Beat The Heat With Tips To Keep Your Car Cool

by Amy Tokic

Updated: November 18th, 2021 Published: July 14th, 2021

beat the heat with tips to keep your car cool

Don’t you just hate when you open your car door during a scorcher and a blast of hot air smacks you upside your head? Then you have to endure sticky car seats and a toasty steering wheel until the air conditioner finally starts to cool things down.

If this doesn’t sound all that appealing to you, you’ll be happy to know there are few things you can do to keep your car cool this summer.

Park in the shade. These spots are at a premium during the summer and a bird may mistake your car for a bathroom, but it’s worth it—your car will be a lot cooler. If there’s no shade to be found, park with the sun beating down into the rear window rather than the front (this keeps the front seats and steering wheel from getting hot). But try to avoid parking under pine trees, which will drip pitch on warm days. It’s hard to get off and can easily damage your paint.
Get a car windshield sunshade. They aren’t the most attractive car accessories, but suck it up and get one. Sunshades keep harmful sun out of your vehicle and keep the temperature down inside the car. Another perk they offer is the cool your car faster so you don’t have to keep the air conditioner cranked high for as long.
Use window shades. They are not just to keep the sun out of your child’s eyes. Pick them up at a baby stores. They can be put up or down or taken off and they help to keep the sun from beating down and heating up your car.
Avoid hot leather. You may like the way leather looks in your car, but once the sun starts heating it up, things sure can get sticky. Use a cloth seat cover for the summer months. If you’re buying a car, consider cloth seats, which stay cooler and are much easier to care for than leather.
Watch out for hot buckles. We’ve all experienced the surprise of a hot buckle on our skin. They sure heat up fast! Be extra careful when handling them and try not to loosen seatbelts when driving in the summer heat. If they really bother you, there are terrycloth covers you can slip over the belt.
Stay hydrated. You never know if you’re going to get stuck somewhere, so keep extra water bottles and ice on hand to keep you hydrated. But try not to leave plastic water bottles in the car to heat up repeatedly, as the plastic can break down and leach into the water. An stainless steel bottle is a much better choice for the summer.
Bring extra items inside. Things like toys, CD and gadgets are all affected by the heat, so keep them out of the sun or better, in a convenient bag that you can bring inside with you once you park the car. Plus, it’s an easy way to deter theft.