Fixing a car can be expensive. This is particularly true if you have a number of cars in your household or you own a used car. Mechanics, repair shops and garages are not afraid to charge premium prices for their services. These service costs and the cost of car parts can quickly add up to a large sum of money. This money could be put to better use. In some cases, you may be paying more than you should for this type of service. However, there are many ways you can reduce your dependence on garages and mechanics. These are some of the most effective ways to break free and start repairing your own vehicles.
Educate Yourself
Knowledge is power. Mechanics and garage owners know this. The more you know about how cars work, the more repairs you can do yourself. As well as becoming more self-sufficient, you won’t fall for the many scams that exist in the motor industry such as overcharging of naïve customers by dishonest garage owners and mechanics.
There are many ways to learn. You could start by taking some basic mechanics classes or spend time with an expert who knows the ins and outs of a car. The internet has made it even easier to find out more about every type of make and model. Video sharing websites, blogs, membership sites and car-related forums contain all the information and tips you’ll ever need to understand every aspect of a car.
Practice makes perfect. You could start by practicing your mechanical skills on an old car if you have one. If you have the time and you’re feeling brave you could start by taking apart and reassembling a certain part of a car. For example, the braking system or engine. Once you can dismantle and put these systems back together again, you’ll have no problem fixing this part of a car in the future. You could take this one step further by doing the same thing to the rest of the car. This may seem extreme but it’s one quick way to find about all the different parts of a car and how they work together.
Take Care of your Car
This is obvious but it’s advice many car owners ignore. Most people live hectic lives. Taking care of a car is not always their main priority. Regularly checking and maintaining your car will prevent more serious problems later which normally have to be dealt with by a mechanic. Driving in a responsible way that doesn’t affect your car is also an easy way to reduce your dependence on a mechanic or garage.
Buy Your Own Car Diagnostics Tools
Today’s mechanics have to know as much about electronics as they do about the mechanical functions of a car. Every modern car has a huge number of components that control different features. If a problem occurs with any of these components or your cars check engine light turns on, most motorists bring their car to a mechanic to find out what’s wrong. This can be expensive, especially if the mechanic finds a problem and they have to repair or replace a certain part.
Diagnosing problems was something only car experts were able to do but this way of thinking is now changing thanks to a range of car diagnostics tools like the ELM 327 USB car scanner. However, not all these tools are created equally. In recent years a large number of cheap, imported clones have entered the market. Most of these products do not do what they claim they do. Up to 99% of these scanners support only half of the data high end models support. These cheaper scanners also provide misleading readings or don’t return any readings at all.
This is not the case with the ELM 327 USB car scanner. This tool is a high quality scanner which includes a processor based around the Elm Electronics 2.1 code. It’s a simple device to use. You connect it to your car and a laptop with OBD software installed. The interface then allows you to view readings and notifies you of any faults or other issues with your car. You can also find out how to fix any problems identified by this car diagnostics tool.
Build or Convert your Own Garage
To really become independent from your mechanic or garage, you could build or convert your own garage. This is something you should carefully consider first. It would probably be a more suitable solution for someone who has experience working with cars. Once you have your own garage you would be free to work on your own vehicle and could also help others once you have enough experience.
Buy the Appropriate Tools and Repair Products
Mechanics use a wide range of tools to carry out their day-to-day tasks. Some of these tools are affordable and basic, while others are more complex and expensive. Before you invest in any tools you have to decide how practical it is to buy more expensive tools. You could start by purchasing basic tools and learn how to carry out basic repairs. If you feel you can work on more complex repairs you could then look at purchasing or hiring more expensive equipment.
Operating a car is expensive but it becomes even more expensive if your car breaks down or needs to be repaired. However, there are many ways you can become self-reliant and not have to depend on a mechanic or garage to fix your car.