Everything you need to know about your first car. Welcome to the wonderful world of wheels! We know that every single person dreams of owning a car. It’s understandable: a car epitomises independence. Success. Stature. Mobility. The freedom to go your own way. But we also know that the decision to purchase a car can be fraught with challenges. What car do you buy? What can you afford? What about the servicing requirements? What safety features should you look out for? What about safety out on the road? These and many other important questions plague your mind. First Gear aims to address all these topics and many other essential issues associated with car ownership. We have canvassed the opinions of the world’s leading authorities and this book aims to give you independent, authoritative and utterly essential advice. We want to take the mystery and malaise out of car ownership, and replace it with easy to follow advice and tips… so that your road to car ownership isn’t filled with potholes! We trust that it will provide you with a stress-free introduction to the world of wheels. Enjoy your first car; you’ve worked hard for it!

1. CHAPTER 9:
Tech talk
You don’t need to be a mechanic or a
mechanical engineer in order to keep your
hot hatch or snazzy sedan in tip-top
running condition. But you do need to
understand a couple of technical basics…
The first is this: you simply must have invalidated. Which you don’t want. It’s
your car serviced regularly – much like also a good idea to go to an authorised
your scheduled dental appointment; it’s dealer because they have all the
silly to allow your car to miss a service. necessary equipment to work on your car.
Your car is a big investment and it makes Jill learnt this the hard way: she
sense to treat it with tender loving care. spotted a bargain basement deal on a
So check the owner’s manual, which will service – what a nightmare that turned
specify servicing intervals – and then out to be. Yes, the service cost next to
stick to them. Remember, it’s also much nothing – but she ended up having
cheaper in the long run to maintain your endless hassles with her car because the
car properly rather than to wait for it to workmanship was substandard.
break, and then fix it. In days gone by, cars were very simple
While your car is under warranty, you and no complex equipment was needed.
must take it to an authorised dealer. That couldn’t be further from the truth
Taking it elsewhere is just plain nuts, today. For example, your car’s engine is
because then your warranty will be quite likely controlled by an Electronic
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2. Also, when you do business with an take charge of some basic bits and pieces
authorised dealer, you know that certain too: there are some rudimentary duties
standards are maintained. Notes Joseph that you can perform to ensure that your
Cueter, operations manager for Ford’s car operates efficiently.
Customer Service Division, Asia Pacific
and Africa: “Ford factory trained Engine
technicians know your Ford vehicle best Popping open the bonnet or hood will
and can advise you on how to protect often tell you… exactly nothing! That’s
and care for your car with regularly because, with many modern cars, the
scheduled maintenance.” engine is obscured by plastic covers
But you cannot relinquish all which prevent you from tampering with
responsibility to the dealer. You need to technical components.
If you run an engine without oil,
it can seize – which, in
non-technical terms, means it
literally curls up and dies!
Control Unit (or ECU) and, if the engine
is not running optimally, the dealer may
need to hook up sophisticated diagnos-
tics equipment and run specialised
software in order to fix the problem.
It makes sense to service via an
authorised dealer as this will boost the
value of your car when the time comes
to sell. It is common knowledge that the
resale value of your car can be improved
if you have it serviced at an authorised
dealer and your service book is stamped.
Remember to check that the dealer has
not forgotten to stamp your book!
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3. engine! If you run an engine without oil, Tyres
it can seize – which, in non-technical Don’t forget those bits of black rubber!
terms, means it literally curls up and The tyres on your car are safety critical
dies! items. So it’s really important to keep
Check the radiator coolant level in the them in peak condition.
plastic reservoir – it should be between This means sticking to the correct tyre
the high and low marks. You should pressures and, once again, this will be
never ever check your coolant level stipulated in the owner’s manual and/or
when the radiator is hot (this could lead on the inside of the door. Look for
to nasty burns). This is one of the most uneven tyre wear and nails in the tread.
?
common vehicle-related accidents; it Inspect the sidewall for cuts and
happens around the world almost on a bubbles.
daily basis, simply because car owners In the tyre tread you will find places
are unaware of the associated dangers. where there is a small rubber bridge
It is vitally important that you heed this – this is called a tyre tread indicator.
advice. When this segment of rubber is the
same depth as the tread you should
5
Association (NRMA) in Australia
But recommends that you check the oil
Some age-old snippets of advice are nothing
there level while your car is parked on a level more than maintenance myths. Here are five
are some surface. Start the engine, let it run for a
things you short while, and then turn it off. While
common fallacies:
should check, your engine’s still warm, remove the
and the two most important items are dipstick, and wipe it clean with a lint- • You should change your car’s oil every • The number listed on the sidewall of your
oil and water levels. Your car’s engine free rag. The dipstick is normally pretty three months. This isn’t necessary. Synthetic tyre is the recommended tyre pressure.
