Keep moving this winter with Haynes

This week British Summer Time officially ended. The extra time in bed in the morning may feel good but we'll lose an hour of daylight in the evenings. Moreover, the coming winter will bring fewer daylight hours, frosts, fog, snow – and an increase in road traffic accidents.

To prepare for the bad weather, there are some simple DIY checks to ensure your vehicle is a safe as possible this winter. They are some of the many 'single spanner' DIY tasks covered by Haynes Manuals. Haynes is the world's leading publisher of automotive repair manuals and renowned for teaching millions of car owners how to carry out routine maintenance and repairs. Haynes publishes manuals for more than 500 cars and vans as well as useful glovebox guides such as Your Car and Driving Abroad.

Here are just five of the things a Haynes manual will show you:

How to check you car's lights are working and replace failed bulbs

How to check the condition of wiper blades and replace them if necessary

How to inflate tyres to the correct pressures and measure the tread depth

How to check the level in the coolant reservoir and top up as necessary with a water/antifreeze solution

How to ensure the battery terminals are tight and not corroded

In the winter, more so than at other times, you should carry an emergency kit – spare fuses and bulbs, jump leads, a torch, water dispersant spray and de-icer.

Haynes Manuals retail at £18.99 (hardback) and are available from haynes.co.uk or from all good automotive accessory retailers and bookshops including Halfords and Motor World.