1. Believe it or not, road trip safety starts at the home. Sure, you’re leaving it but you need to make sure your home is safe for when you return. Arrange to have your neighbors pick up your mail while you’re away so that your absence isn’t noticed. If home security is your main concern than pop on by sites like www.homesecurityfamily.com to find out more.

2. Move with a purpose. If you are sightseeing or visiting unfamiliar territory, don’t look like a tourist. That may be hard to accomplish with children but it can be managed.

3. Use truck stops. Men, it’s okay to ask for directions and take a break from time to time. Exhaustion is one of the leading causes of car accidents.

4. Don’t advertise where you’re going. If you park somewhere or stop for a break, keep an eye on your road maps and leaving nothing behind for others to find.

The first one is water. In the case that your car is oveheating, water in the radiator can help it cool itself off and thus letting you get back home – or to a garage.

Another one is oil. Sure, you change the oil as suggested by the manufacturer, but it’s always good to have at least one or two quarts handy in case there’s a small leak, or if the car just burns the oil up for whatever reason.

Coolant is very imporant to the function of your vehicle. A car uses coolant and sometimes, just like oil, there can be a leak or a greater problem in the works, but if your car is out of coolant it won’t run properly.

Finally, there’s windshield washer fluid. If you’ve driven after a snow storm and the dirty snow is splashing on your windshield, you need to be able to keep your windshield clean or else your visibility is reduce, thus increasing your risk for an accident. This also goes for driving in mud, or other dirty conditions.

Remember, safety first.Still bored? Click to continue: How to Determine If a Car Fluid Leaks

The first thing, as with any emergency, is to try and remain calm. A calm person has a better sense of thinking.

Next, turn on your four way emergency lights to let anyone around you know that you are having a problem. If you have a cell phone handy, call for emergency help right away for any assistance you may need.

Find the smoothest part of the road and the most open part of the road. If you see a hill, try to climb it. This will cut down your speed. In you’re on a flat surface, just do your best to coast along until the car slows.

If your emergency brake still functions, this will stop the car completely. However, only use the emergency brake when the car is at a slow enough speed that it won’t cause you any harm. Of course, if there is the instance were you feel you may crash or hurt someone else, you may have no going but to pull the emergency brake.

Another option would be to use the guard rail as a way to stop. If you are the only one driving in the vehicle, get into the right lane. Slowly gauge your speed and distance and gently hit the guardrail. The friction will help to slow the car down to a safer speed. Yes, the car will probably be damaged, but at least you’ll walk away alive.

A flashlight is an essential tool to keep in the vehicle at all times. How else will you see underneath the hood when it is dark outside? A screwdriver is also a tool that you should have a handful of inside the vehicle at all times, and be sure that you have a flat, a Phillips, and any other screwdriver tip that you may need. Screwdrivers are always needed to unscrew nuts and bolts!

Also, a tire jack is important to have in the vehicle, along with a spare tire for those times when things seem to jump out and cause your tire to leak! Without a jack you won’t be able to get the car off the ground to change the tire!

Of course there are so many things that should be kept in a car, but with these few things, you are ready to tackle most any car emergency you may encounter.