Top Five things a Girl should know about her car
 

I come from a family where my dad is a pretty capable mechanic. His attitudes towards me and my car is that he knows best, so I should let him do everything. Now, I'm a pretty independent person, and like to know how stuff works and how to fix basic things.

What are the top five things you consider most important to know about your vehicle?

I came up with a list of things I thought based on past experience, but wasn't sure if I was missing anything pertinent:

1. How to gas up your car! For a while, I was *not allowed* to gas up my car. My dad has some paranoia about me being vulnerable in a gas station.

2. How to change/put on a spare tire. This is one thing I insisted on, especially since sometimes there isn't time to wait for someone to help you.

3. How to jumpstart your car. On the hottest days, my key security system would get all fucked up, and kill my battery charge and not let me start my car. For my birthday present, I was given my VERY OWN set of cables :)

4. How/When to check fluids. Pretty self explanatory, but my younger sister doesn't even know where to look for the dipstick!

5. How to change the oil on your car. Still working on this one since the oil was just changed 500 miles ago, and dad is all worried about the jack slipping or something while I'm under there. Don't know how it's any safer when he's under there!

A couple others I came up with were checking the tire pressure, knowing how to check/change spark plugs( I can do this, after my shorted my entire system while driving), and checking/changing brake pads.

Anyone with any other must knows or an opinion about this feel free to share

I'll go with the top 3... those are some that I know some men don't even know how to do.

I know how to change the oil.. not interested in doing it...

My list (i don't include gassing up because. . well that's just obvious!):

1) change the tire (including knowing to rotate the tires at least twice a year and knowing to never put a non-fullsized spare on the drive wheels)

2) How to recognize common mechanical problems. Some mechanics love to try to take advantage of women because they assume the woman won't know squat about cars. If you can diagnose problems, you'll avoid being suckered in. My girlfriend's valve cover gasket was leaking. She took it into the shop to get it replaced (I was 600 miles away at the time or I'd have done it for her). Guy tried to tell her she had a cracked head and would need to pay over a grand to get the job done. She proceeded to tell him in intimate detail where the leak was, why it leaked, and how to fix it, just before taking the car to another shop ;)

3) Location of all the fluid checks, and what to look for when you check them. i.e. if the oil's full that's great, but if it's the color of chocolate milk you have a blown headgasket and need to get it fixed before you wreck the rest of your engine ;)

Those are the real basics. Beyond that, it's not a bad idea to learn:

4) how to fix stuff. If your alternator dies you can pay someone $300 to fix it or you can fix it yourself with a $30 part and half an hour. Knowing how to work on her car has saved my girlfriend a tow bill or three, 'cause she just fixed the problem out in the field.

5) How to drive. Learn to REALLY drive, not that BS they teach you in driving school. Learn spin avoidance, steering with the throttle, and how to control your car at the limits of its performance. Sure, you'll probably never race it, but if you have to swerve suddenly on an icy road, you'll be using the same techniques as you use controlling it at the limits on dry pavement.

I don't think all people have the desire to learn how to fix/maintain there car. Sometimes people would just rather pay someone the money to save them the time, effort and dirtiness of having to do it themselves. So for me personally, I don't push that people should learn to do their own repairs. I do believe though, that there are basic things that women (and some men) should know. These things help maximize reliabilty and safety on the road and when you're away from home.

1) Tires: Changing a flat, identifying tire wear, checking tire pressure - These simple things could mean the different between being stuck in the bad part of the city and going home.

2) Jump starting a car - For the same reason as above

3) Identifying basic maintenance problems - this includes things like when a car is vibrating, knowing if it's because alignment is bad or if it's something worse. If the brakes are squeaking and stuttering, being able to identify if just the brake pads need changing or if the whole brakesystem is about to die. It's even as simple as knowing what all the warning lights in the dashboard mean. I know people that don't know what certain lights mean when they come on. Knowing these things could be the difference between getting suckered at a repair shop or not. Also, for the reason above, not finding yourself stuck someday.

