Can You Repair Cars At Home

Download Commodity

Download Article

Even if you aren't an expert on cars, yous tin can accomplish most basic maintenance and repair piece of work on your own. Replace a worn benefactor cap, for case, to maintain the car's electrical power. With a few basic tools, the fuel filter and air filter are also easy to bandy out to ensure your auto continues to run well. A basic toolkit and a workshop manual can get you far when it comes to the health of your automobile.

1
Purchase a comprehensive toolkit for basic automobile repairs. Nothing is more of a pain than being elbow-deep in grease and realizing you need a cheap tool you don't take. Some back and along is inevitable with car repairs, simply gathering a few basic tools can prevent a lot of this. Socket wrenches, screwdrivers, wrenches, pliers, jacks, penetrating oil, and a rubber mallet are some tools that will aid you get through nearly mutual issues.^[ane]
- Proceed in mind what repair yous demand to make. If yous're changing a fuse, for instance, yous will demand to buy a new fuse. If y'all're changing the oil, you need an oil pan.
- Bank check with your local auto parts shop to run into what kind of tool rental program they have. These programs provide a fashion to infringe expensive tools without having to buy them.
2
Get an motorcar manual to guide y'all through repairs. Haynes and Chilton are a couple of impress manuals you may find useful. Even the pros use these manuals to perform repairs. They are beginner-friendly, dissimilar dealer service manuals. Get a manual specifically made for the car you are trying to repair.^[ii]
- You lot can order a manual online or from about auto parts stores.
- Read the manual'south comprehend to detect what brand and model of car it is for. For instance, it will say something like "BMW 3-series 2008 through 2022."
- Yous can too search online for manufacturer repair manuals. Type the make and model of your car followed by the words "repair manual." These manuals may be a little more than challenging to understand than the print manuals, and so be cautious.
Advertisement
three
Search for repair videos and discussions online for assistance. Thanks to the Net, car repair resources are very accessible. You lot volition probably find quite a few videos of people going through the repair process, which tin help you learn nigh parts and tools or figure out what steps you demand to take to complete a repair.
- Many videos are fabricated past amateur auto enthusiasts. They may not have much feel or professional training. Make sure you lot reference videos with official resources like a repair manual.
4
Fill out and keep a maintenance record equally y'all work on your car. Proceed a list detailing the type of work done on the car, a clarification of what was done, and an indication of when the repair happened. Salvage whatsoever receipts for materials y'all buy. Dealers and warranty providers often require maintenance records, simply keeping a tape tin also help you track your own piece of work.^[3]
- Yous tin buy a printed maintenance carte du jour at an car parts shop or make your own in a notebook. Store the log in your motorcar'due south glove compartment so you e'er have it.
v
Have pictures of your auto parts so you know how to put them dorsum. Instructions like "supplant the peripheral flange bracket" are useless to y'all if y'all tin can't remember how the bracket came off. To brand things easier, develop a system for your parts. Make notes or accept a picture with a camera or your telephone before you remove them. So, equally you set them aside, keep them ordered the same manner you removed them.
- Endeavour marking the parts with a tag or something similar nail polish to point alignment.
- Store parts in a safe spot, such as in plastic bags on a workbench.
6
Inspect your motorcar for routine maintenance every iii,000 mi (4,800 km). As long as you operate your car, you can expect it to require periodic fixes. Give your car a total inspection on occasion to look for any dirty or damaged components. Then, replace these every bit soon as possible to go along your car in working lodge.
- Cheque your owner'south manual for a recommended repair schedule. It will list how long each part lasts, but think that these are simply estimates. Frequent inspections are a more accurate way of determining when a automobile needs repairs.
- For example, oil and oil filters should be replaced about every 3,000 mi (4,800 km). Check batteries, fluids, and hoses at this point likewise.
- Replace air filters about every 12,000 mi (xix,000 km), along with components like power steering fluid. Inspect the brake pads, suspension, and similar components for damage.
- Well-nigh other components volition last at least 35,000 mi (56,000 km). This includes the battery, spark plugs, fuses, and tires.
7
Perform maintenance on your car if you lot notice leaks or other issues. If something seems wrong, audit it right away! Letting a problem become can lead to more than extensive damage. Look and listen for issues while driving the vehicle. A rattling noise may be a sign of loose nuts or bolts while grinding can be the brake pads, for instance.^[4]
- The cheque engine light should not be taken lightly. If it comes on, audit your car as soon as possible.
- Use your car's symptoms to diagnose your car. If your motorcar lacks power, y'all know it is likely an issue with the electrical system, such every bit a dead battery or blown fuse.
- Get a diagnostic reader to hands locate bug. Motorcar part shop employees take these and will even hire them to yous. You tin can also buy your own online.
Advertisement

1
Locate the distributor cap underneath the car'due south hood. Open the hood and look for round, usually grayness or black slice of plastic near the center of the engine compartment. The cap looks a lilliputian bit like a crown with thick, blackness cables connected to the spokes on top. These are the spark plug wires that power the engine.
- Refer to the owner's transmission if you lot need help locating the cap.
- If the cap or rotor look worn or cracked, they need to exist replaced correct away.
ii
Loosen the clips or screws on the cap. Check the cap's side to discover out how information technology is connected to the vehicle. No matter what motorcar you accept, the cap volition be relatively easy to remove. If it attaches with clips, pull the clips upwardly to costless the cap. If yous see screws belongings it in place, you volition demand a Phillips-Head screwdriver to plough them counterclockwise.^[v]
- Some distributor caps take neither clips nor screws. For this type of cap, push down on it and rotate information technology counterclockwise until it comes off.
- Avoid pulling the spark plug wires off the cap correct away. These wires demand to be attached to specific parts of the cap, and so they take to be handled with circumspection or else they can overload the car'south electrical system.
3
Slide the rotor off of the distributor housing to replace it. The rotator will be right underneath the distributor cap in the engine compartment. Information technology looks similar a small fan blade. Get-go, check it for screws. Most rotors aren't bolted in place, and so you tin can normally remove it with force solitary. Wiggle the rotor back and forth until it comes off, then slide the new i firmly in place.^[vi]
- If your rotor has a screw, the screw will exist on the shaft, underneath the bract. Remove information technology carefully so it doesn't autumn into the engine.
- Spin the rotor by hand after you replace information technology to ensure it turns freely.
iv
Move the spark plugs from the former cap to the new cap. Set the distributor caps downwardly on a flat surface, orienting them so they expect identical. For help, cheque the quondam cap. Information technology should have a marker similar "#i," indicating the start spark plug. Get-go with the starting time spark plug, pull it off of the old cap, push information technology onto the corresponding spoke on the new cap, and so repeat this with the remaining plugs.
- Work slowly and make sure the plugs attach to the proper spokes. If the plugs are out of guild, yous could end up causing electrical harm to your vehicle.
five
Replace the cap on the benefactor assembly. Put the cap back in the engine compartment, making sure it is in the same position the old cap was in before you removed it. The spark plug cords need to be tucked neatly into the compartment, audit them to ensure they aren't coiled or bunched upwards at all. When you're set up, secure the cap with whatever clips or screws y'all undid earlier.
- If the spark plugs are bent or otherwise obstructed, your car's systems may not get acceptable power.
half dozen

Commencement the vehicle to meet if it runs smoothly. Misfires or backfires are a sign that the cap and rotor aren't positioned correctly. Shut down the car so you can have another look at them.

Advertizing

1
Locate the fuel filter about the fuel tank. There are ii dissimilar places the fuel filter can be, so you may need to do a petty searching. The most mutual location is underneath the car, correct next to the fuel tank. In some vehicles, the fuel filter is in the engine compartment. Open up the hood and see if you tin can spot it underneath the dashboard.
- The fuel filter is a round canister with 2 spokes sticking out the sides. The car's fuel line hoses connect to the spokes. The canister itself is oft blackness, gray, or orangish.
- Refer to your owner'southward manual! With information technology, you can pinpoint the filter's location right away.
- A dull or stalled car may indicate a dirty fuel filter. Replace it to see if this brings your car back up to speed.
2
Remove the fuel pump fuse from the fuse box. Plow the car off and locate the fuse box underneath the engine's hood. It looks similar a large, rectangular case and is usually labeled. Pull off the elevation, then look at the diagram printed on it. Information technology will tell you the location of the fuse you lot need, which yous can remove simply by pulling information technology out of the box with pliers.^[7]
- Your car needs to exist turned off to practise this. The fuses conduct electricity, so never bear upon the box while your car is live.
three
Start the car's engine to save pressure in the fuel line. Set the car in park to ensure it can't move while you piece of work on information technology. Then, loosen the gas cap and start the car. Let it run for most a infinitesimal to bulldoze out the air in the line. Afterward, plough off the car and supplant the fuse.^[eight]
- Yous simply need to let the car run for ane or 2 minutes. You should exist able to hear the air hissing out from the gas cap near the back of the auto.
4
Lift the car with a jack if the filter is underneath it. Use the owner's transmission to find the jack points, which are usually right behind the wheels. Pump the jack to raise the machine, and then slide jack stands underneath it for additional security.
- For safety, park the auto on a hard, flat surface earlier lifting it.
- The jack stands catch the automobile in example something happens to the jack. Always identify a stand next to a jack to reduce the risk of accidents.
v
Place a container underneath the filter to catch leaking fluid. Any fuel left in the line will leak out as soon as you detach it from the filter. Proceed a bowl, bucket, or another container on manus. You may also benefit from wearing gloves to go along the gasoline off of your easily.^[9]
- The fuel needs to be kept in a separate container from other fluids like oil. When you're done with it, drop it off at a recycling location. Nigh mechanic shops accept fuel for recycling.
6
Unscrew the fuel line bolts from the fuel filter. The bolts hold the fuel lines secure to the filter. If your filter has them, they volition be right where the lines connect to the filter's spokes. Turn the bolts counterclockwise to remove them. And then, pull the lines until they pop off the filter.^[10]
- Some fuel filters apply clips instead of bolts, which you can disengage by pulling on them with your fingers.
- If the fuel lines are hard to remove, attempt twisting them off with a wrench.
7
Supersede the filter and connect it to the fuel lines. Have off the old filter, and then slide the other one into the subclass hanging from the car. Make sure you position the new filter the same way the former i was. And then, button the fuel lines onto the filter's spokes and supplant whatever bolts or clips used to hold them in place.^[11]
- To help you install them correctly, near filters have flow lines printed on them. Use the lines to orient the old and new filter before swapping them. The flow line should point towards the car's engine.
8

