17 Easy Car Repairs and Maintenance Projects You Can Do Yourself

As much as most of us wish our cars would just remain forever perfect, that is not likely to happen. Much like having children (that just happen to guzzle gas by the gallon), owning a car means you’ll have to dedicate your time and money to maintaining it. While it certainly seems easier to drive to a dealership or a mechanic, sit and wait around playing Angry Birds on your smartphone while they service your car, and then give them gobs of money in return, it is so much cheaper, and sometimes less time-consuming, to do the maintenance yourself. Not to mention you may trust your own hands a little more than some random mechanic’s.

So if you’re feeling bold enough, try out some easy car repairs and maintenance on your own or with a buddy next time around, instead of relying on a service technician. But what kinds of easy car repairs and maintenance can you actually perform? Anything and everything, as long as you’re comfortable. If there’s ever something that you don’t feel confident doing, however, be sure to leave that to the car professionals. Novices can replace their own wiper blades and even change their oil, but only attempt things like brake maintenance if you know a fair amount about vehicle maintenance and repair.

Check out some of our easy car repairs and maintenance how-to articles to get started!

Replacing Wiper Blades

With fall comes the changing of the color of leaves, and so too comes the need to change your windshield wiper blades.  With rain and snow and muck ahead, a clear windshield is never more necessary; but fear not, for changing your windshield wiper blades is quick, easy, painless, and… (Read more)

Changing the Oil

As the seasons change, you’ll need to address nagging maintenance needs, including everything from batteries and tires to fluids and brakes.  One of the more obvious and pressing needs is to change your oil at regular intervals.  But who has the time or the money for that?  The shop always seems to be opened when… (Read more)

Fixing Paint Scratches

Rife with the possibility of rogue grocery carts, uncontrollable car doors and inattentive purse carriers, a parking lot can become a war field for any new car owner. It’s common knowledge that other people don’t often worry about your car’s paint job… (Read more)

Inflating Tires/Checking Tire Pressure

We’ve all been there at one point or another—the second you turn on the car, a little bell chirps and a light on your dashboard flashes telling you that the car’s tire pressure is a bit on the low side. If you get to this stage and feel a little lost with no clue as to what you need… (Read more)

Rotating your Tires

For most of us, getting our tires rotated is a simple add-on at every other oil change, but for the particularly industrious individual who changes their own oil, that opportunity never presents itself since they aren’t going to their local mechanic very so often. For this group of people, knowing how to rotate… (Read more)

Changing a Flat Tire

Let’s take a moment and reflect on how many scary movies begin with an innocent coed stranded on the side of a deserted road with a flat tire. Can you just imagine how the movie might have turned out if she had known how to change a tire? That scary guy with an axe she decided to ask for help probably… (Read more)

Jump Starting your Car

While we all hope for the best, we should still plan for the worst. That means making sure you’re prepared for the unexpected. Whether you left a light on, the key in the ignition, or your car battery is just plain old, all car owners are likely to be faced with a dead car battery sooner or… (Read more)

Replacing the Air Filter

Possibly one of the easiest car maintenance tasks besides topping off fluids is replacing the air filter. It is a quick and easy task (it takes only about five minutes at most), and economical, too, since labor costs at a mechanic’s would double the expense. So, to save yourself a trip and a few dollars… (Read more)

Replacing Spark Plugs

Think of the spark plugs under your car’s hood as the magic that makes your car go. As an essential part of your motor, these plugs use the electrical current from the ignition to ignite the fuel that powers your car. Like anything in your car, they can wear… (Read more)

Battery Maintenance

It might surprise you how much of a beating your car battery can take, especially after a long, hard winter like the one currently sweeping across the country. If you’re looking to get as much life out of your battery as possible, make sure you follow these car battery maintenance tips to keep… (Read more)

Flushing the Radiator

If you want to keep your vehicle operating at optimum levels, you’ll want to consider performing a regular radiator flush every two years. Over time, sludge and rust will build up in your radiator, leaving your vehicle less efficient. (Read more)

Replacing Brake Pads

Brakes are a pretty important part of your car. Some might even say they’re life-saving (by some we mean everyone). So should you really be messing around with your brakes? You definitely should. Not only will you save a lot of money, but… (Read more)

Replacing the Fuel Filter

While you should replace your fuel filter at the normal manufacturer recommended interval, you may also need to replace it if you notice your vehicle stalling when climbing hills. Over time, dirt builds up and clogs the filter, causing the vehicle to operate less efficiently. (Read more)

Removing Car Dents

Car dents happen to the best of us, whether a rogue cart named your car as its prey at the grocery store or you just didn’t see the pole behind you while you were backing out of your friend’s driveway. While you might think you’re going to have to spend some big bucks at… (Read more)

Replacing Headlights

So, you’re a do-it-yourselfer, are you? We agree that sometimes there’s just no need to pay someone to do something you can do yourself. Occasionally, you might have a headlight (or two) that goes out, and it’s handy if you know how to fix the problem yourself. (Read more)

Removing Bumper Stickers

_{Photo by Ralph Masoner}

Maybe it was something you thought was funny, or you were really pulling for Ralph Nader all those years, but now, you’re trying to sell your car and you’ve realized Nader is never going to win. So, how can you remove that ill-advised bumper sticker without it ruining your car? (Read more)

Plasti Dipping your Car

Plasti dip is a product that is easily applied and temporarily protects elements of your car. Using colored plasti dip will change the look of your car. Some people use black to color their emblems and rims, or a different color to change the color of the car temporarily. Plasti dip can be used on… (Read more)

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