5 New Year’s Resolutions for when you’re behind the wheel in 2023
16th Jan, 2023
We’re only a week or so into a brand new year. All told, it’s a pretty strange time, isn’t it? Caught just between the past and the future. A time of reflecting on the year gone by, and a time for planning what you’re going to do with the next twelve months.
Well… if you’re already thinking about your New Year’s Resolutions, and you’re planning on being in the driver’s seat a fair amount this year, then we think we’ve got some New Year’s driving Resolutions that are worth considering. Of course, if you’re not planning on doing a lot of driving, don’t forget you can always get the best prices when you scrap your car with us! If you’re planning on staying in the driver’s seat though… shall we get started?
1. Schedule your car maintenance
Maintenance problems can not only be hard on your wallet, they can even be downright dangerous. The poor condition of certain cars is a major contributing factor in accidents across the UK. Faulty brakes are one obvious example, but lots of drivers often underestimate how risky bald tyres can be as well.
One of the best ways to ensure that you don’t have to worry about issues like this is to draw up a preventative maintenance plan. It ensures that your car remains in a safe condition, and it can even save you significant amounts of money, as it often helps you to catch minor issues in their early stages, before they develop into anything that’s more serious and costly.
Here are a couple of examples of checks that it’s wise to make on a regular basis:
• Tyre pressure
• Engine oil levels
• Coolant levels
• Screen wash system
Other checks can be made on a more infrequent monthly basis – but they do still need to be made! This includes things like:
• Changing your air filters
• Checking your brake fluids
• Inspecting your tyre treads
2. Get yourself up to speed on the Highway Code
The world’s highways are evolving all the time, much like the technology (and fundamental nature) of the cars driving on them. Attitudes change over time too. So the Highway Code is always being updated to reflect it all. There have been some pretty major changes that have been made in 2022, the most prominent of which is the new hierarchy of road users. There are also new rules coming in 2023, in particular with regard to pavement parking and the ULEZ.
If you’ve not yet had a chance to refresh yourself on the latest changes though, don’t worry – we’ve penned our very own post on some of the most crucial changes you need to know for the year ahead.
3. Do the Dutch Reach
It might sound like the latest TikTok craze, but it’s actually a different kind of move we’ve imported from our European neighbours. In a nutshell, it refers to the practice of opening your car door with your furthest hand, rather than the one nearest it. So that’s your left hand if you’re driving, and your right hand if you’re in the front passenger seat, for example.
What this does is naturally force you to look over your shoulder, so you’ve got a much better chance of seeing any cyclists approaching, making you far less likely to accidentally hit them with the car door. (It might look comical on TV, but people have been killed in real life in these situations.) It’s been around for a few years now, but it’s yet to become standard practice in the UK, so it’s worth making it your New Year’s Resolution!
4. Drive as economically as you can
With the UK still feeling the pinch of the cost-of-living crisis, and the price of fuel still dipping and soaring regularly, the rewards of driving economically are frequently underestimated, and you might find that you’re able to save yourself a surprising amount. A study by the AA found that drivers could save themselves 10% of weekly fuel bills, and some of the best drivers in the study were able to save themselves an impressive 33%.
So, what does that involve, exactly? Well, there are a variety of useful techniques for driving economically, but some of the most effective include driving as smoothly as possible, with gentle acceleration. It’s also a good idea to avoid unnecessarily sharp braking and accelerating by keeping a good distance from the car in front.
5. Avoid unnecessary journeys
Of course, one of the very best ways to minimise your outgoings on your car is to cut down on driving altogether, wherever you can. Short but frequent journeys like the school run or shopping trips can be useful candidates initially, or visits to see family or friends in nearby locations. Anything that’s within reasonable walking distance or within the range of public transport.
It can save you a lot of costs on fuel, possibly a lot of stress, and even makes things easier on your car, as its condition can deteriorate more slowly when it’s used less intensively. Of course, it’s not viable for everyone, but it’s definitely worth considering!
Alternatively, you might even find that you can do without your car altogether. Or, if you can’t, you might be thinking about getting a new one. Either way, rest assured you can always rely on us to provide you with the very best prices when you scrap your car with us. Just enter your car reg and postcode to the fields on our site, and we’ll get you the best price in seconds. Go on… curious to find out how much your car is worth?
