I fixed my car today!

[disneysteve]

Ok, that may not sound like a big deal to some of you but just accept the fact that I am not Mr. Handyman. I'm not the guy with the garage full of tools who spends hours tinkering, taking apart, rebuilding and fixing things. I'm the other guy, the one who pulls out a Premier Visa card and pays others to do that stuff for me. Every once in a while, however, the opportunity arises for me to do some work around the house or take care of something on the car and I must admit when I successfully accomplish the task at hand, it is very satisfying.

So anyway, I took my car in for service the other day. It had an oil leak and ended up needing some fairly significant work. I picked it up yesterday morning and drove home - no problem. Last night, we were on our way to meet friends to see a show and something starts banging around under the hood, the check engine light came on and the car starts smoking. I pull into a parking lot and take a quick look and see a hose is off. It was dark, we were running late and I was dressed for the theater so I wasn't about to do anything else then. We called a friend who picked us up and abandoned the car for the night.

I went back this morning and brought along my tools. Sure enough, the hose was off and I could see that a hose clamp was missing. It must have snapped and that's what caused the hose to pop off. Fortunately, the parking lot in which I had ditched the car was a KMart lot so we went into the store, bought a pack of hose clamps, went back out and I installed the new clamp and everything seems to be just fine. Certainly not a complex repair or one requiring any advance training but the simple fact that I was able to identify and fix the problem was satisfying.

I still need to take the car back to the shop because I want them to make sure that nothing else is wrong and they need to reset the Check Engine sensor since the light is still on but at least I can drive the car now.

So I guess the moral of the story is to never underestimate your own abilities. Even when you don't think you know what you're doing, sometimes just a simple task is needed and you can handle a job yourself rather than paying someone else to do it. In this situation, I could easily have gone the route of calling a tow truck and having the car towed to the mechanic for them to make the repair, costing me time and money that I avoided with a $1.99 part from KMart.

[greenskeeper]

Good job!

If you disconnect the battery for 10 min or so and reconnect it should clear the check engine light.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by greenskeeper

If you disconnect the battery for 10 min or so and reconnect it should clear the check engine light.

Thanks. I may do that, but I'm still going to have the mechanic take a peek because I want to make sure nothing else got messed up when that hose blew off.

[rob62521]

Way to go, Disney Steve!

[creditcardfree]

Great job!!

I have done quite a few home repairs that I probably wouldn't have attempted if DH was home all in the name of saving money. I have replaced a garbage disposal and installed new light fixtures, including a ceiling fan. I'm also very handy with a paint brush. I've also reclamped a hose on the washing machine as well. I haven't done much under the hood repairs...yet!

[cypher1]

Congratulations. You could always pull out the fuse to radio instead of disconnecting battery and waiting. I give anyone props for actually taking the time to look underneath hood for anything to stick out. And you were able to fix it. Next thing you know you'll be replacing the timing belt or dropping the transmission

[Gina23]

Congrats!

I know the feeling... I just fixed my dishwasher Saturday and saved $279 bucks. Love it!

[bjl584]

Originally Posted by greenskeeper

Good job!

If you disconnect the battery for 10 min or so and reconnect it should clear the check engine light.

Disconnecting the battery will shut the light off, but it won't clear the code. It will still show up on a ODB II scan. It will have to be cleared by a mechanic.

Good job on the fix Steve.

[feh]

I've always done my own oil changes, but used to leave anything more complicated to mechanics.

That is, until I decided to restore a car about 10 years ago. In order to keep the costs from skyrocketing, I did most of the work myself. With the right attitude, some simple tools and the internet as an information source, I pretty much took apart and reassembled a car in my garage.

It was a liberating experience, and now whenever there is some task that needs to be done (whether automotive or something else around the house), I ask myself if I can do it myself, rather than hiring somebody to do it.

[GREENBACK]

A lot of things under the hood aren't that technically difficult to do and there's a wealth of information available on the internet on how to do most things. You can sometimes save a chunk of cash if you're willing to get your hands a little dirty. I replaced a sideview mirror on my truck last year with an aftermarket mirror purchased over the internet. Took an hour or so to replace and my total cost was about $80. The shop wanted $250!!! No brainer there.

[NewBeginnings]

Congrats

[tulog]

If all you want to do is clear a code, you don't need a mechanic. You just need a code reader. Use the mechanic's fee to buy your own code reader, then use it yourself whenever you need it.

[humandraydel]

I agree with others - you'd be surprised what you can do yourself (if you are willing to live through the pain and frustration!) In the last 3 months I have had to change an ignition coil 3 times! Sounds intimidating, huh? Well, it only takes about 5 minutes to change and I'm sure I've saved several hundred dollars in labor costs by doing it myself.

[nck4857]

Also, if there is an Autozone near you, they can diagnose and give you a printout of what needs fixed based on what code shows and they do it for free. I've saved probably thousands of dollars doing everything myself instead of paying mechanics ridiculous rates.

[bjl584]

Originally Posted by nck4857

Also, if there is an Autozone near you, they can diagnose and give you a printout of what needs fixed based on what code shows and they do it for free. I've saved probably thousands of dollars doing everything myself instead of paying mechanics ridiculous rates.

Autozone can give you a baseline code. To get a more detailed explaination of what's wrong you need a better code reader. You can buy one for around $125 or you can have a mechanic do it.

[emanon1501]

Originally Posted by bjl584

Autozone can give you a baseline code. To get a more detailed explaination of what's wrong you need a better code reader. You can buy one for around $125 or you can have a mechanic do it.

True, but you can lookup the codes via internet.

[bjl584]

Originally Posted by emanon1501

True, but you can lookup the codes via internet.

But it will only give you a general error. Something like "fuel system malfunction." But that could indicate one of up to 6 seperate failed components linked to the fuel system. You need a more advanced OBDII reader to diagnose a specific issue.

[maat55]

I hope you did not have much trouble getting your hands clean.

[snafu]

Yahoo big cheer for DS. I think it's great that you were willing to open the hood and see if you could do the repair! We picked up the Reader's Digest Fix It book at one of the charity book sales and it's saved us a bundle of time, aggravation and money. So many appliances are easily fixed but getting the repair guy and waiting for the call and finding it needs a 2nd call etc make it easier to just replace UNLESS you're willing to try DIY. The book walks you through the process giving you confidence to fix it.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by snafu

We picked up the Reader's Digest Fix It book at one of the charity book sales and it's saved us a bundle of time, aggravation and money.

YouTube is a priceless source of DIY information. You can find step by step videos on how to fix virtually anything. Before I did some drywall repair a couple of weeks ago, I watched a video on that. I also pulled one up on fixing our leaky faucet. There are tons of cooking videos, too, if you aren't sure how to do something or want to learn a new technique. And if you have a smartphone or tablet, you can watch the video right on sight where you are working.