simply cannot survive without these easy to find. It’s that long, flexible rod oils don’t break down so rapidly. Check your False! In most cases, this is actually the maxi-
two liquids. It’s also a good idea to normally near the front of the engine owner’s manual and be guided by its mum pressure allowed for that tyre. The rec-
check the level of windscreen washer compartment – and it often has an recommendations ommended pressure is usually listed on the
fluid as well as the brake and power orange hoop at the top. Be careful to • You need to let your vehicle engine warm inside door panel – check your owner’s manual
steering fluid. Don’t know where to find reinsert the dipstick fully, otherwise up in cold weather. Not true. The engine to be sure
these? All is revealed in your owner’s you’ll get a false reading. warms up while you drive. Running your car any • Buy fuel in the morning and you’ll save
manual. If you read the manual and Remove the dipstick again and check longer beforehand is just a waste of fuel money. When someone tells you to fill up in
you’re still clueless as to their location, the oil level. If it’s reading low, top up the morning when fuel is coolest and most
• Premium fuel is a treat for your car. Wrong!
stick your pride in your pocket and pop your oil using the correct grade as Unless your vehicle is specifically tailored to dense (because fuel is sold by volume), just tell
over to the dealer, who will explain all. recommended by the vehicle take advantage of the higher octane level in them they’re talking nonsense. The belief was
But firstly the all-important oil. The manufacturer. Very important: if no oil the fuel, you’re wasting your money. Use what you would get more fuel for your buck. But fuel
National Roads and Motorists’ shows on the dipstick, do NOT run your is recommended in your owner’s manual is housed in underground, non-metallic tanks
and they aren’t that sensitive to sunlight
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4. replace the tyre. Legal requirements Lights pedal spongy (this means the brake
differ from country to country but, Check that all your lights work properly. pedal is not solid when depressed, but
according to the Automobile Association Get a friend to stand outside your car bounces softly)? Does the car tend to
(AA) in the U.K., most countries require a and help you check your park lights, high pull to one side under braking? Can you
minimum tread depth of 1.6 mm. It and low beams, indicators, brake lights hear an unusual grinding sound?
recommends a minimum of 2 mm for and fog lights. Unless you have some If the answer to any of these questions
road safety reasons. It is extremely mechanical ability, do not attempt to is yes, go to the dealer or an approved
important to have enough tread on your replace faulty globes or bulbs (it’s a brake fitment centre. And ask them to
tyres: without enough tread, tyres cannot tricky job; you could end up damaging sort it out now!
do their jobs. the expensive plastic clips that form part
Remember to always check the infla- of the lights, for instance). Shock absorbers
tion of your spare tyre. We recommend These nifty devices (which you cannot
that you keep an emergency tyre sealant Windscreen and wiper blades see unless you look under the wheel
– it’s often referred to as a “tyre bomb” If your windscreen is chipped – do not arch) are part of the suspension. They
canister – in your boot. This handy tyre leave it. It’s very important that you have work in conjunction with the wheel
sealant inflator re-inflates a flat tyre in a maximum visibility on the road. spring. They are responsible for the road
minute or two. It cannot be used for a Clean the wiper blades with a rag holding and handling characteristics of
sidewall puncture (this is a puncture in dipped in household detergent regularly. your car so they’re also pretty important
the side of the tyre). It’s not vitally important to use fancy to your car’s (and your!) wellbeing.
If your tyres show uneven wear pat- windshield washer fluid – a few drops of You cannot replace or repair the
terns, get the wheel alignment checked. dishwasher detergent mixed with water shocks yourself; this must be done by
will do the job perfectly. If, in wet the dealer. But you can certainly check if
weather, your wiper blades leave lines they’re functioning optimally. The best
and do not clean the windscreen way of doing this is by getting a strong
properly, this means it’s time to change person to push down independently on
them. These are readily available from each corner of the car and then suddenly
your local spares shop. They will most release the downward pressure. The car
probably even help you fit them – it’s a should lift to its normal ride height
five-minute job. So you don’t need to go position at a uniform rate – if it bobs up
to the dealer and pay for this service. and down a few times, chances are good
that your shocks are faulty.
Brakes
The brakes are seriously important
components! That’s because they can
keep you from becoming another road
statistic! So, if you suspect you may have
a problem with your brakes, attend to
this immediately.
There are many things that impact on
good braking, and firstly you need to
understand what is wrong. Is the brake
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