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Buy the factory service manual. It will explain how to fix almost every thing on the car. Some things you learn on your car, like changing spark plugs, fuel filter, etc... can then be done on other cars. The only thing that changes is location and a few steps to get to those things.
That's not bad advice per se, but in my experience those manuals tend to breeze through procedures and are often best case scenario.
If you have zero experience with breaker bars or impact wrenches, rusty bolts, deep sockets, torque, leverage, or plain old car repair tricks going strictly off of a manual like that could be bewildering. Stupid proprietary clips or fuel filter tools still give me headaches.
They aren't bad to have, but I would probably start with one of those For Dummies books or something before diving right into the manual. You've got to think, this person probably isn't even familiar with the basic tools let alone procedures.
If you have a fairly common model of car there are probably groups that revolve around that kind of car. If you find a forum online (and there probably is one) that is for your car they probably have meetups in your area from time to time. That would be a way to meet others who work on their own cars and from my experience most people are in the same boat (or were at one point) and willing to show someone that has an interest. Even if the meetups aren't directly in your area you would probably meet some people from your area since you live in at least a moderately sized city.
Having someone that can show you the ropes is the most valuable thing to have in my opinion. And there are plenty of them out there.
And lastly, on tools - two words: HARBOR FREIGHT. Yeah, they aren't going to last a lifetime but if you just work on your own car and use them a couple of times a year they will be worth it. Who cares if they break after 15 or 20 uses? That'll be 10 years down the line. Better, more expensive tools are fine, and if you really get into working on cars then you can buy better stuff down the line. You can stock up easily with basics like sockets and breaker wrenches and a cheap impact wrench and not have to spend much at all. Then you can get your practice on.
Hang out with some male friends who are into cars, and ask if you can watch or help them with repair work. This is music to a guy's ears--a woman who's into fixing cars! Any decent fellow will be happy to teach you.
Also: Youtube has lots of great videos on car repair these days, some of it quite professional. There are also books in the library, but Youtube is just so handy for this kind of thing, and people out there are really generous with their knowledge.
You can take a crack at doing minor work on your own car, perhaps with a car savvy friend (male or female) watching over your shoulder. As someone else suggested, oil changes, checking tire pressure, tranny fluid, all easy and good stuff to know.
Servicing your own car is a blast, and gives such a sense of accomplishment as you add up all the hundreds of dollars you have saved by replacing a $3 lightbulb yourself. Enjoy!
Hang out with some male friends who are into cars, and ask if you can watch or help them with repair work. This is music to a guy's ears--a woman who's into fixing cars! Any decent fellow will be happy to teach you.
Also: Youtube has lots of great videos on car repair these days, some of it quite professional. There are also books in the library, but Youtube is just so handy for this kind of thing, and people out there are really generous with their knowledge.
You can take a crack at doing minor work on your own car, perhaps with a car savvy friend (male or female) watching over your shoulder. As someone else suggested, oil changes, checking tire pressure, tranny fluid, all easy and good stuff to know.
Servicing your own car is a blast, and gives such a sense of accomplishment as you add up all the hundreds of dollars you have saved by replacing a $3 lightbulb yourself. Enjoy!
The more I think about it, the more I really do need to learn how to repair my own car and look out for lemons. I'm leery of getting a mechanic boyfriend, though, or any boyfriend for that matter. Guys tend to take advantage of shy women. An all female car club would be more my style. Where can I find that?
The way cars are made today it's best to have a factory certified mechanic work on your car. The tools needed for today's cars is different than those used in the 70's and 80's. The days of the shade mechanic are gone. Cars today have to many electronics and emissions. Have you seen how tuff it is to change the spark plugs on a FWD v6 not the average weekend handyman can even reach the plugs in the back by the fire wall. Or just getting the battery out is a job. On my 2011 Dodge Jorney you have to take the front left tire off and then remove the iner fender and you need the tool to get the fasteners off the iner fender also some headlight bulbs are the same way. So just to change a battery or a headlight you have to go through all this. And try to change the starter or alternator manufactures are doing this to keep the weekend mechanic away from repairing their own cars.
The way cars are made today it's best to have a factory certified mechanic work on your car. The tools needed for today's cars is different than those used in the 70's and 80's. The days of the shade mechanic are gone. Cars today have to many electronics and emissions. Have you seen how tuff it is to change the spark plugs on a FWD v6 not the average weekend handyman can even reach the plugs in the back by the fire wall. Or just getting the battery out is a job. On my 2011 Dodge Jorney you have to take the front left tire off and then remove the iner fender and you need the tool to get the fasteners off the iner fender also some headlight bulbs are the same way. So just to change a battery or a headlight you have to go through all this. And try to change the starter or alternator manufactures are doing this to keep the weekend mechanic away from repairing their own cars.
Wow, why would they want to that, though, when people who actually have some sort of idea about what is wrong with their cars make more informed choices about how to repair them? I would think that a car that the average Joe or Jane could repair would be a fast seller. The easier it is to repair, the more people would buy them, I think. People need to work on making cars simple, safe, and affordable.
Wow, why would they want to that, though, when people who actually have some sort of idea about what is wrong with their cars make more informed choices about how to repair them? I would think that a car that the average Joe or Jane could repair would be a fast seller. The easier it is to repair, the more people would buy them, I think. People need to work on making cars simple, safe, and affordable.
Because cars today are very complex and hard for the average person to work on. That way the dealer makes money sure some people think they know what's wrong with their car but what you think and what the computer says when your car is hooked up to one can be something very different. Look under the hood of today's cars and trucks do you want to even try to figure out what is what. Also if anyone messes with their car up it could void their powertrain warenty witch can last as long as 60,000 miles or more. For me I'm done working on cars to complicated anymore.
The more I think about it, the more I really do need to learn how to repair my own car and look out for lemons. I'm leery of getting a mechanic boyfriend, though, or any boyfriend for that matter. Guys tend to take advantage of shy women. An all female car club would be more my style. Where can I find that?
It's not that easy to just replace that $3 light bulb cars today you have to remove other things just to replace that $3 bulb. And you better have Torx screwdrivers because they use them to fasten parts like headlight assembly's because on the assembly line they are faster to put in more of a bite on the screw. I know I use to work for Chrysler putting pick ups together. Back then we were making over 55 trucks an hour so speed is the name of the game.
Don't listen to these guys telling you it can't be done, they are full of it. Your local community college should have some basic courses, start there. There are lots of things a car owner needs to know how to check, and most of it will require some tools. For basic hand tools Harbor Freight has some pretty good wrenches and ratchet/socket sets, and all sorts of other goodies that you will need, but if it has more than 2 moving parts be careful. I'm sure there will be some comments saying you need to buy snap-on over-priced crap exclusively, but you'd need a second mortgage to pay for it.
Female car clubs? Not too many of those around, my shop is probably the closest thing to it, but there are plenty of guys too. Get a few basic classes under your belt then buy a project car to start working on, no way better to learn than pulling it apart
I guess I should have mentioned that I'm not looking to enroll in an expensive program; I just want to learn about cars so that I can keep up maintenance, troubleshoot my own car, and make repairs so that I can save money by getting a lot of life out of a used vehicle.
start with your local community college, many of them have automotive technology programs taht you can take and learn everything you want to learn.
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