Need to prepare for a road trip? Here are 10 things to have checked on your car before hitting the road.
We teamed up with Jiffy Lube to make sure our car was ready for our 2017 Summer Road Trip. You might be surprised that Jiffy Lube can do more than just change your car’s oil. They can help prepare your car for a road trip!
Our Chevy Traverse is a great road trip vehicle. We’ve already driven it to Walt Disney World, Baltimore, Washington, DC, Hershey Park, Kalahari Resorts, and Boston. But she needs a little TLC before our next adventure.
These are 10 things that I think every one should check on their vehicle before taking a road trip.
Vehicle Road Trip Checklist
My car was also due for a state inspection and emissions test. So I added that to the list, too.
Checking their website, it looked as if Jiffy Lube could handle everything on my list. Their Signature Service Oil Change not only changes the oil, but also does the following:
Inspect Key Components:
- Antifreeze/coolant reservoir levels
- Engine air filtration system
- Serpentine belts
- Brake fluid level (in transparent reservoirs)
- Wiper blades
- Exterior lights
- Chassis (lubricate when applicable)
Check and Fill:
- Tire pressures
- Transmission/transaxle fluid
- Differential/transfer case fluid
- Power steering fluid
- Windshield washer fluid
- Battery water (excluding sealed batteries)
Clean:
- Exterior windows
- Vacuum interior floors
That just left the brakes, the A/C system check, and the state inspection and emissions.
It turns out that Jiffy Lube does A LOT more than just oil changes. On their website, they list just about everything you could think of outside or doing major repair work.
The only catch is that not every Jiffy Lube location can do each of the services listed on their website. You have to check each individual location to see what services they provide.
I did manage to find one that listed all the services I needed. It was a little bit out of my way. However, that was worth it to only have to make one visit for everything.
My Jiffy Lube Visit
The place was not busy. “Big Jeff” (that’s what his name tag said) greeted me as I pulled up. I asked for an oil changed and also told him I’d like to have the brake pads replaced if needed, and the air conditioning system looked at.
They drove the car inside while I took a seat in the waiting room. Then they called me out to the computer to go over what I wanted done and what they recommended for my car to make sure we were both on the same page. “Big Jeff” recommended an air condition recharge and fuel system cleaning, and I opted for an engine flush when I saw how dirty the oil was.
That’s when I found out that this Jiffy Lube didn’t do brake services, even though it said they did on the website. I should have called – lesson learned.
The good news was that they could handle the air conditioning and state inspection. So that checked everything off my list except the brakes.
Since I was getting more than just a standard oil change, I sat and waited while other customers came and went.
“Big Jeff” updated me on the progress, as the car was moved to different areas of the garage for the various work being done. He informed me that my Traverse passed the inspection and emissions tests, and that one of those tests was the brakes. He recommended I replace the brake pads even though they passed inspection.
That would mean making another stop, but what could I do?
It took about 2 hours to complete everything. But in the end, Jiffy Lube helped prepare our road trip vehicle to hit the road for another family adventure.
I had to laugh a bit to myself as I looked at the sticker on the windshield. We were about to knock more than half that mileage off in the next 10 days!
Thank you to Big Jeff and the guys at Jiffy Lube for taking care of our car. They were courteous, professional, and they didn’t try to sell me on services and things that I didn’t need. They also let me take some pictures!
And thank you to Jiffy Lube for partnering with us to make our 2017 Summer Road trip happen!
Where is your next your road trip taking you? Let us know in the comments!
Cyril Duchesneau
Wednesday 13th of January 2021
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