Once your child is ready to start taking a driver’s education class, the freedom of driving is going to occupy a lot of their thoughts and time. However, simply knowing how a vehicle operates and the laws of the road isn’t enough for you to rest assured that your child will be safe and know how to handle him or herself when driving. So to help you feel confident that your child will be safe regardless of what type of situation they might find themselves in, here are three things you should teach your kids before you let them drive on their own.
Remember When Maintenance Needs To Happen
In order to ensure that the vehicle your child is operating is in good working order, it’s important that regular maintenance from a quality Car Maintenance Shop gets done on it at regular intervals. However, your child likely won’t remember to get these things done on their own. Because of this, you may want to encourage him or her to set a reminder in their phone for when they’ll need to get things like their oil changed or their tires rotated. According to Elizabeth Weiss McGolerick, a contributor to SheKnows.com, your oil should get changed every three months or 3,000 miles, so have them set a recurring reminder for that time frame.
Always Have A Stocked Emergency Kit
Even if your child is driving safely, emergencies can still take place. If and when they do, you want to know that your child has what he or she needs to safely take care of the situation. To do this, it’s smart to have an emergency kit always stocked in their car. According to DriversEd.com, this emergency kit should have things like a spare tire and jack, a flashlight, tool kit, jumper cables that they know how to use, a blanket, and some food and water in case they need to stay with their car for a while. Not only will having this emergency kit give you peace of mind, but it will give your child the confidence needed to take care of themselves if something unplanned were to arise.
Never Go Below A Quarter Tank Of Gas
It seems like a trait in most teens to try to see just how far they can push their gas tank without running out of gas. However, this isn’t a smart or safe thing for your child to be doing. According to CarInsurance.org, many vehicles need a good amount of gas in them to keep things lubricated and running properly. If that gas level gets too low, it can cause problems with the vehicle. Additionally, you don’t want to have to worry about being too low on gas if an emergency happens. With these things in mind, try to instill in your child that they should never let their gas tank get below a quarter full.
Before you let your teen hit the road, make sure you’ve prepared him or her for all that could happen when they’re driving on their own.
