How to prepare your car for winter weather

HOUSTON (FOX 26) - It's not everyday we see wintry weather in the Houston area.

Texas Department of Public Safety trooper Sgt. Stephen Woodard says the first bit of advice he can give you is that if you hit a patch of ice, remain calm.

"It's going to be up to you to remain calm and once the vehicle does gain traction, take control and continue with your travel," says Sgt. Woodard. He also says you should think about the items you would need in your car if you get stranded, for example, a blanket.

Staff at River Oaks Goodyear also have advice -- check your tire tread.

"If the top of his head is gone, then you're good," says head mechanic Mack Spears, conducting a demonstration with a penny.

Before you get out on the road, if you haven't had your car serviced in a while, check your antifreeze level.

"This is an antifreeze checker, just make sure you have the right concentration of antifreeze in your cooling system," adds Spears. "When the car is cold, you just take the radiator cap off, put the hose in there and you just draw a little bit up in there and you can take a read right off of here and it tells you if your antifreeze is strong enough or not."

Lastly, if conditions do get bad and you don't need to be out and about, don't be.

"Schools may be closed, some of the roadways may be closed," says Sgt. Woodard. "I will say this, TxDOT has worked tremendously Friday and Saturday to put down the solvent on the roadways to prevent any types of incidents so we hope to get through this like any other without any fatalities and any other major crashes."