Car Repair - Avoiding a Large Bill

Visions of a large car repair bill loom up in front of you and you wonder how you're going to come up with the money for an unexpected bill. Before you hit the panic button there are a few things you can do to assess your situation and decide how bad your situation is.

It's every driver's worst fear. You get into your car; all set to go to work or pick up the kids from school and your car won't start. First off the most common reason your car won't start is usually the battery. When you turn the key do you hear any noise? Any clicking sounds? If your car is not turning over at all it can be the battery. Your radio will likely still come on even with a dead radio because it is getting its source of power from your alternator so don't let a live radio fool you into thinking your battery is still good. Take a look at your battery. Sometimes it's a bad connection or even battery corrosion and not a bad battery requiring car repair at all. Check the terminals. If they wiggle you may be able to tighten them up and get your connection back.

If this doesn't fix your problem, take a look at terminal connections. If you see a fuzzy, green powder substance around the connection points and your battery, it may be corrosion that is keeping your connection weak. Being careful to avoid skin contact with the corrosive powder, take the terminal connections off and clean off the corrosion. If you have a wire brush to brush it away that is idea but if you don't you may be able to use something as simple as cola. The acid in your cola drink will eat away at what's eating your car and you can dry it off after a few minutes and reconnect your terminals. If your car battery still wont turn over you may need to get a jump start.

Even if your battery starts after a jump, don't become complacent. Have your battery tested to see if it's weak or old and replace it accordingly. Colder weather will make a weak or old battery even more unreliable and this is a good time to take the warning and replace a worn out battery.

This is the simplest car repair you can do and you can do it yourself or take it to any car repair shop and have them do it for you. It's usually relatively cheap to have someone do it for you, and it's a lot less hassle than doing it your self.