Preparing your Motorhome for the New Year

Taking your motorhome or campervan out of hibernation for the New Year? Ideally, before you set off on your adventures for 2024, you should get a habitation check and service of your vehicle.  However, if this isn’t possible make sure you  check your vehicle over  with the following steps:

 

Check Tyres

Check for Damage

Inspect your tyres for any damage; this can  be anything from bumps and cuts to deterioration or cracking. When checking over your tyres if you find anything stuck in the treads remove it with a blunt tool; it’s important to use a blunt object as a sharper tool could cause damage to your tyres.

Tyre Tread

When checking over your tyres, your tyre tread is crucial. The absolute minimum tread depth of your tyres should be 1.6mm, although the recommended tyre tread depth is 3mm.

Tyre Pressure

Another fundamental before you set off is making sure you have the correct tyre pressure. A great tool that allows you to input your specific vehicle details to see what your tyre pressure should be is: https://www.tyresafe.org/motorhome-tyre-pressure.

 

Test Brakes

Do a static break test by pressing down the brake pedal in your vehicle, if your brakes are working correctly, you should feel resistance from the pedal. If the brake feels soft and you feel a lack of resistance you should not drive your vehicle until a specialist has checked over the vehicle.

 

Check the Dashboard for any Warning Lights

Upon starting up your motorhome or campervan if your dashboard is displaying any warning lights make sure to take your vehicle to a garage to be looked at before you resume any New Year touring.

 

Check Oil and Coolant Levels

Checking oil

Open up your motorhome/campervan bonnet and carefully pull out the dipstick. Wipe off any oil on the dipstick; reinsert it into your vehicle until you hear a click; remove the dipstick where you can now see your current oil level.  If your oil level does not sit in between the top lines which shows the ideal oil level on the dipstick you will need to top up your oil.

On some newer vehicles there is no longer a dipstick; if this is the case for your motorhome, refer to your vehicle manual on how to check your oil levels.

Checking engine coolant

Open up your motorhome/campervan bonnet and locate your vehicle’s coolant tank. Check the reservoir markings showing the maximum and minimum levels and make sure the coolant level is in between these marks. If your coolant level has fallen below the minimum open your campervan/motorhome coolant cap and fill it with coolant until it’s between the maximum and minimum line.

*Please make sure your vehicle engine has completely cooled down before refilling the engine coolant.

 

Test Lights, Electrics, Fire and Carbon Monoxide Alarms

Check all lighting, plug sockets, and devices like fridges are all in working order before setting out on your motorhome/campervan road trip! It’s also vitally important to check that your fire alarm and carbon monoxide alarms are working.

 

Make sure your Motorhome is Fully Covered

Get the protection you need for 2024 and get a quote with Comfort today! Our friendly team are standing by, so give us a call at 0208 984 0777!