any problem, it will be troublesome;
Be sure to take care of your car when you come back. From your own point of view, you should first recall the bumps that you can remember during the trip. This information is very important for the maintenance when you come back, just like the right medicine. There are many car owners who simply clean their cars when they come back from go on road trip. You know, there are many hidden dangers for cars that can actually be solved in the maintenance after they come back. Don't turn small problems into big accidents, and you will regret it at that time.
3. Bring all the things
You should know that you should always be considerate when you travel far away, and take into account all the problems you may encounter on the way as much as possible. This is necessary homework if you want to swim happily. The following are some necessary items and appliances, which are expected to help riders travel as a reference: engine oil, spark plugs, cooling liquid, clear water, engine belt, petrol tank, tow rope, spare tire, jack, pliers, board, GPS, flashlight, mobile phone, disinfection paper towels, band-aid, berberine, eye drops, first aid kit, matches, knives and self-defense articles.
besides, don't forget the certificate and payment voucher, because it can avoid unnecessary troubles and troubles. This is also necessary for traveling abroad, and remember to bring enough spirits and enough money (credit cards that can be used in other places) before you can start.
some maintenance for the car before going out in winter
1. Check the tire: besides making sure that the tire pressure is enough, don't forget to check the tire pressure of the Spare tire. At the same time, we should also check the condition of the tire to see if there are cracks, damage or bulging bags on the tire wall. In case of the above situation, you must go to a professional maintenance station immediately.
2. Check the wiper: If it is damaged, it must be replaced and filled with no-freeze solvent in the hood, so that it can be used to maintain good sight and visibility.
3. Check the battery: batteries that are too old (more than five years old) should be replaced to avoid difficulties in starting in winter.
4. check whether the Antifreeze agent and Oil are sufficient; Whether the Drive belts are worn. At the same time, always check the water tank to avoid Overheat and engine failure.
5. Clear the frozen ice on the glass: cars parked outside the garage will form a thick layer of frozen ice on the glass after a cold night. If you are in a hurry to go to school or work, do not use hot water to thaw. It's freezing in the cold, and as soon as the hot water is poured out, it freezes again, which adds to the difficulties, and haste makes waste. One way is to start the engine first and turn on the heating in the car to thaw it slowly. At the same time, the ice can be slowly removed from the cracks by scraping the ice and snow. If you don't have a snow shovel, you can also use a credit card to scrape slowly.
motorists think too much about the car's condition and performance. Now let's focus on driving safety.
concern 1: driving safely at night during the journey
how to drive safely at night to prevent accidents? Master Gong Qiang, who often takes a group to travel by car in a car club in Chengdu, summed up the following points from his years of night driving experience:
1. If the opposite car comes during the night driving, don't step on the brake pedal for a while and turn to the right for a while. Because when encountering the opposite car, the driver will step on the brake pedal while turning because of fear, thus colliding with the pedestrian on the right and causing a traffic accident.
2. Pay attention to pedestrians crossing the road from the left when driving at night. Pedestrians often cross the road from left to right from the middle of the seams of the motorcade. Drivers can still see clearly during the day, but it is difficult for drivers to find it at night, especially when the street lamps on urban roads in our country are almost located on both sides of the road, and the light near the road center line is very dark.
3. Pay attention to strictly controlling the vehicle speed, which is the fundamental measure to ensure the safety of driving at night. When driving at night, it is necessary to reduce the vehicle speed in case of rain and other weather.
4. Pay attention to widening the following distance. When driving at night, drivers have poor vision and often encounter dangerous situations. Therefore, drivers must be prepared to stop at any time. In order to avoid danger, the distance between cars should be widened as far as possible to prevent the collision between the front and rear cars.
5. Try to avoid overtaking at night.
6. Pay attention to driving fatigue when driving at night. Driving at night can't see the landscape on both sides of the road, and there are few exciting stimuli on the road, so driving fatigue is most likely to occur. If you feel a little, you should cheer up or stop for a while. Concern 2: You will often encounter complicated road sections such as mountain roads, dirt roads, rainy roads, sandy roads, etc., so you must pay special attention to driving safety at this time.
