The top-selling auto repair guide–400,000 copies sold–now extensively reorganized and updated
Forty-eight percent of U.S. households perform at least some automobile maintenance on their own, with women now accounting for one third of this $34 billion automotive do-it-yourself market. For new or would-be do-it-yourself mechanics, this illustrated how-to guide has long been a must and now it’s even better. A complete reorganization now puts relevant repair and maintenance information directly after each automotive system overview, making it much easier to find hands-on fix-it instructions. Author Deanna Sclar has updated systems and repair information throughout, eliminating discussions of carburetors and adding coverage of hybrid and alternative fuel vehicles. She’s also revised schedules for tune-ups and oil changes, included driving tips that can save on maintenance and repair costs, and added new advice on troubleshooting problems and determining when to call in a professional mechanic. For anyone who wants to save money on car repairs and maintenance, this book is the place to start.
Deanna Sclar (Long Beach, CA), an acclaimed auto repair expert and consumer advocate, has contributed to the Los Angeles Times and has been interviewed on the Today show, NBC Nightly News, and other television programs. 
Author Deanna Sclar has updated systems and repair information throughout, eliminating discussions of carburetors and adding coverage of hybrid and alternative fuel vehicles. She’s also revised schedules for tune-ups and oil changes, included driving tips that can save on maintenance and repair costs, and added new advice on troubleshooting problems and determining when to call in a professional mechanic. For anyone who wants to save money on car repairs and maintenance, this book is the place to start.
This book should be required reading for anyone purchasing a car. If you couple “Auto Repair for Dummies” with your car’s owner’s maunual then you really can’t go wrong. Part One of Auto Repair for Dummies is entitled “Getting to know your vehicle.” I know of no author in the world can introduce automobiles to people as well as Deanna Sclar.
In the 1980’s I bought the first edition of this book. Though certainly no master mechanic, thanks to Deanna Sclar I’ve been able to safely maintain my vehicles over the years.
Auto Repair for Dummies demystifies auto mechanics and makes it accessible to the average car owner.
I bought the first edition of this book back in 1980, before the “for Dummies” series was even established (that was in 1991, according to dummies.com). I was gratified that this title had been incorporated in the generally excellent “for Dummies” series, because this book really nails the task of bringing a total newbie up to speed with managing basic and intermediate auto maintenance. I bought it when I had just graduated from high school, had my first car, and zero funds to maintain it. Within minutes of getting this book I was changing the oil. I moved on to tune-ups (of my 1966 Dodge Dart), changing spark plugs, diagnosing brake problems, changing transmission fluid–all the basic stuff. It turned the scary experience of being out on my own with a car I depended on into one I felt I could handle with confidence. If you are looking to save some money on car maintenance or you just want to be more confident about how your vehicle works, get this.
I picked up a copy of this book (Second Edition) at Hastings. Reading through it, I have to tell you what it is not before I can say what it is.
This book is not your cars Haynes or Chilton Manual. The repairs offered in the book itself are very basic stuff such as replacing a radiator hose or a Hose Clamp. The book does give a basic explanation of car systems one by one and how they work or what they do, but that is honestly about it.
The Book is bad for giving a explanation of what a system or part is or does, then just telling you to take it to the shop instead of trying to explain how to repair even a simple problem. Also, be aware that the Second Edition of the book barely covers anything from cars that were made before around 1999, so if you have a 1980’s or older car, you are out of luck as far as the more detailed tidbits go.
The book gets 3 stars because if your a complete newbie and need to know the basics so you can understand the Owners, Haynes, Chilton or other manual, or understand what the guy at the shop is saying, it will help you a bit, but if your experienced at all (Helped your Dad or Mom fix the cars as a kid or had a mechanic in the family or area that showed you stuff) this book will likely not help you much.
One final word on this I will say is, I appreciate the time the author took in writing the book, and although this review is critical, I hope when the 3rd or 4th edition comes out, maybe they can make it more about repair, rather than what it is now. Good luck on your repairs everyone.
I love this book.
