interested to know what things you guys keep in your car for the winter
or proactive steps you do to be prepared.
aside from having my tires, oil, coolant, wipers good i like to put rainx on my windows and headlights, i also carry a small portable shovel in my trunk plus i just purchased this.... not necessary for me because my batt is new but to help a friend or stranger. never liked to boost cars wit my batt.

 

Here in Ohio I carry ice scraper/brush, jumper cables, and a good set of custom-fit rubber floor mats front and rear. That's about all one needs around here. Oh, and make sure tires are inflated about 3 lbs. over recommended cold press.

 

Definite yes on the tire psi. Mine were at my usual 37 psi (I am an active driver) during our hot October in middle Georgia, but were 31 psi each the first really cold morning.

Using a starter pack instead of jumper cables is a good move. They enable us to start vehicles for our friends without even opening our hood. Our son gave us a HALO VOLT for Christmas. It is very compact, easy to store in small space, much easier to attach to battery poles than cables. Although we always keep fairly new 5 year batteries in our vehicles, we have friends who are not as careful, and this Halo Volt always starts their vehicle first try. It also charges mobile phones, tablets, digital cameras, mobile gaming devices and many other things. Life has been easier with the Halo Volt on hand.

The Maxima has most of its weight over the front tires, which do all the pulling, most of the steering and most of the braking, so has an advantage over RWD vehicles on slippery surfaces. But we have no control over the millions of nuts that seem to love to get on the road and spin their tires when ice is around. So we usually stay home when roads are slippery unless travel is necessary.