4) Changing window wipers - There is no reason to pay the outrageous prices that oil change places charge for something that literally takes half a minute. This includes filling the window washer fluid. Clean windows improve visibility and safety.

5) How to drive a manual transmission car - There are too many people out there that only know how to drive automatics. Manual cars are cheaper, have better gas mileage on average, and are just plain fun to drive. Plus, what if a person is stuck somewhere or forced into a position where there's only a manual car available? It would be best to at least learn the basics.

I agree with above posters that a person should be able to check all fluid levels (there's only like three things: oil, coolant and brake fluid) and also that people should learn how to control a car in precarious situations. People should also be aware of their manual's recommended routine tuneups. They usually have a chart of milage and what parts should be replaced when. You'd be surprised how many people don't know or follow those.

minimal list of things EVERY driver should know how to do:

1. gas up
2. check and top off all fluids (including engine oil and tranny)
3. change a flat
4. jump start a dead battery
5. read the guages/lights and have an idea what they mean

amonkie..... i think you got it all. Those are necessary, and could mean a difference between hictchiking and going home. Could mean the difference between several hundred bucks and half hours labor too.

Just also learn all the ruitine maintenance schedules (how to change air filter, check tire pressure, rotate tires, etc.) and what all the gauges on your dash are, what they mean, and the various ways they can light up (such as a CEL...on or blinking?). One other aspect that many people surprisingly dont know at all...how to wash your car. This is actually pretty important, and there are wrong ways to do it. Such as dish soap every wash...

All in all....i think your set. And props for wanting to know how stuff works. Specially the most expensive, useful, and little knowns tools you will ever buy. Given your interest in knowing...you'll probably find that as you learn all the basics...youll always find something more complicated you want to know.

I'm a mechanically inclined Dad, and have a young daughter (3, so too young to start learning just yet), but I simply cannot imagine not teaching my little girl how to maintain her own vehicle. Heck, I've already started buying her tools here and there.

My personal feeling is that any parent that does not pass on a useful skill to a child based on something so inane as out-moded sexual prejudice is doing a disservice to the child. My daughter will know how to change her oil, tires, etc and will be able to work on her own car. My son will be able to cook, iron, do laundry, etc and know how to take care of himself (I never learned how to do laundry correctly and am pathetically helpless about it when my wife's not around).

You sound like you are on the path to not being vehicle-ignorant, and good on ya. If you really want to do it right, buy a Haynes Manual (or something similar). You will find that you are perfectly capable of doing the majority of maintainence on your car yourself.

I'd make sure that air in the tires is one of the 'fluids' that is checked frequently :-)
Care to justify or link a source? I've never heard that

Well if you try to put a donut tire on a normal wheel you're going to be sorely disappointed, and the tire rotation is a safety measure.

If you have a donut wheel on one side of the car on the drive wheels, and a regular wheel on the other, you have two different circumfrences of wheels. The differential is trying to turn them both at the same rate, but they can't turn at the same rate because they're different sizes. You wind up putting a HELL of a lot of stress on your diff, and if you do it too long you'll be rebuilding or buying a new one.

Negative ghostrider.

Unless you have a straight axle ( which only ancient large trucks use.... ) ... the differential allows one tire to turn more than the other for "cornering". The outside tire in a corner must spin faster than the inside tire, so the differential allows more power to go to the inside tire and let the outside one roll more... so the diff would function as it normally would if one tire was rotating more.
All cars, regardless of drive, have a differential.
However.... Because of the difference in tire sizes and the poor performance of donuts ( they are terrible quality )... you might have handling and traction problems if you have a donut on any wheel which is key to steering or traction ( I.e. drive wheels or steering wheels, which are the front tires only on a FWD car...)

You can drive on a donut safely for about 50 miles ( according to the manufacturer). I would not advise going anymore unless you absolutely have to.

