What To Do in A Breakdown Situation?

You will never want to be in the situation when your car suddenly breaks down in the middle of a road. An untimely breakdown will leave you feeling stranded and helpless.

It is an unpleasant and potentially dangerous situation, but it is part of the experience and something that you must be prepared for. That is why we will bring you a short guide on what to do in case of a breakdown and how to avoid potential problems.

1. Don’t Panic (It’s a Car Breakdown, Not a Mental Breakdown)

No matter what happens and how bad the breakdown is, the first and the most important thing is not to panic and get upset. Panicking is often more dangerous than the breakdown itself and in order to get out of the situation, you need to stay composed and think rationally on what to do next.

2. Move Your Car To The Side Of The Road

When you feel that something is amiss about your vehicle, you should immediately start looking for a safe place to park and turn on your hazard lights to inform other motorists. If you are on the highway, park in far left lane for safety purposes. Should you be on the road, find the most appropriate spot to park to minimize the congestion to the traffic. However, if your car breaks down in the middle of the road, you should put the warning sign (red triangle) about 30 meters behind your car to signal to incoming vehicles. Be sure that your car is in neutral or out of the gears so that it can be manually shifted or towed if necessary.

3. Check If A Quick Fix Is Possible

Many of the times, the modern cars nowadays break down due to simple and banal reasons like running out of petrol or having a dead car battery. If your car breaks down due to these reasons, simply add some fuel or use jumper cables to kick start your car again. To check for any car issues quickly, you should first take a look at your car’s dashboard and take note of any warning lights before you do anything to your car.

Modern cars with engines that are monitored by the computer are prone to electronic failures. There is very little you can do in terms of actual repairing but you can always reset the engine computer and that often helps in restoring cars functionality. You just need to disconnect the car’s battery for a couple of minutes and during that time, the engine computer will reset itself and should start working properly. Of course, during that process always leave the doors unlocked and windows open and keys of the car on yourself. Some cars have security features that lock all the doors if the battery is disconnected so you don’t need a worse situation than you already have.

If you have a simple problem like a flat tire you should know that all vehicles are equipped with a spare wheel and lift kit so there are no excuse for not knowing how to use it. It is really simple and doesn’t require a lot of strength and can save you valuable time and a lot of nerves.

4. Call For Help

You can call for roadside assistance or towing services if you cannot solve the problem by yourself or the problem is too big to be sorted by the side of the road. Sometimes it is the best to call the workshop which services your car since they will be able to give you the solution and send a tow truck for you. In this case, your only and best tool is a mobile phone so be sure it is charged and ready to use. In the unfortunate event of a breakdown, call the AA 24-hour Roadside Assistance Service (RAS) Hotline at 6748 9911. Some of the best are Island Recovery Services on 24 hours Hotline : 9182 8211 or AXA Assistance Singapore on 6322 2600.

Next time when your car breaks down in the middle of the road, you can be sure of what to do.