Get-go the car'southward engine and check for leaks. Lower the car down off the jacks, as well remembering to return the fuel pump fuse to the fuse box if you haven't already. Let the car run for a minute, then check underneath it. If you run into leaking fuel, stop the car. Check the fuel lines and filter to make sure they are correctly positioned and tightly connected.^[12]

Advertizing

1
Locate the air filter instance below the hood. The air filter will be a large black instance in the engine compartment. It's ordinarily on the left side of the compartment, correct behind the automobile's lights. The case will exist labeled with an keepsake that resembles an arrow passing through a screen.^[13]
- The filter is typically pretty easy to discover, merely refer to the owner's manual if you demand assistance tracking information technology downwardly.
2
Unscrew the case to access the air filter. Look around the rim of the case to find out what holds it in identify. Depending on your auto, expect to see virtually 3 screws or clips. If your filter case has screws on it, get a hex-caput screwdriver and twist the screws counterclockwise to remove them.^[xiv]
- For clips, only pull them back to release the cover.
3
Lift the filter out of the casing. The filter is the only thing in the casing, so you can't miss it. Information technology's the plastic rectangle with the strips of typically white filter material within it. Depending on your filter, it may exist red or orange. All you accept to practise is grasp the plastic edge and lift it to pop it out of the vehicle.^[15]
- An erstwhile filter will expect muddied. If you try to smoothen a light through the filter material, y'all won't exist able to encounter information technology on the other side. Replace the filter when this happens to keep harmful debris out of your motorcar.
4
Install the new filter subsequently wiping down the chamber. Get a clean rag and advisedly wipe up whatever dirt left underneath the filter. Try to prevent it from falling further down into the filter compartment. Then, lay the new filter in place. The end with the exposed filter material should hang down into the compartment.^[16]
- Use your old filter as reference for the new i. Check how information technology was placed in the compartment so you know exactly how to fit the new 1.
5
Replace the case encompass and screws. Fit the instance cover back together, then brainstorm securing information technology in place. If your case has clips, snap them back in place. For screws, place the screws back in the holes on the case'southward edges, then turn them clockwise to tighten them.^[17]
- You won't need to test the filter to see if it is working. As long every bit it fits deeply in the sleeping room, information technology will work.
Advertizing

Ask a Question

200 characters left

Include your email accost to get a message when this question is answered.

Submit

Video

Grinding, squeaking, and rattling sounds are oft indications that y'all need to repair your car. Besides, check your automobile when you feel unusual vibrations.
Speak with professional person car mechanics or other repair enthusiasts when yous can. They can give yous tips on how to fix various problems.
Protect your hands. Use gloves when working and wash your cars when you're finished. You will get muddy while working and grease can exist difficult to remove.
Report up on machine systems. Go to the library or bookstore and get some books explaining how every motorcar part operates.
What repairs y'all're able to do on your ain really comes to the tools yous have available, your motivation, and your conviction.^[18]
Use your eyes. Besides your ears, which you can employ to mind for signs that your car has an issue, your optics are the most important diagnostic tool.

Exercise intendance when working effectually hot car parts, including oil and cooling systems, to avoid scalding injuries.
Going under a auto can exist dangerous. Always employ stable jacks on a apartment surface. Make sure the car is secure before y'all outset working.
Avoid working under a car without using a jack that has a jack stand. The stand can protect you if something goes wrong with the jack.

Things Yous'll Demand

New distributor cap
New benefactor rotor
Phillips-Head screwdriver

Needle-nose pliers
Car jacks
Jack stand up
New oil filter
Baste pan or container

New filter
Hex-caput screwdriver
Make clean rag

Most This Article

Article Summary 10

To repair your own car without experience, try looking upward videos of a professional person doing the same repair online. Just make certain yous cross reference the videos with official resource, like a repair transmission, to make sure you're getting accurate information. Before you start the repair, make a list of all the tools y'all'll need and so pick them up from your local auto parts store. If you lot're on a budget, see if the store has a tool rental plan and then y'all don't have to purchase everything. To larn how to do mutual auto repairs, like installing a new fuel filter, whorl downward!

Did this summary assist you lot?

Thank you to all authors for creating a page that has been read 149,911 times.