NSC Pre-Start Safety Guidelines

The seven pre-start safety precautions the NSC recommends happen every time a driver gets behind the wheel are:

• Buckle seatbelts and make sure they're properly fastened
  In the last 20 years, an estimated 157,500 lives have been saved by safety belts.
• Adjust mirrors
  Three out of 10 survey respondents do not adjust their mirrors before short driving trips (two hours or less), when it is more likely you will get in a crash.
• Position seat and head restraints
  Correctly positioned head restraints reduce whiplash injuries resulting from crashes by 28.3 percent.
• Secure loose objects
  Only 34 percent of survey respondents regularly secure loose objects in their cars, even though, on average, loose items—from luggage to soda pop cans—are responsible for 13,000 injuries in accidents nationwide in just one year.
• Turn off cell phones
  In the last five years alone, nearly 300,000 drivers have been involved in crashes attributed to cell phone use.
• Look for engine warning lights
  Three out of four respondents said they always check to see if their check engine light is on; however, many admitted to checking the light while already driving.
• Check your fuel level
  In preparing for a trip—large or small—it's necessary to ensure you have enough gasoline in your tank to get there and back. Twenty-five percent of survey respondents said they do not check their gas level.

To help drivers remember the safety guidelines, NSC and Castrol GTX Start Up™ reccomend the Start Up for Safety Checklist. The START UP Checklist takes about five minutes.

Secure loose objects
Turn off cell phone
Allow enough time to avoid speeding and aggressive driving
Read fuel/fluid levels
Tire pressure

Use safety belts and child restraints properly. Every person. Every time.
Properly adjust mirrors

Start Up Can Also Save Money

With gas prices steadily increasing year over year, American drivers now have another reason to pay attention to the start-up guidelines. According to the Department of Energy, following the proper start-up procedures—such as proper tire inflation—can actually save five cents per gallon for each fill-up. Additionally, regularly checking your oil and replacing it with the correct grade during an oil change can improve gas mileage as much as 2 percent, a savings of up to three cents per gallon (for more information, visit http://www.fueleconomy.gov).