BLOG: Get Winter Prepared with @Halfords_uk

Winter is definitely starting to bite: The first harsh East Anglian frosts have set in hard on Project Beast and Project Ecowagon's windscreen of a morning, there's salt on the road and snow in the air. Time to get prepared for Winter... which, for me, involves a trip to my local Halfords, to pick up some Winter essentials.

First up (given the fact I've got another Range Rover!) is the AA Emergency Breakdown Kit, which is a bobby bargain for £29.99 and would actually make quite a cool Christmas gift – for your dad, or mate, but most definitely NOT your wife chaps!
The neatly bagged (signature AA yellow & black, naturally) contains "all the important stuff you need in the event of a breakdown" – namely:

* Hazard warning triangle to warn other road users (legal requirement to carry in many EU countries, if not UK, yet!)
* Tow rope and Booster cables so that you can be moved off the roadside, with a jump start or tow.
* Foot pump with a gauge in case of a puncture.
* Hi-Grip cotton gloves for maximum grip & minimal dirt spreading.
* Weatherproof torch & batteries for night time use.

This now lives in the boot of Project Beast. Cracking bit of kit.

Next up, is a Halfords own brand, great VFM Six Piece Winter Essentials Kit, perfect for those freezing cold mornings and evenings. For just a tenner, you get:

* 400ml Halfords De-icer
* 75ml Halfords Lock De-icer
* 500ml Halfords Night before De-icer
* 1 Litre Halfords Screenwash
* Halfords Squeege & Sponge
* Halfords Chamois demister

This generous kit is perfect for de-icing (hey, pre de-icing) and de-misting a deeply frozen car – which both of mine tend to be, pretty much every day, living out in the sticks as I do. 

A couple of groovy can-based products were my next choice, with Holts Tyreweld (£9) which can be used in the event of a puncture – sealing up the affected (14 & 15-inch) tyre with gunk – and Bluecol Tyre Snow Grip (£5), which is a "liquid snow chain" that improves tyre traction on snow and ice. It's effective whilst on snow, for c40 miles and will not damage the rubber as it quickly wears off after contact with dry tarmac: Perfect for occasional use on Project Ecowagon, to get us out of the un-griutted rural roads of Norfolk and out to the main roads. 4x4 Project Beast Range Rover should be all right without help here. 

Finally, for when things are really Arctic and I'm out on a wild location, there's this funky foldable, steel-bladed snow shovel (£16) to dig me out of deep snow and clear a path. It's jolly sturdy for a little thing and packs away neatly into a bag, so can be easily stored or transported.

So... get down to your local Halfords for all your Winter gear now – before the deep snow and ice has you trapped roadside, at home, or in the office car park! Discover more on Twitter & Facebook.

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