Can someone like me (no mechanical experience) check under the hood to check everything is in order??

Question

I was given this useful pamphlet on the parts that are located under the hood of my car (ex. engine oil filter, belts, power steering fluid)

it has directed me to check monthly making sure that these and others are in good condition and working well.

I plan on going to a technician for a full check up someday, but can I also look for myself?

Answer 1

Yes... eventually.

Since you have no mechanical experience, it is going to take some education. Start by reading the owners manual cover to cover. The re-read the portion about maintenance under the hood while you're looking at each component.

What you need to do is learn what "everything in order" looks like. Over time when you see something odd, you'll say to yourself, "that doesn't look right"

When you take it in to a technician, ask them to let you watch while they're inspecting various components. Ask them, "what does that do?" and "what does that look like when it is bad?".

As you drive the car, keep the radio down every once in a while so you'll hear things that don't sound normal.

Watch your engine lights on the dashboard. The color of the light indicates the severity.

Red mean "stop driving and seek help NOW".
Yellow means "get this checked out soon".

If you have a garage, keep an eye for stains or puddles on the floor. It is not uncommon to find a teaspoon of oil after an oil change. But oil at other times, or other fluid colors can represent a leak.

Depending on the car, there are often informal user groups such as web sites where you can read about problems and ask questions of others who have that same car. Even Yahoo Answers has a special section for each make of car. The volume of questions is usually slow enough that you can check in every few days to see what others are asking about.

Keep track of your gas mileage, if the numbers start slipping, it might be the sign of a problem.

Good luck with your new car!

Answer 2

Most of oils and fluids have some sort of measurement reading near the area and or on the part where you can easily read to know if you have adequate amount.

If you can, ask your mechanic or someone who knows about cars, to point out the location of these readings so you can put labels on it. Next time you will know where it is, and how much you should have.

One of the most important thing you should check is the tire pressure. Over inflated or under inflated tires can cause an explosion and your car may loose control. So if you can, buy a good quality tire gauge and check it evey week, not monthly, espcially if you do a lot of high speed driving and long distance driving.

Good Luck.

Answer 3

What's the year, make and model? Unless something is obviously wrong (smoke, leak), you can't really tell much by looking under the hood. If you have a newer car and you have you oil changed per specs, then you should not worry. You could check the oil level, the coolant level, the windshield washer level and pop the cover off the power steering tank once in a while.

Answer 4

Despite my respectable outward appearance, recently I had to have a radiator leak repaired. There's also a bad connection to my left headlight which causes it to dim. My transmission is reasonably sound. My engine is clean and the exhaust system works pretty well; but my battery is in need of recharging every now and then. If pampered and taken care of, I will run for a good many more years. Thanks for askin'.

Answer 5

THOROUGHLY read the owner's manual!
You own the car, you NEED to read the manual!

They do a good job explaining things, but it would help if you have a friend go over everything with you so you don't get confused, and in the name of safety.

Answer 6

sure but ask for help from a neighbor or family to point out stuff, or ask at Checker or Autozone, they can show you too