With the end of the pandemic and the resultant lockdowns, many people have become more eager to explore new places. Most of these people are using their cars to go on long drives to the unexplored regions of their choice. In many cases, these travellers are properly planned and hence, have to go through inconveniences. Today, though, we have come up with an exclusive list of car accessories for long drive. Based on this, you can easily enhance your road trips.
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- Tyre Inflator
The first thing that you must have as a part of your car accessories for long drive is a tyre inflator. These can actually help you in case you get low pressure or a puncture in your tyre. Using this, you can quickly refill air in your tyre and drive some distance until you find a puncture repair shop.
- Dual Port Car Phone Charger
It is almost impossible to isolate oneself from electronic devices. In fact, in today's world, everyone's overtly dependent on smartphones and iPads. In such a scenario, keeping your gadgets charged is highly important. What's more, there will be times when you would want to recharge multiple badges. In such a scenario, a dual port car phone charger should really come handy.
- Dash Cam
When on a long drive, you might travel on picturesque routes you've never been on before. At such times, it is a pretty good idea to record the surroundings. A dash cam that is installed on the windshield can be really useful. In fact, today, we've even got dashcams that can record the rear view.
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- Portable Mini Fridge
One of our favourite car accessories for long drive is a portable fridge that can be easily installed in your car's boot. It takes power from a 12V socket in the car and can help you keep your cold drinks chilled even during summer. A must have for those who go on long drives.
- Auxiliary Lamps
At times, we travel to places that don't have street lights or get really dark at night. At such times, a set of auxiliary lamps can be really useful to help you with better illumination. However, it's necessary to remember that these aren't meant to be used in normal circumstances as the excess light can blind the oncoming traffic. This, in turn, can cause accidents.
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- Car Mini Dustbin
Next, on our list of best car travel accessories is a mini dustbin. While it might not have an immediate appeal, it's sure one the best car accessories for long drive as you can avoid littering in the cabin. It can help you easily dispose of small waste such as chocolate wrappers or cold drink cans without making a mess in your car's cabin.
- Inflatable Car Mattress
In case you plan to camp in your car, you would, of course, need proper bedding. The inflatable mattress can be really helpful as it can convert the rear seat into a nice bed. These inflatable car mattress are easily available online and can help you easily spend the night in your car.
- Rooftop Cargo Carrier
The rooftop cargo carrier is lightweight but can easily store a lot of luggage. It's also waterproof and can keep your stuff protected from strong winds or harsh weather. It's also quite easy to install and instantly boosts your car's luggage carrying capacity. it's easily among the most practical car accessories for long drive.
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- Sleeping Bag
Among the road trip essentials for those who love camping is a sleeping bag. It's quite easy to carry and is generally made of polyester. This ensures good durability and keeps the user warm during winter. This is a must have for all those who go on camping. Also, it's easy to store, which means you can easily take one along regardless of what car you use.
- Camping Tent
For those who are really fond of overlanding, it's a great idea to have a camping tend that can be positioned do the car's roof tamp. Such camping tents are a favourite of many SUV users who drive to unchartered territories and spend the night away from civilisation. Such tents are available in many sizes and are waterproof. They're also easy to setup and offer UV protection. The larger ones can even accommodate two people.
Top 5 Safety Road Trip Accessories
- Warning Triangle
Many modern cars have a warning triangle as a part of their tool kit. This triangle needs to be placed near your vehicle in case you have to park it on the road to change a wheel or simply because of a breakdown. Make sure you purchase this useful car accessory and store it in the boot in case you haven't got one in your vehicle.
- First Aid Kit
One of the biggest road trip essentials is a First Aid Kit. This is highly necessary regardless of whether you're on a short trip or a long one. These days, most carmakers provide a first aid kit either in the glovebox or the boot. However, these kits are pretty basic and one should carry some more essentials. A first aid kit for your car should have band-aids, cotton wool, sprain-relief spray, antiseptic cream, antibiotic wipes, Dettol, crepe bandages, etc.
