How to Prepare for a Winter Road Trip Away from Kansas City

Ford Service Center Tips For A Successful Excursion This Season

Winter is one of the most fun times of year to hit the road if you do it right! Kansas City Ford owners are lucky that they are centrally located and can travel in any direction and find excitement and fun things to do. With beaches to the south toward the Florida panhandle and mountains to the West, there’s a potential road trip for everybody!

While we value the journey and think it is just as much of the trip experience than the destination, road trips require some serious preparation. It is devastating to be hundreds of miles away from your home and realize that you forgot something or didn’t prepare correctly.

Your Ford dealership in Kansas City has a few tips for you to be prepared to get the show on the road this winter and have a fun and seamless trip.

Legal Documents

The things in this category feel like no-brainers, but you’d be surprised how easy it is to forget even the most obvious things when scrambling to get packed for a vacation, Don’t leave home without the following essentials:

• Driver’s license
• Vehicle registration
• Proof of insurance

Triple-check that you have these before driving out of the driveway. Take it from your Kansas City Ford leader, you don’t want to be in an entirely different state only to realize you forgot an important piece of documentation.

Handy Things To Keep Just In Case

As many travelers have learned the hard way, driving long distances can bring a lot of risks and potential pitfalls. Flat tires and dead batteries have halted road trips for generations. Because we know this, we must be responsible and plan ahead. We don’t always have a Ford service center nearby when out on the road, so keep the following handy on your road trip to be ready for those unexpected road blocks:

• Roadside assistance (AAA or other service) information
• Emergency roadside assistance kit
• Extra car key
• Car manual
• Spare tire
• Jumper cables
• Tire pressure gauge
• Flashlight or headlamp
• Duct tape
• Ice scraper
• Bottled water and non-perishable food
• Blanket and spare coats or snow gear

Keep You and Your Passengers Comfortable

The downside of road trips can be the long hours on open roads with no sights to see. If you’re going to be sitting in a confined space for an extended period of time, you might as well do all you can to make it comfortable and as enjoyable as possible.

Head to a dealership near you, and you’ll see that new cars are including many features to fulfill this, but you may want to consider bringing along a few extra items, like:

• Travel pillows and blankets
• Cozy, breathable clothing
• Sunshades for windows
• Eye mask or sunglasses
• Refillable water bottles
• Variety of snacks and drinks
• Wipes and hand sanitizer to keep hands clean
• A great soundtrack or audiobook
• Any applicable travel toiletries or medications
• Other entertainment devices

Pro Tip: Be sure to pack any chargers, adapters, reading lights, headphones, and all other accessories you need for your entertainment.

Pre-Plan Stops and Sights

No long road trip goes over completely without stops for gas, bathroom breaks, stretching, sleeping, snack time, and more. While the stops may not seem that important to the trip, you can maximize them and make them your own.

Estimate when you will need to stop and strategically plan your visits to the following to maximize fun and experiences:

• Restaurants/eateries
• Hotels or inns
• Scenic rest stops
• Sightseeing opportunities

Car Not Ready For a Road Trip? Visit the Best Ford Dealership in Kansas City

Our full inventory of vehicles for sale is available to shop online, but we really love when you come in and visit us. If you’re shopping for a Ford in the Kansas City area, do yourself a favor and head over to 4501 S. 4th St. in Leavenworth.

We’ll treat you to customer service unlike any other you’ll ever have; we call it the Zecksperience. When you shop with Zeck Ford, you can expect unique benefits including fair and transparent pricing, fast and seamless service, completely inspected vehicles, and more. The best part? You experience all of those benefits with the absence of pushy salespeople. Our personal shoppers aren’t there to make commission off of you because they don’t make it. They are paid to support you in the buying process however they can.

Our team works hard to remove the hassles of the car buying process, and we’re confident you’ll love working with them!

Get Tuned Up Before You Take Off. Call Our Ford Service Center

Visit our full-service shop to prepare your car to tackle whatever comes up on your road trip. Our team of highly skilled and passionate technicians is the best group of specialists in Kansas City. When you let us service your vehicle, you’ll receive status updates and replacement suggestions on the following:

• Oil & Oil Filter
• Belts and Hoses
• Engine Air Filter
• Cabin Filter, when applicable
• Transmission and Transmission Fluid
• Windshield Wiper Fluid
• Fuel Filter
• Power Steering
• Antifreeze/Coolant
• Battery
• Spark Plugs
• Brakes

Being informed is step one to making sure your car is 100% ready for a safe and smooth ride. Come see our service center and let them get your car ready for your winter vacation!

Get on our schedule online, or call (844) 645-5448 to make an appointment.