{"id":2178,"date":"2017-02-06T07:00:58","date_gmt":"2017-02-05T20:00:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/?p=2178"},"modified":"2020-09-20T14:49:53","modified_gmt":"2020-09-20T04:49:53","slug":"road-trip-checklist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/road-trip-checklist\/","title":{"rendered":"The Great Aussie Road Trip Checklist"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>With a huge variety of scenery and terrain to see in Australia, a road trip is absolutely essential, but you need to be prepared, especially if you&#8217;re heading into the outback. This checklist will see you right.<\/p>\n<h2>Prepping your vehicle<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Tyre pressures &#8211; check they are, at minimum, at the <strong>cold inflation<\/strong> pressure specified by the manufacturer. The cold level is when you measure your tyres when they are not warm (warm air expands). If you have to measure them warm, use <a href=\"http:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/how-the-temperature-and-weather-affects-tyre-pressures\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">this guide<\/a> to see how much extra you need to put in. You can usually find this on a plate riveted to the door pillar, on a sticker inside the fuel flap, or in the vehicle&#8217;s manual. If you&#8217;re carrying a heavy load, e.g. 3+ people with luggage, then you&#8217;ll need to put more pressure in them (usually 3-4 psi). Make sure you check the spare, too.<\/li>\n<li>Tyre tread depth &#8211; the legal minimum is 1.5mm but wet weather performance drops off rapidly below 3mm which can make it really hazardous driving if you&#8217;re in an area that&#8217;s likely to get monsoon-style downpours. It&#8217;s best to look at replacing them once they get below 3mm.<\/li>\n<li>Emergency kit &#8211; if you&#8217;re only driving on sealed roads then you&#8217;ll just need a torch, reflective triangle and a jack. A hi-vis jacket and first aid kit are advisable, too. If you&#8217;re driving an older car which is less reliable, then you might want to take some tools if you know how to use them. If you&#8217;re heading into the bush where you&#8217;re unlikely to meet people if you break down then you will need more substantial emergency gear including:\n<ul>\n<li>20 litres of emergency water plus 4 litres per person per day<\/li>\n<li>personal locator beacon<\/li>\n<li>food<\/li>\n<li>spare fan belt, hoses and fuses<\/li>\n<li>tow rope<\/li>\n<li>shovel<\/li>\n<li>GPS and\/or maps<\/li>\n<li>compass<\/li>\n<li>toilet paper<\/li>\n<li>lighter<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Check fluids &#8211; oil, windscreen washer, brake fluid<\/li>\n<li>Blankets &#8211; it can get cold at night &#8211; and an old towel for cleaning (helpful if you have to walk in mud, for example)<\/li>\n<li>Cargo barrier &#8211; important if you&#8217;re in a station wagon or hatchback and your gear is taller than the top of your rear seats<\/li>\n<li>Check lights<\/li>\n<li>Fill up with fuel<\/li>\n<li>Caravan or trailer &#8211; check the tyres and that everything looks roadworthy. Check everything is tied on and secure.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div id=\"attachment_2000\" style=\"width: 560px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2000\" class=\"size-large wp-image-2000\" src=\"http:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/ute-and-caravan-cross-flooded-river-595x433.jpg\" alt=\"You can encounter all kinds of roads in Australia from scorching sand to flooded streams\" width=\"550\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/ute-and-caravan-cross-flooded-river-595x433.jpg 595w, https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/ute-and-caravan-cross-flooded-river-300x218.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/ute-and-caravan-cross-flooded-river-768x559.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/ute-and-caravan-cross-flooded-river.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 550px) 100vw, 550px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-2000\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">You can encounter all kinds of roads in Australia from scorching sand to flooded streams<\/p><\/div>\n<h2>Passenger comfort<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Snacks &#8211; healthy food is best, especially for the driver. Make sure you can access them easily. You might want to bring a cooler (particularly one that you can keep plugged into your car&#8217;s lighter socket, but bear in mind this will use more fuel)<\/li>\n<li>Pen and notepad<\/li>\n<li>Plastic bags for rubbish<\/li>\n<li>Tissues and wet wipes<\/li>\n<li>Smartphones and other devices plus a way of charging them (e.g. a charger that plugs into the lighter socket if your car doesn&#8217;t have USB connections)<\/li>\n<li>Toys and puzzles for kids in the car<\/li>\n<li>Books and magazines<\/li>\n<li>Music and podcasts (download them in case you are going to an area with no internet)<\/li>\n<li>Pillows<\/li>\n<li>Sunscreen<\/li>\n<li>Cash &#8211; good for purchases from roadside stalls, parking money, etc<\/li>\n<li>Printed instructions of your destinations and stopping points<\/li>\n<li>Binoculars and a camera<\/li>\n<li>Drinks &#8211; water is best, but anything than alcohol is better than nothing<\/li>\n<li>Multi-purpose knife (e.g. Swiss Army-style knife), cutlery and plastic plates<\/li>\n<li>Car sickness pills (important if you&#8217;re heading into windier roads in the hills)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Planning your stops and rests<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Have a written list of where you&#8217;ll stop &#8211; printouts of destinations with phone numbers are useful so you can call ahead if you&#8217;re running late<\/li>\n<li>An overnight bag if you are stopping for one night &#8211; it means you don&#8217;t have to unpack all your luggage. Be mindful of security, though, if you&#8217;re leaving your car overnight<\/li>\n<li>Share the driving and take breaks every 2-3 hours<\/li>\n<li>If you&#8217;re in the outback, avoid traveling when kangaroos and wallabies are at their most active (dawn and dusk)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div id=\"attachment_2179\" style=\"width: 560px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2179\" class=\"size-large wp-image-2179\" src=\"http:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/kangaroo-road-sign-595x397.jpg\" alt=\"Kangaroos are well camouflaged and can jump out in front of you\" width=\"550\" height=\"367\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/kangaroo-road-sign-595x397.jpg 595w, https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/kangaroo-road-sign-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/kangaroo-road-sign-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/kangaroo-road-sign.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 550px) 100vw, 550px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-2179\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kangaroos are well camouflaged and can jump out in front of you<\/p><\/div>\n<h2>Leaving your home<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Take your regular luggage with you<\/li>\n<li>Leave your home looking like people are there to reduce the chance of burglary<\/li>\n<li>Ask a neighbour or friend to clear your mailbox<\/li>\n<li>Turn off appliances<\/li>\n<li>Set the alarm and lock everything up.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Being prepared<\/h2>\n<h3>Breakdowns and getting lost where there&#8217;s no cellphone reception<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Stay with the vehicle and wait for assistance<\/li>\n<li>Make sure your vehicle is visible to other road users<\/li>\n<li>Put your bonnet up so that people know you&#8217;ve broken down<\/li>\n<li>Move other passengers into the shade to conserve water and energy<\/li>\n<li>Flag down a passing motorist to help<\/li>\n<li>If it&#8217;s nighttime, find your torch and hi-vis jacket as humans are very difficult to see at night<\/li>\n<li>If you don&#8217;t see anyone within a few hours activate your personal locator beacon<\/li>\n<li>If you don&#8217;t have a PLB and no one has arrived by nightfall then you&#8217;ll need to have everyone in the car to keep warm. Try to mark a help signal on the road in case a car comes along while you are sleeping, or take turns keeping watch. Stay with the car unless you know you are a very short distance from a house or settlement; there are too many dangers in the outback for you to be wandering aimlessly &#8211; dehydration, poisonous animals, injury and more. Plus, you don&#8217;t know if someone will come across your car while you&#8217;ve gone.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>With a huge variety of scenery and terrain to see in Australia, a road trip is absolutely essential, but you need to be prepared, especially if you&#8217;re heading into the outback. This checklist will see you right. Prepping your vehicle<span class=\"ellipsis\">&hellip;<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"read-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/road-trip-checklist\/\">Read more &#8250;<\/a><\/div>\n<p><!-- end of .read-more --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2000,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2178","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advice"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2178","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2178"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2178\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3676,"href":"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2178\/revisions\/3676"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2000"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2178"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2178"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.driverknowledgetests.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2178"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}