Autumn health check for your car

Autumn is a beautiful time of year in Britain, but the colourful fallen leaves we enjoy to look at can cause problems for your car.

With a drop in temperatures, changing road conditions and leaf-covered lanes - autumn can throw up a lot of problems for motorists.

With that in mind, it's a perfect time to give your car a little TLC with an autumn health check.

You can do this yourself with our tips below, or alternatively, pop it into your local garage for that extra peace of mind.

Autumn care checklist

• Test all exterior lights
• Check your wiper blades and make sure your windscreen wash is topped up
• Test your brakes to make sure they're up-to-scratch for potentially slippery, leaf-covered roads
• Take a look at your tyres - check the tread depth and pressure
• Check fluid levels - engine oil, brake fluid and radiator coolant
• And with winter approaching, now's a good time to check your antifreeze and stock up on de-icer ready for the frosty mornings ahead

Garage extras

You've probably been taking full advantage of your car's Air Con over the summer months, so if you're taking your car into a garage, ask them to check your AC.

It's recommended you have your vehicle's AC serviced yearly, but if you've given it a bit of a hammering this year, you may want to have it re-charged.

And finally, ask your mechanic to check your battery to make sure it's in tiptop condition going into winter. Car batteries are particularly vulnerable to problems caused by bad weather and poor driving conditions.

• Fingers crossed we'll have a mild autumn, but if you would like some information about driving in bad weather, read our guide here.