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I'm tired of getting ripped off by mechanics so I'm taking it upon myself to learn some basics from changing oil, spark plugs, head lights, and just learning my darn car.
Back up a minute-first give some thought to what facilities you have available to you. Do you have a single family detached home with an attached/detached garage, or do you live in an apartment. That single factor will have a big influence on the kinds of work you'll be able to do. I do 80-90% of the work on our vehicles (tune ups, batteries, brakes, oil changes, replacing external engine parts, etc...), but I have an attached garage that not only serves as a place to work but also a place to store not only the hand tools needed for the job, but also the floor jack and jackstands, waste oil and other fluids until I can get rid of them, and other things. Not saying that it can't be done without a garage, or even a driveway, it just makes things more difficult from a logistics point of view.
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Originally Posted by radiolibre99
Is it one of those things you has to have grown up learning as a kid because it takes so long?
I don't think that if you didn't you're doomed to never understand, but it certainly does help as it was the way I learned. I grew up in a blue collar family with family members and friends who taught me how to do all sorts of things from how to change oil to basic house framing to how to grow tomatoes. Though I went on to college and now hold a white collar job and intend for my children to do the same, I will also make sure that they have the benefit of the same knowledge and skills that I did, as well as the mindset that one should think carefully before paying someone else to do something that they either have the ability to do or to learn how to do themselves.
Probably best to take a couple of years of automotive classes at a community college. Just take one class at a time in the evening.
You will also make "mechanic" friends when taking those classes - a "win win" situation! Be sure to invite everyone from the class over for beer and burgers a couple of times for each class...
Do not make exceptions for your self, when working on machinery trying to skip a process because your in a hurry.
People fail because they tend to be impatient and look for the obvious and not the subtle or don't know what they are looking at, at all.
I started on small engines and air compressors in my parents compressor shop learning and professionally working as well.
I had done my own automotive repairs before then but it was basically swapping parts , and that's what most mechanics do now days any way .
Few know how to rebuild an alternator or carb or starter ,mostly because they are not allowed to take the time.
After you've been doing it a while the ability to assess problems is learned largely by trial and error.
the more serious you get into mechanics the more naturally you invest in better tools and more appropriate tools.
Some sensors take a special socket , don't improvise get the right one.
Learn to work with mechanic gloves too , your soft hands are no match for steel.
Mine are so tough now and scarred, gloves basically keep my hands cleaner, but my prints are as tough as nails.(almost)
Speaking of clean , get use to cleaning things well develop good habits of putting tools away where they belong ,that way you know if something is missing.
Don't loan tools and try to avoid borrowing tools , but if you do; ask first and return it better than you got it , ASAP and make sure the owner knows you've done so.
Some tools can be rented I understand even Sears is now offering a rental on tools.
Harbor freight sells tools cheaper than most but their warranty is good , I value my knuckles a bit more ,however , often times a project needs a bent tool to get in, and it isn't available , so the Harbor Freight tools are good sacrificial tool for modification for certain jobs.
As many years as I have working on and building machinery, its still fun.
You would be far ahead to find a good independent garage that you can trust and stay with them forever. A good mechanic is like a good doctor, find one you like and can trust and stay with him.
If you are an adult without the knowledge to even do an oil change, you aren't going to live long enough to conquer the challenges of auto repair. Modern vehicles are so advanced and complicated you will not get very far with learning how to repair them. I repeat, find and honest mechanic and stay with him through thick and thin. Even something as basic as an oil change has it complications, there are a dozen things that can go wrong, plus cleaning up the mess and trying to find a place to dispose of the used oil. Changing spark plugs is easy? I bet you can't even find the spark plugs on your car..! Can you get the plug wires off without damaging them? Can you remove the plugs without damaging the aluminum head? Do you know what to do before installing the new plug? Someone who knows how to do these things don't even have to think about it, but a novice can do a lot of damage and get himself into expensive trouble by overlooking the little things. I've seen trainees make every mistake in the book, but they learn from the mistakes. Do you have the time, patience and money to learn from your mistakes? If you do become an oil change and spark plug guru, how will that help you know if you are getting ripped off if you have more serious engine or other problems. You would need to be an automotive expert to be able to have an intelligent conversation with a tech. To stick with an automotive phrase, you are spinning your wheels...
