Three great investments to make for your vehicle!

Driving is serious business, and as anybody who has driven for a while can tell you, you never know what the road is going to throw your way when you pull outta the driveway. So before we get too far along into 2021, we here at Landers Toyota of NWA wanted to make a few suggestions for three great tools you should definitely think about buying for your vehicle. In addition to helping you have more peace of mind on every drive, these three, affordable items might just save your life, or the life of someone you meet who is in need.

And if you need a quality Toyota to help you get 2021 started off on the right foot, come see us today at Landers Toyota of Northwest Arkansas, or check out our full selection of Toyota models at our website right now.

A CAR JUMP STARTER
$60-$100
We’ve all been there. You come out from work or a store, ready to be on your way, but when you hit the key, you hear the clicking that means a dead battery. Maybe you left the headlights on. Maybe you just let your battery go a little too long before replacing it. But whatever the case, the result is the same: you have to either call Roadside Assistance or hope to find a kind stranger who can give you a jump. Thanks to today’s compact battery tech, however, now there’s a third option: a small, affordable battery jump starter. Available online for much less than the price of a tow, battery jump starters are small (under two pounds), easy to use, and will hold a full charge for up to a year. Just attach the included battery clamps, clamp them to your battery, and hit the key. The jump starters charge easily through a standard home outlet, and in addition to jump-starting your car, many of them include USB plugs so they can be used to charge phones, tablets and laptop computers on the go, with a dozen full phone charges available. That makes them not only handy for dead car batteries but also for recharging on the go, road trips, camping and emergencies. Click here for more information.

A SMALL FIRE EXTINGUISHER
Under $25
Cars, when you think about it, are kind of a paradox: they’re made of some very flammable things, including plastic, glass, foam and rubber, but most of them are powered by, basically, fire: controlled explosions inside your engine, fueled by very flammable gasoline, which is carried on board in a big ol’ tank of the stuff. Given that, it’s probably kind of amazing that we don’t see more vehicle fires on the highway or after a crash. When we do, however, it’s always a chaotic, terrifying experience, often requiring first responders and even Good Samaritans to rush in and save lives. Whether you’re looking to do some weekend superheroing or just help keep your own precious vehicle from burning down to a heap of slag by the highway, having the right tools to keep that from happening is important. And one of the most important to have is a small, automotive fire extinguisher. Compact, easy to use, and safe, small automotive fire extinguishers can be mounted or stored in an out of the way area of your vehicle for easy access using the supplied mounting brackets. They are available through Amazon or retailers like Walmart and Home Depot. Because different chemicals are used to dampen fires involving gasoline, oil and automotive materials, you’ll want to choose one that’s specifically rather for vehicles. When seconds count, having one could literally save a life.

A VEHICLE EMERGENCY ESCAPE TOOL
Under $10
If you’ve never experienced a vehicle crash, lucky you. If you have, you know how confusing and disorienting they can be. Throw in another wild-card factor like a rollover crash, a crash into dense trees, slamming into water, or a vehicle fire resulting from the accident, and it’s easy to see why auto crashes claim so many lives every year. That’s why a Vehicle Emergency Escape Tool might be the sub-$10 investment that saves your life. Available online cheap, many Vehicle Emergency Escape tools are brightly colored, with a unique shape so they can be quickly found in the chaos after a crash. On one end, many include a razor-sharp safety seatbelt cutter that can be used to free people from their seatbelts in seconds if they are hanging upside down, or if the buckle is inaccessible. On the other end is a small, odd-looking hammer with pointed tips. The reason for those tips is one of the quirks of modern vehicle safety glass. Incredibly tough, safety glass can withstand a dead-on hit from a sledgehammer in many cases without breaking. But if you concentrate a moderate amount of force in a tiny space, the glass will shatter into harmless cubes. That’s where those pointed ends on the escape tool come in handy. Strike the glass a few times with those to quickly break a window and get out. After a crash, if you are relatively safe, it’s always best to remain in the vehicle, stay calm, and wait for evaluation by first responders if you can. But when seconds count due to danger like another potential collision, a vehicle fire or water rushing into the passenger compartment, a vehicle emergency escape tool in the glove box or console can save your life. Click here for more information.

By investing in these three, affordable items, you’ll not only feel more confident on the road, you might be able to use one to save your life or the life of another. Landers Toyota of Northwest Arkansas is all about helping our customers stay safe on the road. Today’s next-gen Toyota safety makes it easier than ever, with systems designed to protect you and your passengers in a crash or help you avoid one altogether. Ready to feel Toyota safe on the road? Stop in today for a test drive at Landers Toyota of NWA, or shop our full selection online right now.