Do it Yourself Car Maintenance Tips from a Florida Kia Dealer

Jun 3, 2013

Even if you aren’t a die-hard do it yourself type, there are a number of basic car maintenance tasks that you can probably do yourself. When you do your own car maintenance, you can save some money and not have to worry about finding a mechanic available when it works for your busy schedule. For maintenance tasks that are too difficult for you to manage on your own, you can always call your Florida Kia service department and schedule an appointment. Here are some tips for tasks you can probably do on your own:

Common Car Maintenance People Can Often Do Themselves

There are some car maintenance tasks that you can do with little or no experience if you take the time to review the instructions or even a “how to” video online. Here is a short list of possible projects you could do yourself to save money and gain car maintenance experience:

Replacing Windshield Wipers – If the rubber pieces on your windshield wipers are starting to show wear and tear, or the wipers are not keeping your windshield clear when it rains or snows, it is time to replace the wipers. Purchase the correct wipers for your car, and then follow the instructions to replace them.

Check Tire Pressure – if you have a vehicle that doesn’t tell you what your tire pressure is in the dashboard information center, then get a tire gauge. You can check the pressure in your tires whenever it seems low and add air as necessary.

Replacing Car Battery – all car batteries eventually need to be replaced. You can disconnect and remove the old battery and just slide a new one into position and reconnect. Just pay attention to disconnect and reconnect in the proper order: remove negative battery cable first when taking out the old battery and when you reconnect the new battery, start with the positive cable.

Be Prepared with a Car Maintenance Kit

If you plan to start doing some of your own car maintenance, you should put together a car maintenance kit so you have the necessary supplies when you need them. It’s very frustrating to start a project only to discover you need to go to the auto parts supply store before you can do the work.

Here’s a list of items to keep in your car maintenance kit, so you are ready for most do-it-yourself jobs you might come across: