As a cold front is expected to arrive in the Rio Grande Valley on Thursday bringing some much colder weather, AAA officials and others are offering tips on how to keep vehicles from being stolen and in safe operating conditions.
According to AAA, colder weather leads to crimes of opportunity for those individuals looking to steal cars, SUVs and trucks. “Thieves often look for the white smoke coming from the exhaust of unattended vehicles that owners are warming up,” AAA stated in a media release.
AAA Texas recommends the following tips to prevent your vehicle from being stolen:
- Never leave a car unlocked and running to warm it up or while stopping for a quick cup of coffee. It only takes a moment for the opportunistic thief to jump inside and drive off
- Start the engine and allow it to idle only for the time it takes you to fasten your seat belt. This ensures the lubricating oil gets to all of the engine’s vital parts. Drive the car normally and avoiding hard acceleration brings the engine to a warmer temperature faster, and also reduces wear and exhaust emissions.
- Use anti-theft or automatic tracing devices. If your vehicle wasn’t equipped with an alarm or hidden tracking device when purchased, have one installed.
The colder temperatures can also affect the tire pressure on vehicles and their TPMS light may illuminated on the dashboard, reports Goodyear Tires. According to Goodyear, this happens naturally and does not necessarily mean your tires are leaking.
Officials urge motorists to check the tire pressure on their vehicles by doing the following:
- Tire Cool Down. Proper tire inflation should be checked when the tires haven’t been driven on for several hours and have had time to cool down.
- Vehicle Manufacturer’s Recommended Tire Pressure. Check manufacturer’s recommended tire pressure on the door placard.
- Check Tire Pressure. Check tire pressure with an accurate tire pressure gauge.
- Inflate to Recommended PSI. Fill to each tire with air to the recommended PSI.
How Cold Weather Can Affect Tire Pressure
- For every 10 degrees of temperature drop, tires will drop 1-2 pounds of pressure. It is important to keep your tires within the recommended PSI to maintain traction, handling and durability.
Impacts to Tire Pressure in Hot Weather
- Just as colder weather can cause PSI to drop, excessive heat can cause your tire pressure to temporarily increase. For every 10 degrees of increased temperature, your tires can be expected to increase by 1-2 pounds of pressure.
