So you love driving and have a suitably-stylish set of wheels to prove it. You might know the make and model of your car, but do you know how to keep it going? And when disaster strikes, do you know how to fix your ride? These car hacks may help.
Even if you’ve been driving for years and have put your licence to use in countries all over the world, there’s a good chance you haven’t been called upon to personally handle repairs and maintenance on your car. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t know how.
Cars are well-oiled, finely-tuned machines, which means that something could go wrong at any time. And if you get a flat tyre driving to a late-night rendezvous or get stuck in some freak weather conditions, you’ll want to know how to handle the situation without calling for help (which may take a while to reach you, at any rate).
So if you’re the proud owner of a hot rod, here are a few simple car hacks you’ll want to have up your sleeve.
How to Change a Tyre
If you own a car, chances are good that at some point you’ll have a tyre issue – they’re inevitable. The last thing you want is to be stranded in the boonies and no phone service, so learn to change your tyres. Think
First: find a flat surface and secure the wheels at the opposite end of the car with bricks, wedges, clamps – whatever’s handy. Then grab your tool kit (yes, your car should have one and yes, you should know where it is). Jack up the car so you have space to work; pry off the wheel cover with a screwdriver; use a wrench to loosen the lug nuts; remove the flat tyre and replace with the spare (use your hand to lightly secure the lug nuts in place); then lower the car back to earth and do a final tighten of the lug nuts with your wrench. Bob’s your uncle, and you’ll be back on your way.
Check the Oil
This is a simple, basic function of car ownership, but you’d be surprised how many people don’t know how to check their engine oil. But you should. Oil’s pretty important to have a functioning car – it’s what keeps your engine running, and you should be checking it at least once a month.
You’ll first need to locate the dipstick on your engine block (if you can’t find your engine, there really is no hope for you). Pull it out, wipe it off on a clean rag, then replace and remove once more to check the indications. If it only reaches the “add” line, you’ll need to add more oil (obviously); if the oil is dirty or smells of gasoline, it needs to be changed.
How to Handle Your Ride
So you think you can drive, but can you actually handle your car? Driving isn’t rocket science, but to drive well requires a little finesse – like most of the best activities in life. First, you really should know what drives your car: is it front or rear-wheel drive, or all-wheel? Front-wheel drives are what you’ll see on the average car, while
Then there’s the transmission. Automatics are popular in most parts of Asia, Australia and America, but if you’re in Europe you’ll need to be able to operate a stick shift. That means knowing how to use the clutch, when to shift gears, how to navigate inclines (and do hill starts). If you can do all this without stalling, you’re doing all right. Plus, driving a manual looks really cool.
How to Jump-Start the Battery
Jumper cables should be part of your car emergency kit – even if you don’t need them yourself, you never know when you’ll be called on to play knight-in-shining-armour to some damsel in distress. If your battery needs some defibrillation, you’ll also need another car to provide some juice.
First things first: position the cars hood-to-hood and turn both off (and pop the hoods, obviously). Put a red clamp on the positive terminal of the dead battery, then attach the other side of the cable to the positive terminal of the live battery; then attach the black clamp to the negative terminal of the live battery. Finally, fix the remaining black clamp to an unpainted metal surface of the dead engine to prevent sparking. Finally, turn on the live car and try to jumpstart the dead car; if it works, let it run for at least half an hour to charge the battery to the point where you can drive away.
How to Fill it Up
Another simple but easily overlooked facet of car maintenance is keeping it filled. We’re going to credit you with having the smarts to already know where your fuel cap door is and how to open it; but then you want to make damn sure you know what to put in. Does your car need petrol or diesel? What grade will work best?
For the average run-about, regular unleaded petrol will do just fine. But if you’re working with a high-performance vehicle, for example, you may need
Congratulations. You’re now ready to hit the road.
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