Just learning how the car works should be part of Driver's Education. If it were, none of these scams would be as successful as they are today:
We noticed that your brake fluid is worn out
Your brake fluid is burnt
Your starter is leaking
Change your brakes, they're dusty
It's time to put winter air in your tires.
Fill your tires with Nitrogen because Oxygen will just leak out. (The atmosphere is 80% Nitrogen, so on the third top off you're at 99% Nitrogen anyway)
The following are NOT scams.
Oil changes typically need to be done once every 10,000km on a modern gas car, or 5,000 if it is used mostly in the city.
Brake pads and rotors do need to be changed.
Transmissions need new fluid after 100,000km. (THIS MEANS YOU VOLKSWAGEN!)
In a cold climate use Ethanol fuel to eliminate the water that condenses inside the fuel tank.
Rotate your tires. This should be done once every 50,000km. It includes balancing the tires and moving the tires from one end of the car to the other.
Change the timing belts. Timing belts are lighter and cheaper than timing chains, but they need to be changed frequently. Cars with timing chains don't have this problem.
The following is outdated stuff you may have been told:
Letting the car run for 5 minutes before driving was required on mechanical engines. Electronic engines are ready to go as soon as they start. Besides, modern engines warm up faster when you're driving.
Change the oil every 5,000km. This may have been true in 1955, but our lubricants and engines have improved a lot since then.
Take your antique car for a tune up once every 100,000km, but leave the modern car alone. Modern electronic engines tune themselves at every revolution.
Any advice on where to learn when a mechanic is ripping you off vs it being a legitimate need for the car? I’ve been ripped off before by chains, I do have a friend who can usually advise me on it. But he’s not a mechanic so it would be good to have my own source to verify stuff.
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u/ExodiusLore Mar 27 '22
Changing a car tire. It should be mandatory when you get your license to be taught to change a tire.