Let me start off by saying this. I know how to fill up my gas tank. I know how to pop my hood. Literally, that is the extent to my car knowledge. I don’t even know how to change a tire. My father was an auto-mechanic and never taught his children anything, he did all the work for us. I always took my car to the local quick change to get my oil change. I have relied on everyone else to take care of my vehicle for me, and I have to trust their judgment and what they ask to fix my vehicles.
I am an accountant. I have great business skills, am technologically advanced beyond my years and can type 117 words a minute. I (not bragging) am quite intelligent and had a great gpa throughout highschool and college. I just don’t know a blasted thing about vehicles in any form.
I was having problems with the battery in my truck a few weeks ago. It was just not getting enough juice to start. I would do everything I knew to do and had people come examine it to no avail. Some days it would start and other days it wouldn’t. I was on my lunch break when my truck died, again. I couldn’t get back to work. I called my supervisor (actually a very caring, understanding woman) and she sent one of my co-workers (very capable with auto-mechanics) to come take a look. He opened my hood looked at the battery and said “your clamp is loose, that’s why your not getting any power.” I looked at him dumbfounded. He then took a screwdiver, unscrewed something, and pushed a little on this clamp.
The truck started.
I finally decided that was the last straw. Something so simple had made me late and affected my job performance. If I knew even the basics about vehicles I could have gotten my truck started. But I didn’t.
I went to work in a foul mood, determined to learn auto-mechanics. I got straight on amazon and found this book and knew it was for me.
Since that time…
I will no longer let anyone change my oil. I take care of all the fluids. I can change all tires, check the gauges, coolants, anything basic. I have decided I am going to take an auto-mechanic class at the local community college. I also want to build a little garage, and start small repairs on my own vehicles. I would genuinely like to take a clunker and fix it.
You can be like this too! I knew absolutely nothing about vehicles! This manual will even teach you how to pop open your hood and fill up your gas tank. We laugh at this, but some people GENUINELY don’t know how to do this. It’s ok! We all have to start somewhere! The manual gives detailed descriptions and accurate, simple pictures of everything you can do without seeing a mechanic for a serious problem. And the book will even tell you that you may be doing something out of your league, to go see a mechanic.
Listen, your car should be your best friend. It takes you wherever you need to go and you pray it starts up every morning. Why not take care of it? Literally, it will perform if it’s taken care of. Not to mention, if you do your own small maintenance repairs starting now until the rest of your life, you have no concept of how much money you will save. Plus, it’s fun.
If you have basic skills (typing, can change a lightbulb, count to 100) but don’t know the first thing about a vehicle, this book is for you. It will spark your interest and give you a desire to learn about vehicles, teach you how to take care of them, and SAVE YOU MONEY.
I would recommend this book to anyone.
This is the best introduction to the automotive maintenance I’ve encountered, and the best For Dummies book. After consulting the Dummies texts on Web Design and calculus, I was skeptical. Like many intro books, they contain needless graphics and sidebars and are written in a conversational yet impersonal tone meant to make a difficult subject more palatable. Instead they just waste space and spread simple procedures out over several pages, making quick reference impossible.
Auto Repair for Dummies does not do this. The personal touches are not overdone. The fact that author is a woman who decided to learn how her car works to save money on maintenance and avoid getting ripped off on big repairs, and that she was an adult when she made this decision and not the proverbial tomboyish mechanic’s daughter, serves the books purpose, which is to take people who see what’s under the hood as an impenetrable forest of hoses and dohickies, and teach them the basic systems of an automobile and where those components fit in. Once taxonomy is brought into the picture, and parts are divvied up into there appropriate systems, ignition, fuel delivery, motor, transmission, cooling, exhaust, electrical, suspension, brakes and so on, the curtain is pulled away.
The section on maintenance is also fine. Although the author does not really expect much from you.
If you know nothing about cars or need a fast refresher, this is your book. Simple and easy to understand. I could see anyone picking this up and being able to complete simple jobs on their car in a few hours with the right tools.
The best thing about this book is that it explains the basics about how cars operate in a thorough manner. So if you have no knowledge about how a car works then its a great book for you. I learned a lot from reading this book, even if you don’t plan on working on your car it will help you understand what needs to be done and make sure the mechanic is treating you fairly
This book is one of the most important I have read in a long time. I really had a positive experience with it.