Mr. Luo Zhong, owner of Jetta: Mountain roads are characterized by long and steep ramps, narrow and sharp bends, and limited sight. When driving, you should always pay attention to the road conditions, the steering timing should be accurate, the gear shifting action should be rapid, and at the same time, you should pay attention to various traffic signs in order to take measures in advance. When passing through a dangerous mountain road with a mountain backing and a cliff or a river, you should keep a low speed, drive carefully, and slow down and honk when turning.
Mr. Xia Jingli, owner of Fukang: First of all, you should control the speed when driving on dirt roads. There are many potholes and gravel on dirt roads, which directly threaten the driving safety. Especially when driving on rainy days on roads with water and mud, you should keep the throttle steady, control the speed and use middle and low gears to pass. Don't add or subtract gears or make emergency braking in slippery areas on the ground; Secondly, we should choose the road surface. When passing through the soft, muddy and waterlogged sections, we should first get off the bus to observe and judge that the wheels really won't fall into the soil before we can slowly pass through with low gears. If there is a rut, it is best to drive along it; Then we should be careful to go downhill. No matter whether it is sunny or rainy, we should choose the middle and low gear when going downhill, reduce the throttle and go downhill slowly, and don't slip in neutral. Especially, some dirt roads have sharp turns and slip in neutral on the way downhill, and it is easy to roll over when braking.
Mr. Zhang Guihua, owner of Santana: Generally speaking, the wading ability of cars is a little poor. When the water depth is more than half of the height of a car tire, it is not advisable to risk wading. When wading, you should put a low gear so that the car can smoothly drive into the water from the shore to avoid splashing. Keep the engine with enough power when driving, and avoid stopping halfway, shifting gears or slamming the steering wheel. Keep your eyes on the fixed target, not on the running water, so as not to disturb your vision and make mistakes in your direction. After landing, drive at a low speed for a certain distance, and lightly step on the brake pedal several times to make the brake shoe rub against the brake drum, so that the attached water is evaporated by heat, and then turn to normal driving after the braking efficiency is restored.
Mr. Yuan Yong, owner of Chevrolet: When the car passes through soft sand, don't stop, and make sure the wheels turn at a constant speed. Otherwise, once the car stops, it will be difficult to start again. When there is sand in front, you must accelerate ahead of time, and you can't collect oil until you have all passed. When passing through the sand, you sometimes feel that the wheels encounter strong resistance, because the sand is too soft. At this time, the speed will obviously slow down. Don't panic, slightly increase the throttle and try to increase the speed. When driving in the sand, don't suddenly increase the throttle, because this may cause a driving wheel to idle, and the car will lose its driving power and get stuck in the sand.
Pay attention to the safety of children when traveling by car
When traveling by car, it is natural to bring your little baby with you. It is often seen on the road that some children are sitting in the passenger seat; It is actually very dangerous to stand in front of the passenger seat and joke with the driving father or mother, or to play by yourself. Especially now, many good cars are equipped with airbags in the co-driver's seat, which makes it more urgent to attract people's attention.
what happens if a child comes to a sudden stop while sitting in the passenger seat without wearing a seat belt? Maybe it's a broken head. Even if you touch it gently, it will hurt their "fine skin and tender flesh". Then there is the problem of airbags. For children, airbags are not safe, but a deadly killer. The explosive force of airbags in an instant is enough to easily break the cervical vertebrae of children. This is not sensational. Even in countries with high automobile safety technology, there have been many cases in which airbags suddenly burst and children were sitting in the co-driver's seat and were blown to pieces.
what if you go out by car with young children in your arms? In fact, it is very dangerous for children to take a car with their children in their arms. Adults think they will be safe if they hold their children tightly in their arms, but they are not. Some traffic safety studies show that a collision at a speed of 48 kilometers per hour is enough to generate 14 kilograms of forward momentum on a 7-kilogram baby.
how much is 14 kilograms? Needless to say, you can calculate it yourself, which is equivalent to 2 times the weight of a baby! The consequences can be imagined. Babies are not safe even if they are held by adults wearing seat belts.
This needs the concept that we must sit in the back seat if we want to have children. To be exact, children under 12 must sit in the back seat. If the child is too young to wear a seat belt, for safety reasons, it is necessary to prepare a child car safety seat suitable for his height and weight. When choosing a safety seat, we should focus on the safety of the seat, and other auxiliary functions are second.
