NAPA Know How: Best West Coast Road Trips / NAPA Know How Blog

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It’s summertime — the perfect time to explore California in your car! It’s a huge state, so unless you have all summer, you’ll need to pick some highlights. Prepare your car and choose from these best West Coast road trips:

Southern California: San Diego and Orange County

Southern California means “LA” to most people, but if you skip San Diego, you’re missing out. A near-perfect climate, beautiful beaches, great restaurants and shopping, a thriving downtown including the historic Gaslamp District. And there’s 1,200-acre Balboa Park with its museums and the world-famous San Diego Zoo. The only drawback to San Diego is that you won’t want to leave.

From San Diego, take Interstate 5 north for an hour. Mission San Juan Capistrano is a great starting point for your Orange County adventure. Built in 1776, it is famed for the annual return of the swallows. Thirty miles on Highway 5 north from there will take you to Disneyland. It’s true what they say — you can’t see it all in one day.

Skipping Disneyland? Take State Route 73 out of San Juan Capistrano until it meets Highway 133, running alongside Laguna Coast Wilderness Park. Take 133 to SR 1 and you’re in Laguna Beach, famed for its sea views and vibrant art scene. Stay with Highway 1 and enjoy the laid-back beach vibe of coastal Orange County, the upscale shopping and dining in Newport Beach, the charming village of Balboa Island and its old-school Fun Zone, and the surfer havens of Huntington, Sunset and Seal Beach.

The Central Coast

Rolling hills and oak trees on one side, the Pacific Ocean on the other, with an attitude very different from LA, that’s the Central Coast. Santa Barbara is called “California’s Riviera,” and with good reason. San Luis Obispo is a charming small college city with wonderful food and shopping. Hearst Castle, near San Simeon, is a must-see, as are the elephant seals that bask on the rocks right by Highway 1. Big Sur is where the mountains meet the sea and you’ll never forget the view as you drive across Bixby Bridge.

After Big Sur, you’re minutes away from the lovely village of Carmel-By-The-Sea and the exquisite 17-Mile Drive (there’s a toll) that connects it with Monterey, home of the famed Monterey Bay Aquarium and world-class seafood.

The North Coast

Highway 1 north of San Francisco to Fort Bragg is a trip that will challenge all of your assumptions about California, and that’s why it’s one of the best West Coast road trips. As soon as you cross the Golden Gate Bridge out of San Francisco, you’re in the woods of Marin County. Highway 1 takes you through the Point Reyes National Seashore and up the rugged, unspoiled coast through small towns you’d swear were in New England. The lovely town of Mendocino doubled for Maine in the old “Murder She Wrote” TV show and Fort Bragg is a rough-and-tumble former logging and fishing town.

There’s nothing quite like a summer road trip, but before you head out, make sure you’re prepped for the trip. You should have a tire repair kit in your car, just in case, and all your car’s maintenance should be up to date including the basics like tires, air filters, windshield wipers, and washer fluid.

Check out all the maintenance parts available on NAPA Online or trust one of our 17,000 NAPA AutoCare locations for routine maintenance and repairs. For more information on how to prepare your car for a road trip, chat with a knowledgeable expert at your local NAPA AUTO PARTS store.

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

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NAPA Know How: Car Maintenance for the Spring Season Ahead

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Spring is here and it’s the perfect time for a drive! But there’s a little car maintenance you should do before you hit the road. You never know when that first beautiful spring day will come, and you want to be prepared. Here are five things to do to get your car ready for spring adventures.

1. Give Your Car a Good Wash

Winter is finally over so you should give your car a thorough cleaning. This will get rid of all the corrosive road salt and chemicals that collected on your car. It might look clean, but the undercarriage especially takes a beating through the winter months. Make sure you hose off and wash the whole car. When you’re done, consider giving it a wax to not only make it look great but to also protect the finish from the harsh summer sun.

2. Clean the Interior, Too

The inside of your car also gets rough treatment during the winter and should be cleaned when warm weather arrives. The floor mats are likely holding a good bit of salt along with plenty of dirt. Vacuum your floor mats and then wash them with a floor mat cleaner. This is especially true if you have fabric floor mats rather than more rugged rubber mats as salt can ruin the fabric over time.

3. Check the Wiper Blades

Snow and ice are hard on your wiper blades. Clean them off and do a quick visual check to be sure they weren’t damaged. If there are any rips or missing bits of rubber in either of the blades, then they’re not going to do a good job of keeping your windshield clear. If you see damage, then it’s time to get the blades replaced.

4. Check Your Tires

Tires are what keep your car connected to the road and checking them is a key part of car maintenance. Make sure they’re inflated to the manufacturer’s recommendations and add or remove air as needed. Also, check for tread wear to be sure there was no damage over the harsh winter months. If your tires aren’t in good shape, get them replaced.

5. Be Prepared

Make sure that you have a stocked emergency kit just in case you have a breakdown or accident. It should (at least) include flares, a basic first aid kit, flashlight, jumper cables or a portable power supply, and a blanket.

Follow this simple checklist and do a little basic car maintenance before you head out on the road this spring and you’ll be sure to enjoy the ride.

Check out all the battery products available on NAPA Online or trust one of our 16,000 NAPA AutoCare locations for routine maintenance and repairs. For more information on completing spring maintenance, chat with a knowledgeable expert at your local NAPA AUTO PARTS store.

Image courtesy of Flickr.

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