Tag: DIY

It is widely understood that despite a cars age, it should be serviced once every 15,000 klms/ 10,000 miles to keep them up to scratch. If there is any major problem with your car take it to a mechanic straight away as i do not recommend attempting to fix anything yourself.
Ideally to start a service, you will need a pair of car ramps and a drainage bucket, and then the first port of call would be to check the water level in the radiator. You can do this by looking at the header tank and checking that the water is in between the low and high level. If it is low, make sure that the car engines temperature is cold and then look in the top of the radiator. If it is full replace the radiator cap, then top up the radiator header tank so its on the full mark. When changing coolant, use radiator coolant only.
Also check the hoses connected to the motor are not soft and leaking, this should be shown by a powdery substance at the end of the hoses where the clip is situated. If it is not leaking, but is soft, you should replace it on your next service.
Follow this by checking on the fan belts for cuts and nicks that will develop into bigger ones resulting in fan belt breaks that could thus result in breaking down and calling the RAC.
The oil filter is one thing that should be changed every service. The main cause of wear and tear in a motor is dirt and sludge that comes with the running of the motor over a period of time. If the filter is not changed you could end up with a motor that blows smoke and is hard to start. Some car oil filters are in extremely difficult hard-to-reach areas and can be nightmares for beginners, but you can obtain a filter remover from any car parts store.
The oil itself should be of the highest quality and should be the same type as listed in your car service manual. If you do not have a manual, most auto part stores can tell you the amount of oil you need. Make sure you dont over fill capacity because too much oil is worse than not enough. Before you screw the oil filer on, smear the rubber lip with lubricant such as oil or a little grease for easy assembly and next time removal.
After changing the oil, all the air filers need to be changed every time the car is serviced if it is to run smoothly and more economically. Your petrol consumption relies on this very important point, despite the age or transmission of your vehicle.
The battery should be checked for loose ends and terminals and the battery post wipes and cleaning with a rag. Do not use any harsh cleaners, except when they are covered with green particles, then you can remove them with hot boiling water which will clean up the area and a small amount of Vaseline put around the bottom of the post, as this is where acid particles leak from.
The battery cells found under the battery caps have distilled water in them and this should just cover the top of the cells only, not be completely full. The terminals should be tightened firmly so they make good contact.
All the tyres should be checked for wear and tear, especially on the inside of the tire, and the spare checked for pressure and doors and bonnet hood should be coated in dry lube
Automatic transmission should be carried out by a transmission specialist because of the cleanliness involved, if any small particle gets inside the gearbox, it will play havoc with the gearbox. I made that mistake with a friends Kia in Poole, never again. However this should ideally be done every 30,000 klms/20,000 miles and doesnt need to be done every service.
Manual gearbox fluid should be just under the filler hole. If you take out the filler nut and you have oil pouring out all over the ground, it was obviously too full.
When checking the brakes and power steering fluid, ensure it is at the full mark and not over, and to complete the DIY service, check all lights and indicators and replace them if faulty.
After attempting this DIY service, be sure to take it next time round to an actual mechanic to make sure everything is looked over properly, but every second service, if known how, can be done quite easily yourself.
How to change a tyre
One of the most annoying things that can happen to you whilst driving is experiencing a puncture. Slow down to 5mph and pull over to a safe place away from other traffic, and if its dark, preferably near a light. Do not attempt to change a tyre yourself on the hard shoulder or any busy road, call your breakdown company like the AA or RAC to do this for you.
Ensure you have parked on level ground and remove all passengers from the car to a safe place away from any traffic.
If the tyre can be changed easily just follow these simple instructions to help.
1.Obviously make sure you car is parked on level ground with the handbrake on, with the hazard lights flashing.
2.Check that your spare tyre is suitably inflated and make sure you have a car jack, the locking wheel nut (for some cars) and a wheel brace. (All of which should be in the boot)
3.With the car still on the ground remove the hubcap or cover concealing the wheel nuts then use the wheel brace to loosen the nut holding the wheel in place by turning it in an anti-clockwise direction, for half a turn. This can be quite tricky as some nuts need all your body weight to loosen them, be careful of your back.
4.Continue to loosen the nuts by half a turn each, work on opposite ones so the left over support is even.
5.Using the car jack raise the car slowly till the weight of the wheel is high enough off the ground to get it off.
6.Finish removing all the nuts and put them somewhere safe. The wheel should be hanging and can freely be removed.
7.Lift the spare wheel onto the wheel studs, the air valve should be facing outwards
8.Replace the nuts, tightening them in the same pattern as you loosened them.
9.Slowly lower the jack and remove it, then tighten the nuts again, as much as you can. Stand on the wheel brace to make it as tight as possible, but this time in a clockwise direction.
10.Replace the wheel cover or hubcaps and youre free to go.
Changing a tyre on your Kia in Bournemouth doesnt always require calling your breakdown cover. I wouldnt recommend doing this alone for the first time, but if you are with someone else, it could be a learning opportunity, and it is always a handy skill to know should ever you get a puncture and you dont have breakdown cover.

Sealants have become quite popular nowadays for car paint protection. There is even fabric protection for the interior, rust paint protection for those that live by the sea and even paint protection film is the new thing though is quite expensive at the moment. Ok back to sealants they are known for their long lasting effect at the protection (a good quality paint protection sealant can protect the car’s paint for more than five years) and for the vast range of protective functions they perform. Paint protection sealants that have an acrylic PTFE formula can protect auto paint from weather extremes such as acid rains, solar exposure and snow. They can protect vehicles from ultraviolet radiation and also from various external agents such as bird droppings, dirt and grime and even roadside pebbles that might shoot out and hit at the car’s surface when other vehicles are driving by.

However, the aspect that has really made these car paint protection sealants famous is the fact that they are quite easy to apply. In fact, they are so easy that most people try to get them in DIY kits and apply the protection through the instructions that are mentioned on the packaging of the product. This helps them to reduce the cost of applying the paint protection down to 25% of what they would have spent had they hired a professional applicator do the job. But, if you are planning of applying these paint protection sealants yourself, you should first know their manner of working.

Here is a simplified explanation of how these sealants will work at protecting your car’s paint.

Usually, the paint protection sealants like the acrylic-PTFE sealants mentioned above will be applied in two stages through two different units. The first unit contains a solvent-based sealant while the other contains more active ingredients of the PTFE.

The car is first completely cleaned and the parts that should not get the paint protection are masked with plastic tape. The first stage of application is done with the solvent-based sealant. The car is then left to be. After some time, the solution matures on the car. When this happens, the solvent part of the sealant dries up completely. This brings the solute molecules (containing the acrylic and PTFE) closer to the pores of the car’s paint. As these solute molecules wedge closer into the pores, they scrape out all the foreign materials that have embedded into the pores. These foreign materials might be too miniscule to be seen clearly by the human eye, but when they are present on the paint of the car, they can make the whole surface look quite ungainly. Hence, the first part of the process is mostly about cleaning the surface of the car.

Now, the second unit of the sealant is applied. This contains PTFE as the active ingredient. When it is applied onto the paint, it will immediately form a chemical bond with the paint molecules. This will cause the PTFE molecules to stretch out over the surface. This chemical stretching surface is what improves the reflectivity of the car’s paint surface and makes it look much sleeker and shinier.

It must be understood here that because the car paint protection sealants work by creating chemical bonds they can last much longer. Other methods are just superficial, but car paint protection methods need just one coat because of their chemical nature and they can last much longer.
Dont forget your interior with a good fabric protection, those that live by the sea or prone to rust easily a good rust protection unit will save you money
And those that want to try out the paint protection film on the market go for it!