While we have many amazing women doing great things in the automotive industry, that area has been dominated by men over the years. Women often pay attention to other things aside getting their hands dirty with engine oil or doing some major fixes on their cars. Many might see this idea as a stereotype, but it’s not entirely far from the truth.
The culture of repairing a car is known mainly with men, but women are beginning to understand that some of these things can be done by them as well. If you own a car as a lady, there are some simple problems you can diagnose or solve right at home without taking your vehicle to an auto mechanic. Roadniche has identified these simple car fixes you can do by yourself without paying a dime at any workshop.
1. Jumpstarting a vehicle
As a woman, when your car breaks down in the middle of nowhere, do not panic! The problem is mostly caused by weak or old battery. Make sure you always have a jumper cable in your car for a case like this.
To use a jumper cable requires no advanced mechanical training. Also, do not think you will end up getting electrocuted when you are using the jumper cables on the battery terminal. At this point, you will need to find a car willing to render battery life to your car for it to start. When these cars are close to each other, find the positive terminals of the batteries in both cars and then clip the two red wire ends onto the terminals. You can repeat the same process for the negative terminals with the black wire before you proceed to getting the car started.
NB: Do not attempt to remove the two clips at once from the battery. Make sure you take them off one by one. The reason for this warning is to prevent any case of spark. Once you fellow this simple step judiciously, your car will likely come on for you to resume your trip.
2. Replacing worn-out or flat tyre
Many women do run from this task. Sometimes, they feel it is too strenuous to bend over and a get a tyre removed from the wheel. You will be surprised that it is quire easier than you thought. You do need to spend unnecessary cash obtaining the help of a vulcanizer. Make sure you always move around with spare tyre. To avoid the hassles accustomed with removing the flat tire, you should acquire the complete tire changing kits, part of which should be a good hydraulic jack for lifting the vehicle from them the ground.
Your spare tire should always be in good condition. With the use of good tire replacement tools, one should be able to loosen the nut on the wheels and roll off the tire. You will repeat the same process when you are putting in the spare tire. But this time around, you are tightening the nuts. Make sure the nuts are well tightened, by putting your weight on the wheel spanner.
You need to loosen the nuts around the wheel before you use the jack to lift the car. Repeat the same process when you are tightening the nuts.
3. Changing the car’s headlights
This task might not be as easy as the earlier ones we mentioned here, but it is not beyond what you can do as a lady. Since you can easily fix or replace light bulbs in your homes, replacing ones on cars shouldn’t much of a problem.
In some cases, it will be required of you to look under the car’s bonnet and locate the spot behind the headlight where you can unscrew the cap and get full access to the bulb. This simple act will save you a lot of money you might have spent at the mechanic shop.
To know more about changing your car’s headlight, take a look at the short tutorial clip below:
4. Prepping your vehicle for long trip
As a female car owner, getting your car ready for a long trip is as important as going out with your hand bag or purse. You do not need to bother your husband if you are married or boyfriend to get this done for you. All you need to do is take a look at some areas that might give you issues on the road.
Such simple tasks include the checking the condition of the four tires, checking the level of fluid and coolant in the car and making sure the vehicle is well cleaned.
5. During in raining season
Many women often leave their vehicles in the garage when rain season starts. We understand that driving in the rain might be challenging to many drivers, regardless of gender or years behind the wheel. All you need to stay safe while driving in the rain is to focus and refrain from overspeeding. Use your wipers well to increase visibility on the road.
A lot of people have lost their lives trying to test out the peak of their engine capability in the rain. To avoid risky or fatal road crash in the rain, make sure you move at slow pace and apply brake when necessary.
6. Paying attention to the car’s oil life
The state of the oil life in your vehicle alerts you if you need to take your car for servicing or not. You can understand this oil life by checking the mileage counter for the exact miles your vehicle has covered since your last servicing. As a female driver, you must pay rapt attention to this, by checking the engine level every week and also taking it for servicing when needed.
To check the level of oil in the engine, open the bonnet of your car, pull out the engine oil dipstick and inspect if the oil has dropped below required level.
7. Examining disturbing noise from the car
Disturbing noises do not only give female driver headaches, it causes nightmares to their male counterparts. Some of these whining and other sorts of noises might end up making you hate your experience behind the wheel. Sometimes, this issue makes some women drop their vehicles for public transport.
Luckily for you, this is a problem you can provide simple fix to with just a phone call. You can call your mechanic and explain the kind and where the noise is coming from. When you do that, the auto expert will give you the best advice on what next to do. Sometimes, the mechanic will drive down to your place to fix or take it to the workshop.
Conclusion
Driving skill has nothing to with gender. While men naturally feel it is their duty to know about some basic car fixes, women might want to focus their attention on things that actually interest them. Women have been excelling in the racing world for years now and other auto related areas. Although, we encourage people to take their vehicles to the auto experts for proper examination, servicing and repair, there are some simple fixes and inspections you can do right at home.