Be prepared!
Haynes is there to hold
your hand in an emergency

Nobody wants to have to cope with an emergency. We all want life to be plain sailing. But accidents happen; mishaps occur; things break. Maintaining your vehicle properly is a good way of avoiding at least one set of disasters, and this is where Haynes Manuals will help you. Haynes is the world's leading publisher of automotive repair manuals and is renowned for teaching millions of car owners how to carry out routine maintenance and repairs. Haynes publishes manuals for more than 500 cars and vans as well as useful glovebox guides such as Your Car and Driving Abroad

But even a perfectly-maintained vehicle can produce an unexpected fault - nobody can predict precisely when a bulb will fail, for instance (except that it will probably be immediately before a police car comes up behind you and pulls you over). The sensible thing is to learn some basic skills and carry a few items that will be useful in an emergency. See below for what Haynes suggests.

For more advice on model-specific procedures, please refer to the appropriate Haynes Service and Repair Manual. Haynes Manuals retail at £17.99 (hardback) and are available from all good car accessory retailers and bookshops including: Halfords, Motor World and WH Smith. A comprehensive stockist locator can be found at www.haynes.co.uk.

Useful items to have in an emergency  

1. Carry a set of jump leads and know how to use them to sort out a car with a flat battery - yours or a colleague's.
2. Keep some spare fuses and light bulbs in the car and learn how to fit them.
3. Practise changing a wheel in case you get a punctured tyre. A wheel brace with an extending handle is useful for undoing wheel nuts or bolts that are very tight. Keep some gloves and something to kneel on in the car - they may save you getting dirty.
4. Carry a warning triangle, and a torch that works.
5. Don't run out of fuel - top up when the fuel gauge drops to the quarter full mark. Carrying spare fuel is not normally recommended - it's potentially a fire hazard - but if you need to do so, use an approved container securely stowed in the luggage area.
6. A small can of water dispersant spray has many uses. Among other things it can dry out damp ignition components, lubricate a sticking lock (which is then less likely to freeze), and help to free a stuck wheel nut.
7. Carry a spare key or keys and make a note of their numbers so that replacements can be ordered. (If the key has a remote control for an alarm or an immobiliser it won't just be numbers you'll need, but some expensive reprogramming. So try not to lose it!)
8. If you witness an accident or are involved in one, make a note of the essential information. Carry a small notepad and pen for this purpose, and maybe a disposable camera too. Some insurance companies provide an accident report form.
9. In winter, keep some de-icer and a scraper in your vehicle - for frosty nights when you are away from home. If conditions are bad but you really have to travel, add a snow shovel, a blanket and some food and drink in case you get stuck.
10.  Finally, keep your Haynes Manual in the car - it will help you fix breakdowns. Alternatively, the Haynes glovebox guide, Your Car, is less bulky and has a lot of useful information that applies to most vehicles.

Notes to Editors:

The information above is supplied courtesy of Haynes Publishing, please credit accordingly if you intend to use it. For further information, please contact Rebecca Nicholls on Tel: 01452 260063 or email: pr@haynes.co.uk