When you drive in the Twin Cities, winter weather can easily do a number on your vehicle if you don’t know how to protect it. And your car or truck is at increased risk of winter-related damage if you don’t have a garage to park in or if you do a lot of driving on salt-laden roads.

Luckily, there are several simple measures you can take to protect your automobile from snow, ice, road salt, and even collisions during the winter season.

Whether you’re fairly new to the snow and ice or your vehicle has suffered weather-related damage in the past, here are X wintertime vehicle protection tips you need to know.

1. Park in Covered Areas
If you don’t have a garage, consider getting a snow shelter, which is basically a car tent with protective side panels. If you don’t have a driveway, try to park beneath a carport or something with a roof to help prevent snow and ice buildup on your vehicle.

2. Avoid Parking Beneath Trees
Lots of snow and ice can build up on tree branches during a single winter storm, and when that accumulation gets too heavy, it’ll fall off.

If your car or truck is sitting beneath ice-covered branches, it could easily suffer dents caused by falling chunks of ice or hardened snow.

3. Wash and Wax Your Vehicle Regularly
Road salt can be highly corrosive to the undercarriage of your automobile and even to your paint job if you don’t clean it off regularly. So make sure you wash your vehicle every week or two and pay special attention to its underside. Applying wax can also help prevent road salt from sticking to the body of your vehicle and damaging the clear coat or paint over time.

Check out these other tips for protecting your paint job from damage caused by road salt, ice, and snow.

4. Only Use Plastic Ice and Snow Removal Tools
Whatever you do, do not use anything metal to remove accumulated snow and ice from your vehicle. Metal can easily scratch your paint job and leave it vulnerable to corrosion. If you don’t already have a plastic ice scraper and snow brush, purchase these tools as soon as possible and keep them in your vehicle throughout the winter season.

If you don’t have much experience driving in snow and ice, read up on our top tips for safe winter driving. Being cautious on the road can go a long way toward protecting your vehicle from damage.

Minnetonka Collision Center: Your Trusted Twin Cities Auto Body Repair Shop


If you find yourself in need of auto body repairs this winter, don’t hesitate to reach out to our team at Minnetonka Collision Center for help! We’re a family-owned and operated business that has proudly served Plymouth, MN, and the surrounding areas for more than 20 years, and we’d love to earn your business, too.

To learn about the body and collision repair services we offer, feel free to give us a call at 763-230-7805 or message us with any questions or concerns, and we’ll get in touch!