Basic Car Maintenance for Complete Beginners: Your Step by Guide to Saving Money and Keeping Vehicle Running Safely

Learn to look after your car with confidence, even if you have never opened the bonnet. This practical guide is written for complete beginners. Short lessons, clear tables, simple drawings and step-by-step checklists take you from the owner's manual and the dashboard warning lights to oil, coolant, tyres, brakes, the battery, filters, belts and seasonal care. It also shows you when a job is yours to do, when it belongs to a professional, and how to work with a garage and keep your costs under control. WHAT YOU WILL LEARN Start here: why basic maintenance pays, safety in the driveway, reading your owner's manual, tools and supplies, the main parts, dashboard warning lights and using an OBD scanner. Fluids: engine oil, checking the oil level, the oil change, coolant, brake fluid, power steering and transmission fluid, washer fluid, and reading leaks and fluid colours. Tyres, wheels and brakes: tyre pressure, tread, reading a tyre sidewall, rotation and alignment, changing a wheel safely, wheel nuts and torque, brake warning signs, and suspension and steering signs. Battery, electrics and lights: battery safety, cleaning terminals, jump-starting safely, fuses and bulbs, headlights, indicators and wipers, and charging system signs. Engine and filters: the air filter, the cabin filter, spark plugs and ignition basics, belts and hoses, fuel, exhaust and emissions signs, and what changes with hybrid and electric vehicles. Routine and seasonal care: maintenance schedules, weekly and monthly checks, winter care, summer care and long trips, washing and rust prevention, and storing a vehicle. >HOW THE BOOK WORKS Fifty lessons in seven parts, each with an explanation, three tables, key points, worked examples, a job to try and four practice questions with answers. Every lesson has four drawings: the main drawing, a checklist card, a step-by-step sequence and a right-and-wrong comparison. Thirty scenarios ask what you would do in a real situation, with model answers. A gallery of fourteen simplified plates, twenty reference tables, ten forms, a first-year plan, troubleshooting guides and a glossary finish the book. SAFETY FIRST >WHO IT IS FOR New drivers, first-time car owners, people who want to understand their service invoice, and anyone who wants to keep a vehicle safer, more reliable and cheaper to run.