Good list. Anybody that can't change their own tire, *pfft*.

I'm of the mind that you should be able to get yourself out of easy trouble on your own. For the car, that's tires, gas, jump start.

As someone that works in the auto parts industry. How bout these:

1. Know what kind of car you drive. You'd be amazed how many people don't know what model they drive. Just who made it and even sometimes they don't even know that. I've seen a few men with this problem as well.

2. Know the specs of your car. What engine size, cylinders etc.

3. Know your way around the engine compartment. Where the battery is, the alternator, starter, coolant bottle etc.

I've seen so many women get sent by thier husbands to pick up parts for thier cars and when questions come up they only know what they were told.

Because the jack slipping is a very real danger, every other year or so some teenager around here (in a town of about 30,000) ends up killing themselves working on their car because they make one little mistake, such as earlier this year when a truck fell on top of the poor guy when the jack just gave way because it wasn't set up right.

Anyone will any common sense and experience working on cars will tell you that you never go under a car that's held up by hydrolic jacks. Ramps or stands are the way to go.

Thanks for all the input guys, Dad'll be seeing this the next time I go home! :)

Negative right back. The diff is meant to allow the wheels to turn at different speeds while cornering, not all the time. If you do it all the time, you wear it out and break it.

Plus, with the donut on the drive wheels, and the two sides therefore already spinning at different rates, when you DO corner, you spin them at rates that are even more different. You can exceed the design of the differential doing that, and therefore tear it up.

I'm a mechanic and I don't even change my own oil......LOL

I'm just lazy!

If you have a rwd car it's better to put it on a drive wheel because you certainly don't want one on a steering wheel.

i drive fast and know the limits of my car and have found that i dont need to rotate my tires becouse a 20 k radial last me about 6 weeks so if you drive like that dont worry about rotating tires

KNOW YOUR CAR:)

I have an AWD impreza, so I would put the spare on the front, because it is an open differential. The recommendation for fifty miles is to keep the diff from burning up. Most of the time, the car is going straight, so the diff is not under undue stress. When my Acura had to wear a donut for a week, I rotated it to the rear and let my wife drive it, because her commute is only a couple of miles each way.

It's funny you mention this. I didn't know how to fill up gas for a few years because I learned how to drive in New Jersey! Well I got the crash course when I was in Alabama for a few weeks. Now I wonder why the heck NJ doesn't let you pump your own gas.

http://www.ebaumsworld.com/mechanic.html
just make sure your daughter knows more than this girl and you will be fine

Forseti,

I'm sure you sympathize with me when I had to return home from the gas station before going to work the first time I tried to fill up my car. I happened to press on the handle as I was removing the nozzle from the car, and gasolized my clothes. Thank goodness home was 2 blocks away :)

Damn.

I've heard of blinker fluid, but i've never heard of headlight fluid before ;)

NJ doesn't let you fill your gas in order to give dipshits jobs. When i drive through new jersey i don't stop because i don't ever like anyone touching my jeeps.
I learned early on that it's a union thing. They're unionized and don't want to be out of a job, so they got the state to declare that gas is a hazardous substance that must be handled by someone trained. No i'm serious here. Thats what NJ law states.

It's utter BS in my opinion. The last time i *needed* gas and was on the jersey turnpike, the gas pumper actually tried to take out a tip from my change. I got out of my car, stood face to face with him, took the money out of his hand, and got back in my car. I didn't even buy premium and he wanted a tip?

Unless I've missed it, no one mentioned identification and changing of light bulbs.

One class that I teach at the local community college is: Auto Repairs for Ms. Fix-It. Fluids, bulbs, preventive maintenance, learning your vehicle are topics handled. Each week we go over one or more vehicles for each student.

Although I don't have ASE certification, I'm a former mechanic of domestic and foreign vehicles, and held a PA inspection license for a number of years. My truck has 372K miles on it, and I have performed 98% of the maintenance/repairs. :thumbsup: