Tips to keep cars safe as snow, mud impact vehicle safety features

Winter driving can make your car filthy. All that mud, snow, salt, and ice can also be dangerous, especially if your car is newer.

That's because those advanced safety systems rely on clean sensors to work properly. Consumer Reports shows us how to keep the sensors and cameras clear so they can keep you safe when you need them most.

The one you're going to use the most is the backup camera. Take a bucket of water and a little soap, and you're going to want to go underneath and find the exposed camera.

If your car has parking assist, wipe away any debris from the bumper sensors.

Rear body panels house blind spot monitoring radars. Remove snow and salt so they can continue to detect objects out of your view.

Many new cars have radar sensors behind the front grille, so keep that area clean of impacted snow.

If your car has a forward collision or lane departure warning, you'll need to pay extra attention to the windshield, where the camera and sensors are usually mounted.

If you don't get it clean, those sensors may get triggered while you're driving as snow and mud slide. So, you're going to want to clean those and make sure that they're clean before you start driving.

One final thing to consider is the 360-degree camera systems on some vehicles. Usually, they are in the mirror area.

You're going to want to reach underneath those to make sure that they are clean, just like the front and rear cameras.

Show your tires some extra love as well, experts say.

Check your tire pressure monthly, along with looking at the tire treads. And of course, always keep a full tank of gas. If you drive an EV, don't let the charge fall below 20%.