As a singularly large investment from the beginning to end, your car is a perpetual money drainer where every penny helps. If one were to stack up every MOT test, minor repair or replaced part, the costs would make anyone question the value of a vehicle. However, there's way to save money in every inch of your car, and a lot of it comes from having the right tools and skills to take car of it. To hopefully save your budget for better things, here's our list of 5 car problems anyone can and should be able to fix.
#1 - Dead Battery
One of the most common car-nundrums, batteries may be a tad more complicated than the myriad of chargeable items in your home, but they're still not rocket science. if your car isn't taking off, there's no need for a professional to check it's the battery that's at fault; with tools like the
Launch Batter Tester and
Launch Battery Power Jump Start Booster Pack you can ensure the problem does indeed lie in your lack of power (rather than, say, the alternator or starter) and give you the jump you need. Both are designed to give as simple a read-out and jump start, respectively, as possible.
#2 - Drive Belt issues
Whilst diagnosing your car's drive belt for the actual problem at hand may require more effort, the easiest way to figure out if there's an issue is just hearing the screech when you start it or use certain accessories. A visual inspection can quickly reveal cracks, wear and looseness, and even if the aforementioned harpy-like quality isn't heard, you may see it's looking rather worn out, or perhaps loose. Replacing your drive belt requires no specialist tools; just a ratchet, sockets, wrenches and a screwdriver, and there
are plenty of online guides that walk you through each step of its replacement.
#3 - Cooler Leaks
That's right, seeing green, orange or yellow liquid forming a pool from your parked car is actually a bad thing. This leak is antifreeze, born from a hole or crack in your car's exterior hose. If you notice a leakage, open the hood and look for where the same offending liquid may be pouring out of. If you spot it, without touching the antifreeze (it will be hot...), unclamp the leaking hose, replace with a new hose and re-clamp in place. Even if the leak isn't obvious, Launch Tech have various
electronic leak detector kits to get fast and accurate readings.
#4 - Brake Pads
We can't think of a better car part to keep working at optimal condition (preventing both accident or injury) than your brake pads. If your car's stoppers are producing an unbearable squeak or squeal, then you'll want to get the car jacked up, the tire removed and a new brake pad in there as soon as possible. Another easy car repair task for anyone to take care of, the signs of a worn out brake pad are mostly visual, either being worn down or with rotors with uneven or warped services. There's guides
to changing your brake pads virtually everywhere online, so make sure you get familiar with them to save some easy money.
#5 - Regular Maintenance
Not so much a car problem as trying to avoid one, there's a lot of car parts and facets that are easy to access and assess, and this should be done every 30,000 miles or every two years. Whether you have the time to spare or have a big road trip coming up, replacing your fuel fiter, air filter, spark plugs & wires, distributor cap & rotor and of course your oil are key for a smooth running car, and most require only basic tools (ratchet, socket set, etc.) and parts. Depending on your budget, Launch Tech have a great choice of tablet computer diagnostics tools, from the extensive
Launch X431 Pro III to the more budget friendly
Launch CRP 123 CReader Professional.
For all new car repair and diagnostic tips, keep an eye on the Launch Tech
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