Section 4 – Preflight Checks

• How do your tires look? Are any of them low? By the way, a visual check is not the best way to check tire pressure. You will read about pressure gauges a bit later.
• Is there excessive wear on any of the tires? Do you see cracks or even nails sticking out of them?
• Is your windshield free from cracks or even dings – small pits in the glass? In severe temperature changes, dings can become cracks very quickly. Cracks in the windshield are dangerous because they can obstruct your vision, and they weaken the strength of the windshield.

• While checking your windshield, take a look at your wiper blades. Are they intact? Is there any sign of wear? Worn wiper blades will not clean your windshield. If anything, worn blades can cause smudges and streaking. Now, instead of improving your visibility, they can make it worse. On top of that, a fully worn or damaged blade can actually put permanent scratches in your windshield glass. The metal blade holder will run across the glass, not the rubber wiper blade.

• What about your wheel coverings and lug nuts? Does everything look secure. A wheel covering or hub cap that falls off of a vehicle moving along at 60 miles per hour is nothing more than a deadly missile. Make sure hub caps are locked in place.
• Check your vehicle undercarriage. Is anything loose underneath? Are your muffler and exhaust pipe securely in place?
• While checking the undercarriage, do you notice any puddles on the ground that may indicate a fluid leak?
• Look around the outside of your vehicle for pieces of trim that have become loose. Again, if they break loose while you are moving, they can cause more harm than you might realize.
• Are your side mirrors intact? How about cargo carriers or roof racks? Bicycle racks? Rear mounted spare tires?
• Are inspection and registration stickers present and up to date? How about your license plates?

Once you are satisfied that everything looks good, it’s time to enter your vehicle. However, the preflight check is not over yet.

• Is your seat adjusted properly so you can easily reach the brake and gas pedal without sitting too close to the steering wheel? Can you sit in an upright position with good posture?
• Are the seatbelts all in place? Are there any signs of torn or frayed belt straps? Are all of the buckles accessible to all passengers?

• Are the rear view and side mirrors adjusted for you offering the best field of view?
• Is your vehicle in park if it has an automatic transmission? If manual, is the clutch set right?
• Once you turn the key, a number of warning lights should illuminate and go out after a few seconds. Did this happen? Did any light not come on or did any stay on?
• Does the horn work? How about the directionals?
• When you depress the brake pedal does it feel squishy or go right to the floor?

If anything at all does not seem right during your “Preflight check,” attend to it right way. For minor issues, make a note to have the problem corrected as soon as you can. In many cases, you can fix minor problems yourself. For example, you may simply need to stop at a gas station to add air to a low tire. If that same tire is low on air in the next few days, assume you have a more serious issue with the tire.

Major problems require immediate attention. A squishy brake pedal or severely cracked windshield must be repaired as soon as possible. In some cases, you may be stopped by law enforcement if driving with certain defects on your vehicle. You can also be cited for operating a faulty vehicle.

If you are satisfied that everything is in order, you can get underway. Oh! One more thing to check before you leave: YOU.