First of all, you can't just learn something because you want to keep from getting ripped off, you need to have an real interest and love for automobiles to learn about them. These people in here telling you how easy it is, are doing home repairs because they love to do it and have the interest in cars. Trying to learn something you aren't really interested in and you will soon become discouraged.
I'm an ASE tech with over 40 years experience and believe me, you don't just buy some tools and look at a utube video and start repairing you vehicle.
Doctor's charge ridiculous prices, perhaps if you pick up a stethoscope and a utube video you can save a lot on your insurance bills..!
Great advice given so far.
Joining a forum and watching youtube videos is a good idea but watch out. I had a concern about a brake job I was doing this past Summer so went to youtube and the guy on the video was an idiot but to a beginner he would come across as a pro. moral is don't trust everything you see on the internet.. LOL
Developing trouble shooting skills does take time because it is based on experience. Back in the day my JeeP wouldn't start and a coworker who was a self proclaimed mechanic had a look and he diagnosed my starter solenoid was junk... Later I found the real problem a loose corroded battery cable.
If you want to do your own maintenance get a Chiltons manual of your car and on a nice day before you break down familiarise yourself with all the basic components of the car, they will be the same as most any other car.
If you start small and build a base of knowledge you can go far. Just don't tackle a job you cannot complete and don't do something that will jeopardise your safety like a brake job until you are 100% positive you can do it right.
Good luck.
One more thing be sure to work SAFE and have the right tool for the job. Working on machinery can really hurt you or even kill you so be smart and be safe.
If you are an adult without the knowledge to even do an oil change, you aren't going to live long enough to conquer the challenges of auto repair.
Unless the guy is 80 years old and not well, I disagree. Granted, I had a lot of foundational knowledge to build on, but with the help of the internet I installed a wood burning central furnace in my home (and exceeded all building code/insurance company standards by far), did a major service on a Maytag washing machine and saved hundreds of dollars, converted a diesel truck to run on vegetable oil, fabricated my own concrete countertops, etc...all after the age of 30.
The one thing this guy has that others don't is a desire to do it himself. That's really all you need. We live in a society where people can't be bothered to clean their own houses or cut their own grass, which is why a lot of basic knowledge and skills have been lost by an entire class of people. They don't know how to do these things, nor do they want to. If you have the desire and drive to do something, you can, as long as you go about learning the correct way.
Don't forget a mechanic has to be certified in certin things. Like transmissions, engines R&R, brakes, electrical,. So if you go to school you have to take many classes in each one of these. It's not that easy to learn to be a mechanic. Are you good with your hands, have you ever even work on a car at all.
Experience trumps any course or class you can take.
Some of the best car guys and mechanics I know never stepped foot in any class to learn basic mechanics but have been around cars from a very young age and learned thru experience whether it be hanging around shops and just watching or helping their dad,uncle,etc work on their cars.
Start by doing minor things such as your own oil changes. Youtube has lots of tutorials on pretty much everything.
If you are an adult without the knowledge to even do an oil change, you aren't going to live long enough to conquer the challenges of auto repair. Modern vehicles are so advanced and complicated you will not get very far with learning how to repair them.
OP if you have a desire to learn and can use tools with common sense and are ready to do a little bit of thinking before you open car hood to repair something - let's not the above quote discourage you. That is not true.
Don't forget a mechanic has to be certified in certin things. Like transmissions, engines R&R, brakes, electrical,. So if you go to school you have to take many classes in each one of these. It's not that easy to learn to be a mechanic. Are you good with your hands, have you ever even work on a car at all.
I never even took auto shop in high school and have done brakes (successfully) on everything from econobox imports to heavy trucks. Also, mechanics don't "have to be" certified in anything. If you are ASE certified, it will certainly open up more and better job opportunities, as will being certified by a vehicle manufacturer, but the kid changing your oil, tires, brakes, transmission fluid, etc...at Wal-Mart mostly likely isn't certified in anything.
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