Originally posted on https://www.motorera.com/1768/fix-your-car-troubles-with-this-do-it-yourself-car-repair-guide/

 

It costs quite a bit of money for a person to own and operate a vehicle over the course of a year. According to AAA, the average American car, truck, or SUV owner spends almost $8,500on their vehicle every 12 months.

This includes about $1,200 spent on car maintenance and repairs. People are forced to pay for everything from minor maintenance like oil changes to more extensive repairs like catalytic converter replacement.

Would you like to start saving money on auto maintenance and repairs? There are easy do it yourself car repair jobs that you can take on to keep the cost of owning and operating your vehicle manageable.

Here is a do it yourself car repair guide that will help you keep your vehicle in great shape without spending a fortune on it.

Installing a New Car Battery

Is there anything worse than climbing into your car to drive to school or work only to realize that the battery in it is dead?

In most cases, you can jumpstart your battery to get it up and running again. But if your battery is more than five years old, it’s only going to be a matter of time before it dies on you again. You’re better off replacing it altogether.

You could take your car down to your local auto repair shop to have them replace your battery. But this is one of the easiest do it yourself car repair jobs.

To put in a new battery, all you need to do is:

1. Consult your vehicle owner’s manual to find the location of your battery if you don’t know where it is.
2. Locate the positive and negative posts on your car battery.
3. Remove the cable connected to the negative post before removing the cable connected to the positive post.
4. Take off the clamp that is holding the old battery in place and lift the battery from your vehicle.
5. Insert your new battery into your car and secure it with the clamp.
6. Attach the positive cable to the positive post on your new battery before attaching the negative cable to the negative post.
7. Make sure that the battery is secure and test it by starting your car.
8. Recycle your old battery.

You can install a new car battery in a matter of minutes. Just make sure you choose a high-quality battery that will stand the test of time once you get it into place.

The best batteries will last for well over five years as long as you take good care of them. You’ll be due to buy your next car from Dicks Auto Loan Center before the next time your battery needs to be replaced.

Putting in a New Headlight

More than 20 years ago, The Wallflowers released their hit song, “One Headlight.” It soared to the top of the Billboard charts.

With that in mind, music fans smile when they hear the words “one headlight.” Car owners, on the other hand, cringe. You can get a ticket if you’re ever caught driving with just one working headlight in your car.

Fortunately, it’s easy for car owners to fix the problem by putting a new headlight into their car. Just like with replacing a battery, it can be done in right around 10 minutes in most cases.

Your vehicle will have either a sealed beam headlight or a replaceable halogen bulb in it. Here are the steps you should follow depending on which one your vehicle has.

If you’re going to be replacing a sealed beam headlight:

1. Remove everything from around your vehicle’s headlamp body, including screws, trim, molding, housing, and retaining rings.
2. Take out the wiring plug that’s stuck into the back of your headlight bulb.
3. Install your new bulb and put the wiring plug into the back of it.
4. Replace the screws, trim, molding, housing, and retaining rings that you took out earlier.

If you’re going to be changing a replaceable halogen bulb:

1. Pop your hood and find the bulb that needs to be replaced in your headlamp.
2. Take out the electrical connector in the back of your bad bulb.
3. Remove the bulb from your headlamp and replace it with a new bulb.
4. Attach the electrical connector to the back of your new bulb and close the hood.

By replacing a bad headlight, you can keep yourself and other drivers safe. You can also make it easier for you to see what’s happening around you when it gets dark.

Replacing a Blown Fuse

Has your car radio, your interior lights, or one of the other electrical features in your vehicle suddenly stopped working for you?

There may be an issue with your battery that’s causing this to happen or you could have a blown fuse on your hands. You’ll want to take a look at your vehicle owner’s manual so that you can locate your fuse box.

This is one of the easiest do it yourself car repair jobs since it requires next to no effort. If you find that you do have a blown fuse, you can pop it right out with a fuse puller and put a fresh fuse in its place.

The one thing you do need to keep in mind, though, is that your new fuse should have the same exact load amperage as your blown fuse. You can find the load amperage for a fuse by looking right on it.

Save Money by Performing These Do It Yourself Car Repair Jobs

Why spend a bunch of time and money visiting your local auto repair shop to have a new battery, headlight, or fuse installed? You can take on these do it yourself car repair jobs on your own and save big.

Once you take on these jobs, you might also find yourself interested in tackling more complex jobs.

You should always make sure you know what you’re doing before you take on a car repair job. But there are plenty of DIY car repair projects that you can pull off even if you aren’t a gearhead.

Read through our blog to discover other do it yourself car repair jobs that will help save you time, money, and aggravation!