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What are your helpful hints and solutions for managing your business and surviving life on the road? Progressive Truck Tips allows you to share your sensible solutions as well as humorous advice and get tips from other users, just like you.
Prepare for the possibility of being broken down somewhere deserted. Keep all the information you need in an envelope - your license plate number, make, model, and year of car, color, and be prepared to add location. Add four quarters and if a Good Samaritan stops but you're reluctant to get out of car, partly roll down the window and hand him the prepared envelope and ask him to call for you.
If you have to go over fairly deserted roads, get one of those battery chargers that fits into your glove box and don't be dependent on the kindness of others to help you.
Cargo nets are great for holding things so they don't fly all over. If you can't do that, consider some boxes such as computer paper ones that can hold a lot and have a snug top to reduce things flying around in the back.
Carry a disposable camera with you in case you are in a car accident. Take pictures of the damages, the scene, and the people involved if at all possible. Especially if you are alone and the other vehicle has more people or you are on "private property" it can be difficult to get an accurate report made.
Get a squeege that has a sponge on it as well. You can use it to help wipe the condensed water off your interior windshield--better than using your hand which leaves streaks!
If you live where it's terribly hot like I do, you want to gas up either very early in the day or very late at night, because you actually get less gas pumped into your vehicle when it's hot versus when it's cold. It adds up.
If you ever travel over water, even in the desert if you dare go where there are flash floods, having a window punch is a smart idea. You could get out from underwater with that device if you store it within reach and know how to use it.
It's a good idea to carry a pack of assorted size bungee cords in the trunk--you never know when you can really use those if you need to pick something or someone up and you need to make sure cargo is always safely stored for everyone's sake.
There are actually neat products that allow you to keep a lot of papers in them, provide a clipboard, storage for writing implements, cell phone, etc. You can have a traveling office desk in your vehicle.
If you live where it is blistering hot, in addition to your sun shade, carry some driving gloves in the car with you as sometimes you still need protection to touch that hot steering wheel.