Save money. Fix your own car.

For the past three weeks, I didn`t need to set the alarm clock to wake me up in the morning. My neighbor leaves for work at 7am and his car makes such a screeching, unbearable sound that it`s impossible not to wake up.

But even though it`s more efficient than any wake-up call, it`s not a bit pleasant to start your day by jumping out of bed in terror. So I asked him what the deal was. Why doesn`t he get his car repaired? I mean, besides the horrific noise, there`s clearly a problem there that won`t fix itself. He shrugs his shoulders and tells me “I haven`t got the money yet. Hopefully, next month.”

Money can be a real pain in the rear end, indeed. But here`s the thing: my neighbor likes to think of himself as a survivalist. He`s got a stockpile and bug-out bags and all… However, when it comes to the only way of getting his family out of town and into a safe place — and by that I mean his car — he shrugs his shoulders and says “Maybe next month.”

If you`ve ever found yourself in this kind of situation, where you lacked money for a crucial service, I`m going to tell you what I told my neighbor: Well, fix your own car then. You`ll save some money.

Now, I`m can`t teach you how to repair your car, step-by-step, because that`s what manuals are for. But I`m going to show you the basic rules you need to follow if you decide to roll you rsleeves and do the job.

First of all, you need a list of tools you need. I found this list on Jalopnik and I found it very  useful (and very funny, as well):

- combination wrenches (standard, metric, or both, depending upon what kind of car you have)

- screwdrivers (flathead and phillips, various sizes)

- pliers

- a socket set

- a breaker bar and pry bars

- some sort of reliable jack and jack stands (or concrete blocks) and/or ramps

- Visegrips or locking pliers

- penetrating oil

- rags

- a fire extinguisher

- a bicycle and a big, sturdy backpack (or a girlfriend/roommate’s car) for mid-repair parts runs (because there’s nothing funnier than being that guy riding a bicycle down main street with a radiator tucked under your arm)

- access to a junkyard (may I add: and a parts store)

- a not-too-distant source of cold beer

Ok, now that we got that out of the way, let`s move on to those golden rules I was telling you about:

#1: Get the right diagnosis

 You`ve got two options:

 1. You ask someone at the parts store to help you out.

 These guys usually know cars inside and out and they won`t charge you for it, like your car service does. After all, it`s in their interest to help you out with the diagnosis. If the radiator`s broken, they`ll sell you a new one. It`s a win-win. You save a lot of money, they make some.

 2. You google the “symptoms”.

 Honestly, I wouldn`t have thought you could fix your car via google, but I read this post on MrMoneyMoustache and it made me rethink the whole thing. I told my neighbor to google his car`s symptoms as well, I`m curious if he`s going to get any good results.

 So here`s how this works:

- You google the symptoms. For example, “noise from rear wheels”. You`re going to get suggestions for what the problem might be. Maybe the wheel bearings are worn out.

- You go to Youtube and you type the problem: “worn out wheel bearings” or “wheel bearings noise”. If you find a video where a car makes the exact noises as your car does, then that`s probably the problem.

#2: Get yourself a “Haynes” manual

 Trust me, you`re going to need it. Take it, study it a bit, see how it`s structured and read everything that you might find useful during the fix. Don`t start working on your car before opening the manual. Take your time and get familiar with it first.

#3: Get ready for the job

You know the drill:

• Don`t wear your good clothes, they`ll be unwearable when you`re done with it.

• Wear protective gloves

• If you`re not comfortable with them, rub Vaseline on your hands

• Make sure the jack is perfectly reliable

• Pick a safe spot to fix your car. The street or a parking lot should not be on this list, obviously

• Let your car cool down before starting to work on it. You don`t want to burn your hands on hot metal.

#4: Make sure you`ve got everything you need with you

 Place the parts and the tools you`re going to need close to you. It helps you save time and it also prevents accidents like losing small parts such as screws and nuts. You know how this happens: you go looking for that screwdriver you forgot you were going to need and, when you come back, that teeny tiny part vanished from sight.

#5: Proceed with the fixing

 Again, you`ve got two options here:

- Follow the instructions in the manual

- Use the Internet

You can use Youtube to search for step-by -step videos. For example, MrMoneyMoustache, the one who wrote about repairing his car using the Internet, typed “1999 Odyssey replace rear wheel bearings” and found a video tutorial. In my opinion, that`s exactly what the Internet is for: helping people in need with time-saving and money-saving solutions. Very ingenious.

 Or you can use one of the following websites:

• http://autorepair.about.com/

• http://www.automd.com/

• http://www.cartalk.com/

• http://www.carcomplaints.com/

• http://www.carbibles.com/

#6: Disassemble/Reassemble wisely

 I loved this one:

 “Develop a system for placing parts that you had to remove to just get to the defective part in such a way that they will be easier to reassemble, replace properly, such as setting a bracket down correctly oriented, with it’s accompanying hardware placed right by where it goes, rather than all jumbled in a pile. A good method will also incorporate reversing the order of removal to put it together again.

 ~ Caution: A manual instruction such as “now replace the peripheral flange bracket” is useless to you, if you can’t remember how the bracket came off — and while the manual is helpful, the pictures often are not very clear and are not labeled or explained well.”

 I really hope you`ll find these rules and resources useful and you`ll try to save some money next time your car gets sick. Remember: everything seems hard the first time you do it. If you don`t think you can do it by yourself, ask a friend to help. Two heads might be better than one.

By Alec Deacon