At present, there are many children's seats to choose from in some automobile monopoly stores, and the price ranges from several hundred yuan to several thousand yuan. Attention should be paid to the following points when selecting and installing children's seats:
1. Choose children's seats that are equivalent to children's bodies.
2. Choose a seat suitable for the car. This is very important. It is best to drive there when buying, and install the seat on the car seat on the spot to see if it is suitable.
3. The child seat should be installed on the back seat. Comparatively speaking, the safety factor of rear passengers is safer from the statistical data.
4. be sure to install the child seat firmly.
as far as the general child safety seats on the market are concerned, due to the differences in product categories introduced by domestic and foreign manufacturers, the applicable age ranges are also different. The custom of installing child safety seats in vehicles in Europe and the United States has been practiced for a long time, and there are certain system norms. However, there is no standard in China, but simply speaking, children's seats can be divided into three categories:
The first category: baby bed (blue lifting type)
It is suitable for children who are to 1 years old (below 1 kg) and can't sit, and it also has auxiliary functions such as shaking and lifting.
category ii: seat for children, suitable for children aged from 1 to 4
category iii: seat cushion for children aged from 4 to 12
it is actually just a heightening seat cushion for the seat belt to pass through, so as to avoid the danger that the seat belt will pinch the neck of the children because they are too small.
But at present, there is no concept of buying children's seats for babies and children in China. On the one hand, babies rarely take them out for long trips before they reach the age of one, and on the other hand, children grow very fast and can't be used soon after they are bought; And there is a wrong idea that the arms of elders are safe areas, which is unacceptable.
Countermeasures for driving in bad weather
Traveling by car is a great pleasure in life, but even if you have inquired about the local weather in advance, you may still encounter sudden bad weather. Scenic spots are mostly between mountains and rivers, such as heavy fog in the morning, sudden thunderstorms and windy conditions. How to deal with these situations?
driving in foggy days: foggy days often make some inexperienced drivers panic. When the fog starts, try to drive at a low speed on the ordinary highway, and then drive on the expressway after the fog clears. If the fog suddenly comes when driving on the expressway, you should immediately drive to the nearest service area or parking lot for temporary shelter. When it is too late to drive to the service area or parking lot, the safe way is to drive the car to the shoulder or emergency parking zone and turn on the wide light, tail light, rear fog light and danger warning light. When the fog clears until it does not affect the line of sight, leave the shoulder or emergency parking zone as soon as possible.
the most important thing for driving in foggy days is to prevent the vehicle from slipping out of control. The key point of driving is to start slowly, and avoid sudden acceleration, braking or slamming the steering wheel. When braking, try to use the brake as much as possible, and don't step on it. If the situation is not urgent, it is best to use gear braking. In foggy days, you must control the driving speed, keep a good distance from the car in front, and turn on the front and rear fog lights. If there are no fog lights, you can turn on the double jumping lights. If you find that the rear car is too close, you can gently brake a few times, but it is not really braking, just let the brake light light up to remind the rear car to pay attention.
Encountered with thunder: Many car owners are often very scared when they encounter thunder and lightning, and they get off in a hurry to find shelter from the rain. In fact, this practice is a bit too much. Don't get off and return it, but getting off and dodging increases the risk factor. Because even if lightning strikes the car, the current will be transmitted to the ground through the surface of the car body, and it will not be felt at all inside the car. On the contrary, it will be much safer, but all the windows must be closed. In addition, the antenna of the radio has the function of lightning rod and will absorb lightning, so it must be put away.
windy weather: if you suddenly encounter a strong wind while driving, you should also be careful. Although the influence of windy weather on the operation of motor vehicles is not as serious as that in foggy or snowy days, traffic accidents are easy to occur if you don't pay attention to its characteristics and drive carelessly.
When driving in strong winds, you should pay attention to the following points:
(1) Concentrate on driving vehicles and pay close attention to the movements of pedestrians, especially those who walk or run around with things wrapped around their heads, so as to prevent them from paying attention to the road and ignoring motor vehicles, especially cyclists and livestock frightened by strong winds, and beware of their sudden intrusion.