- Fire Extinguisher
One of the most important car accessories for long drive or even a short drive is a fire extinguisher. For cars, you can purchase an ABC dry power or multi use fire extinguisher. You should ensure it's properly secured at a place where it's easy to be retrieved from. However, one shouldn't store the fire extinguisher in direct contact with the sunlight. Nor should it be stored in the boot.
- Jumper Cables
All cars have batteries to not just power the electricals but even the alternator. The latter is required for ignition and hence, a drained battery can leave you stranded. In such cases, an easy way to start your car is to power the alternator through another car's battery. To do so, a set of jumper cables is necessary. As these might not be available nearby, it's a great idea to carry a set yourself. They can be easily bought online and can be stored in the boot.
- Portable Auto Battery Booster
A portable auto battery booster is one of the most important road trip essentials. As the name suggests, it can supply power to help you jump start the vehicle through he jumper cables. What this means is that you won't need to reply on another car's battery.
Accessories for Organization/Storage/Cleanliness
- Collapsible multi-compartment trunk organizer
As the name suggests, this accessory can help you manage your car's boot space better. Through this you can put many small pieces of luggage or other objects together in these boxes and not worry about them getting scattered as the car moves. These organisers are easily available online and even the good quality ones cost less than Rs 2,000.
- Car back seat organizer
Have you ever had a tough time figuring out where to store your newspaper, magazines, pen and other knick-knack while travelling? In case you have, a car back seat organiser can be one of the best car accessories for long drive for you. As its name suggests, it can be installed on the back of the front seats. Some of these even have a can holder to help you place your soft drink cans. Meanwhile, some even have a tray to enable you to place your laptop/iPad and work/view videos comfortably.
- Compact Sun-Visor Organizer
Here's another very practical car accessory that can be easily installed on your car's sun visor. Once installed, you can use it to carry small documents, your wallets, parking tickets and various other knick-knacks. What's best is that the things you store in these organisers remain easily accessible.
- Car Organizer For Between Front Seats
Many premium cars come with a front centre armrest that provides storage. However, this feature is not available on all car models. For such vehicles, you can have an aftermarket car organiser that can help you with storing knick knacks like your mobile phone, wallet, small notebooks, pens, etc.
- Car Trash Can With Lid and Storage Pockets
What's better than an in-car trash can? One that even has pockets for storage! What's more, the airtight lid ensures that the waste material doesn't hamper the ambiance of your car's cabin. This accessory kills two birds with one stone - It serves as a dustbin while also offering extra storage spaces.
Comfort Road Trip Accessories
- Car Electric Coffee Maker/ Tea Maker
For many of us, staying away from a hot steaming cup of tea or coffee is pretty tough. That's the reason many travellers take frequent stops on the highway. But what if you're not sure the road you'll be using would have good restaurants? At such times, an electric coffee/tea maker becomes one of best car travel accessories to have.
- LED screens for rear passengers
How about enjoying your favourite movie or TV show on a fairly large screen? While most luxury car shave sufficiently large entertainment screens at the back of the backrests of the front seats, you can install such screens even on your regular cars. The more premium ones even have WiFi and Bluetooth compatibility!
- Central Armrest
Again, many cars come with a central armrest that helps you rest your arm over it while travelling. Unfortunately, it's not a standard feature and hence, unavailable on the cheaper models. Thankfully, though, you can still get an aftermarket central armrest installed to enhance travel experience. This is specially useful over longer journeys.
- Seat Pillows
While most cars have good seat bolstering, some extra cushions make things a lot better, specially when you're on a long trip. It will also help you sleep better in case you wish to catch a nap in the backseat of the vehicle. Seat pillows for cars are easily available online or can be even bought from local car accessory shops.
- Car Perfumes
What's better than a great aroma in your car's cabin? Not only will it elevate your mood but should even help you feel fresh over long journeys. You can easily get car perfumes online or at car accessories shops. In fact, some decent car perfumes can be even bought at the local superstore. Our last accessory in this list of car travel accessories is not just one of the most important car accessories for long drive but even one of biggest road trip essentials irrespective of your journey being long or short.