I’ve been doing a lot of stuff with our vehicles myself that I hired out in years past. It has saved me thousands of dollars now.
Biggest example is oil changes. There is a massive markup on them at dealerships and the fast lube places. Do your own and you’ll save 30% or more. All it takes is a good toolkit, an oil pan, and a funnel to put fluids in. You can use the empty jub for the discarded oil. I keep a couple extra empty washer fluid jugs around for oil just in case. An oil change for my truck is at least $250. I can do it for $75 using premium synthetic and a good filter. I save over $1,000/yr on oil changes on the three vehicles in our home.
A garage wanted over $1,000 to do all the bearing hubs on my wife’s van. Did it myself for about $220 in parts. Would have cost me over $1,000 to have her brakes done. Did the pads and rotors all around myself for about $300 in good parts.
The dealership wanted $1,200 for step-side nerf bars for my truck. I need them so my hobbit of a wife can get into the vehicle without a step stool. Got them off Amazon for $310 shipped and am putting them on myself Wednesday evening. I’ll post pics. I need to spray the mounts with extra coats of Rustoleum first as they are steel and I’m not satisfied with the factory coatings. Once they are dry the bars go on.
I’m out about $500 in tools now. That includes a very good socket and wrench set, two safety stands, oil change ramps, a one tonne floor jack, oil filter tools, a breaker bar, and a torque wrench with sockets for standard tire sizes. Oh, and an electric impact wrench. Not bad at all. This will all cost more in the U.S. right now because this all comes from China so you guys have a 145% markup that I don’t have.
For those who are scared to give this a shot, I was too at the start. Look for a channel on YouTube called ChrisFix. The guy is annoyingly cheerful, but this videos are top shelf for making complicated jobs not scary at all. Highly recommend.
I’m not allowed to work on my car on the property by the manager. If I get in my new place I doubt they will allow me either. If I had a place to do oil changes and I knew I would be there a few years I might invest in ramps and tools. I know how to change oil, you just put a container under the oil pan and unscrew the oil plug. When I tried to change the oil filter on my Cadillac I couldn’t get it off, it was a bad angle and I couldn’t get the tools in.
When I was 17 and had my first car I would change the spark plugs and change the distributer cap and replace the thermostat and some other things. I had to, I was making $2.65 an hour and I didn’t have the money for repairs or tune ups.
The camper and van life crowd regularly change fluids and do repairs in department store parking lots…
Kevin is a fellow Albertan and he lives full-time in his camper. It’s not uncommon for him to drop the oil or coolant in his truck in a Walmart or Autozone parking lot.
No, it is generally not allowed to change your oil in a Walmart parking lot.Walmart’s parking lot policies explicitly prohibit vehicle repairs, including oil changes. While some minor repairs like tire changes might be tolerated if they don’t obstruct traffic, changing oil is generally considered a more extensive repair that is not permitted. Walmart offers oil change services at their Walmart Auto Care Centers, where you can drop off your car and have their technicians change the oil while you shop, according to Walmart.
My parents lucked out on having a son that is a mechanical genius and can fix any issues with a car. He learned it mostly through YouTube and our grandfather who served in the Navy during Vietnam and fix aircraft. Then became a mechanic. My brother now is a welder, mechanic, and heavy equipment operator and is indispensable at his work.
So, I’ve learned from him a lot about cars. I’ve forgotten so much, too, but it’s nice to have a brother that can fix everything.
I took some automotive classes in college. I used to change my brakes, but I’m retired from that game. I commend anyone who works on their vehicles. It’s work. Today I put together a bath chair for my mom that’s the extent of me working in mechanics. Good things.
