With temperatures set to soar as high as 38 degrees C on Thursday, the Met Office has issued an amber extreme heat warning for parts of England.
While your car’s air conditioning will do most of the heavy lifting, there are plenty of accessories that can make a hot car more bearable – particularly if you’re travelling with children, pets or a car full of luggage.
We’ve picked out eight affordable products available in the UK from Amazon and Halfords, covering everything from keeping your steering wheel and seats cool to protecting passengers from the sun and keeping drinks and food chilled.
There are few things worse than climbing into a car that’s been sitting in direct sunlight, only to discover that the seat is almost too hot to touch. This oversized microfibre towel provides a simple solution, slipping over the headrest to cover the seat and absorb sweat.
It’s also useful beyond the heatwave, particularly after a trip to the gym, beach or swimming pool. The 158.8 x 81.3cm towel is machine washable and rolls up for easy storage when it’s not needed.
Keeping direct sunlight off passengers is particularly important when travelling with children or pets. Halfords’ rear window sunshades stretch over the doors, blocking sunlight while still allowing the windows to be opened for ventilation.
The set contains two shades and they also act as insect screens, making them useful for summer trips even when the current heatwave is over.
A windscreen sunshade is one of the simplest ways to stop the interior of your car becoming an oven while it’s parked. This neat design opens across the windscreen to help block sunlight and UV rays, then folds down into a storage pouch.
It’s designed to fit most cars, SUVs and MPVs, but it’s worth double-checking your windscreen dimensions before buying.
For parents travelling with young children, this baby car seat cover provides shade and protection from the sun while keeping your child covered when you’re out and about.
Its elasticated edges and large dimensions are designed to provide broad coverage, while the lightweight construction means it can easily be folded away when not required.
As with any cover around an infant, make sure airflow and visibility aren’t restricted, and don’t use it in a way that could cause the car seat or baby to overheat.
Even powerful car air conditioning can struggle to cool the rear seats quickly, particularly in larger SUVs and MPVs. A dedicated fan system can help move cool air towards passengers sitting further back.
This USB-powered model attaches to a headrest with a Velcro strap and offers three-speed airflow, making it particularly useful for children, pets or anyone sitting away from the main dashboard vents.
Staying hydrated is important in extreme heat, but increasingly large water bottles don’t always play nicely with a car’s standard cup holders.
The Seven Sparta expander is designed to accommodate larger bottles and tumblers, with an adjustable base that fits a range of vehicle cup holders. It can handle containers between around 3.4 and 3.8in in diameter, although you’ll want to check the measurements before ordering.
A steering wheel that’s been sitting in direct sunshine can become surprisingly hot, making this inexpensive cover another way to make getting back into the car more comfortable.
The reflective fabric blocks sunlight and UV rays, while the elastic construction means it can be fitted without tools. There are also two covers per pack.
If you’re going to be spending time in the car during the heatwave, an electric coolbox could be one of the most useful accessories on this list.
Halfords’ 19-litre model runs from a car’s 12V accessory socket and can cool its contents to up to 18 degrees C below the surrounding air temperature. It holds up to 30 330ml cans and can also keep food warm at up to 65 degrees C, making it useful for everything from keeping drinks cold on a long journey to transporting food during a day of errands.
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