My wife started staying home to raise our growing family and I have had to find ways to save money and make it on one salary. The breaks were going on my car and I did NOT want to put the bill on my credit card.
A guy at Church told me that disk brakes were easy. I should do them myself. I bought this book, looked on-line for vehicle specific directions (Auto Zone has a GREAT website), bought a ratchet set and got to work.
My friend was right. I replaced brakes and rotors and bought tools and books at it cost me less than it would have cost at a facility to get the brakes and rotors done for me. Plus, I was equipped to do it again and again.
This brings me to my first criticism of this book. She doesn’t recommend you do your own brakes; even disks. That is NONSENSE. I am deducting one star for this.
Anyway, what reading the book did give me was a pretty good knowledge of how a car worked.
Her directions on how to change oil are excellent. In my own learning curve, I did brakes before I changed oil. You should DEFINITELY change the oil and do the air filter first to build your confidence and see if you enjoy working on the car to begin with.
After doing my own brakes with success, doing my own oil, changing my air filter, and changing the PCV (EASY) I was HOOKED. My car was handling better than it had when I first bought it and I felt like the man!
Then, the check engine light came on on my mom’s 2001 Suburu Forrester. The car was idling very roughly and even blowing some white smoke.
The car’s warranty had JUST expired. To make matters worse, I had read online that the car was prone to head gasket problems, and when I plugged the symptoms and make and model into google I came up with a ton of very bad scenarios.
So, I drove her car down to Auto Zone and had them check the engine with the computer. This is a FREE service (go AUTO ZONE!) The guy at Auto Zone said the computer told him the problem was in cylinder three. I asked if this meant a possible head gasket problem and he shook his head and said, “Look; do cheap work first to eliminate simple possible causes. Only move on to the expensive fussy stuff AFTER you check the cheap and obvious. For now, change the plugs and wires and see what happens.”
I had never done this before on any vehicle.
In the interim I bought the service manual for my mother’s car, and found it VERY helpful, BUT, the directions on how to change plugs and wires are so thorough in this book that I barely needed the manual.
So, I got out my new ratchet set and got to work. With the help of this EXCELLENT book the work was doable if not easy. (Luckily my set came with a NICE spark plug socket!)
I got the job done, and at the same time did an oil change and checked the PCV. I unplugged and removed the battery to reset the computer (to get rid of the check engine light) and to help me get at the plugs (its a little tight in there).
Once the job was finished (it took me about 2 hours…. first timer!) I had mom take it out for a test drive.
She said it hadn’t run better… ever.
The idle was smooth, all the roughness had disappeared. When I “read” the spark plugs (this book makes it EASY as there is a detailed guide on how to read plugs in the spark plugs chapter) it became clear that because mom only does short mileage runs in town for low mileage the plug in that third cylinder had become carbon fouled. The plugs were all fouled to some extent, but the one in the third cylinder was NASTY.
By now you can see what this book has done for me.
The author takes time to avoid potential law suits. She doesn’t recommend you do your own shocks and struts (you can hurt yourself and need a strut compressor… you can get one here at Amazon) she doesn’t recommend you do your own brakes (why?) she doesn’t cover a lot of stuff.
BUT, if you read the book you will get a real good idea of how stuff works, get good advice about purchasing tools, learn that you can and should do your own oil, your own plugs, your own basic preventive maintenance, and you will learn how to speak to your mechanic in an educated manner.
I have gone a little crazy. I got the service manuals for every vehicle in the household and have read them for fun. I have done plugs, wires, brakes, pcv’s, oil changes, chasis lubes on all the vehicles, and am about to do shocks and struts on one. I keep getting calls from the dealer saying (on my car with 100,000 miles and no warrantee) to bring it in for scheduled maintenance. Sorry buddy! My Chilton’s manual has a more aggressive preventive maintenance schedule and I do all the work myself. I will keep the at least $300.00 bucks you would charge thank you. I have saved 1000s of dollars since I read this book.
I’ve also had FUN.
Well worth the purchase.
This review is specific to the Kindle edition.
Many of the diagrams are cut off when viewed in the e-book edition. It seems like little effort was spent when translating this into an e-book. It would have been easy to put the diagrams sideways on a separate page, or at least scale them to fit, but neither was done.