Car safety checks you can do in your own driveway

Six checksNo tools beyond a gauge and a coin

10 minA monthly walk-around, start to finish

Tire pressure and tread
Every light and signal
Fluids under the hood
Wipers and mirrors

Build a Trip Checklist

// About DrivePath

Know your car before the road tests it

DrivePath Safety explains the parts that keep a car safe, in the order you would check them, in words that need no workshop to follow.

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A mechanic in dark overalls working inside an engine bay

FreeEvery guide and every checklist, with nothing to sell

A ten-minute walk-around

Tires, lights, the fluids under the hood and the view from the seat, once a month, in that order.

Warning signs, in plain words

The sounds, smells and feelings that mean a part deserves a closer look, and how soon.

// Safety checks

Six checks, in walk-around order

Each guide explains what to look at, what is normal and when a technician should take over. Start at the tires and work your way round.

Tires and wheels

Pressure, tread and sidewalls: the three things to look at on every tire, and how often.

Brakes

How the pedal feels, what the car sounds like when it slows, and the one fluid to look at.

Lights and signals

Headlights, brake lights and turn signals: how to check them alone in two minutes.

Wipers, glass and mirrors

Blades, washer fluid, chips in the windshield and mirrors set to cut down blind spots.

Steering and suspension

Pulling, wandering, bouncing and knocks: what the way a car rides is telling you.

Fluids and battery

The reservoirs under the hood worth knowing by sight, and the signs a battery is tiring.

Going somewhere?

Build a printable checklist for the trip you are about to take, in under a minute.

Build a trip checklist

// Know the limits

Some checks belong to a technician

A walk-around tells you a lot, but much of a car’s safety lives where only a lift and the right tools can reach. DrivePath is clear about where your part ends.

Brake parts behind the wheel

Pads, discs and lines are measured with the wheel off. Listen and watch the fluid; leave the rest to a shop.

Steering and suspension joints

Worn joints show up on a lift long before most drivers feel them. Mention any knock or wander.

See the Warning Signs

// Warning signs

Four signs worth a closer look

What it usually means

A high squeal that comes back every time you slow down can come from the small metal tab many brake pads carry to signal wear. Grinding or scraping is a stronger sign and is worth having checked the same week.

BrakesRead the guide

What it usually means

A vibration that grows with speed often traces back to a tire that is out of balance or damaged. A shake only when braking points somewhere else. Note when it happens before you describe it to a shop.

Tires and steeringRead the guide

What it usually means

A tire that needs air far more often than the other three usually has a slow leak, from a nail in the tread to a leaking valve. A tire shop can find it and tell you whether it can be repaired.

TiresRead the guide

What it usually means

Some lights mean stop as soon as it is safe; others mean book a check soon. Red usually signals the more urgent kind and amber a check. The owner’s manual lists every light your car has.

DashboardRead the guide

// Safety tips

Get seasonal safety tips by text

A reminder when the weather turns, news of a new guide and nothing else. At most 4 texts a month, at no cost, and a single reply of STOP ends them.

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A short welcome email is on its way, plus a single confirmation text if you ticked the text box.

A man connecting jumper cables under the hood of a car

// Monthly walk-around

A ten-minute check, once a month

Four stops around the car, always in the same order, so nothing gets skipped. Most months it is all fine, and that is worth knowing too.

Build a Trip Checklist

Walk around the car with a pressure gauge. Check each tire against the door sticker, run the penny test across the tread and look along both sidewalls.

Pressure, cold
Tread and sidewalls

Switch on headlights, then signals and hazards, and walk around once more. Check the brake lights with a reflection or a helper.

Every bulb lit
Lenses clear

With the engine cold and the car on level ground, look at oil, coolant, brake fluid and washer fluid, and glance at the battery terminals.

Levels between the marks
No crust or drips

Wipe the glass inside, test the wipers and washers, set the mirrors and make sure no warning light stays on after the engine starts.

Clear view
No warning lights

// Free habits

Two habits that cost almost nothing

A tire pressure gauge on a car tire valve

“A pocket tire gauge costs little, needs no power and reads the same every time. The gauges on air hoses at gas stations are often knocked about and can disagree with each other.”

Keep a gauge in the glove box

Read the guide

“Grime on headlights and glass scatters light and hides detail, especially at night and in rain. A cloth and washer fluid at each fill-up keeps the view clear.”