Quick answer: keep a charged power bank, warm clothes, gloves, a blanket, an ice scraper, a small shovel, washer fluid, a flashlight and snacks in your car. Check your battery and tires before the first cold snap, and know your route’s conditions on DriveBC before you leave.
Greater Vancouver doesn’t get snow often, which is exactly why a cold snap causes so many breakdowns. Batteries fail, cars slide off the road, and tow companies get busy fast.
Before winter starts
- Test your battery. Cold weather is hard on batteries, especially ones older than three or four years.
- Check your tires. On many BC highways, including the Sea to Sky and roads to the Interior, winter tires or chains are required from October 1 to March 31 (April 30 on some routes). Check the signs on your route.
- Top up washer fluid with a winter mix.
- Replace worn wiper blades.
Your winter car kit
- Phone charger or charged power bank
- Warm jacket, hat, gloves and a blanket
- Ice scraper and snow brush
- Small shovel and a bag of sand or kitty litter for traction
- Flashlight with spare batteries
- Water and snacks
- Booster cables or a jump pack
If you get stuck
- Don’t spin the wheels. It digs you in deeper.
- Clear snow from around the tires and the exhaust pipe.
- Put sand or kitty litter under the drive wheels.
- If you can’t get out, turn on your hazards and call for help.
- If you run the engine for heat, make sure the exhaust isn’t blocked.
Stuck in a ditch or snowbank? See winch-out recovery.
Before you drive
Check road conditions and closures on DriveBC, especially for bridges and hills. Leave extra time and space.
Busy days
On the first snowy days of the year, tow companies get a lot of calls at once. We’ll always give you an honest arrival time. Call or text 604-265-5888.