Maintenance in Autos

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Latest news · Maintenance

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GuideDean Shaw3 Oct 20267 min

The spark plug job is easy until the last quarter turn

Gapping, torque and the hand-start habit that keep a simple plug change from ending with a stripped aluminum head and a tow truck.

What Actually Kills a Truck Before 300,000 Miles

The engine is rarely the problem. Frames, fluids and the parts nobody thinks about twice are what decide whether your truck sees 300k.

GuideDean Shaw23 Sept 20266 min

Headlights, Wipers and the Cabin Filter in One Afternoon

Three jobs a shop charges real money for, all doable in your driveway with a 10mm socket, a pair of gloves and about an hour.

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Plan a cook for eight people

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GuideDean Shaw23 Sept 20266 min

Change Your Own Brake Pads Before Lunch on Saturday

Front pads on a normal car take about ninety minutes, two jack stands and one tool most guys don't own yet. What goes wrong, and how to avoid it.

Delicious.com — Nine thousand recipes and a plan for tonight

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6 min read

Rotate your tires at home and read what the tread tells you

An hour in the driveway twice a year buys you thousands of extra miles and an early warning on your alignment, your shocks and your right foot.

Poll

Where does your phone charge overnight?

GuideDean Shaw23 Sept 20266 min

The Saturday morning truck detail, start to finish

Five hours, one driveway, and an order of operations that keeps you from scratching the paint you just cleaned.

GuideDean Shaw22 Sept 20266 min

Five car jobs worth learning before you pay someone else

Basic maintenance most drivers outsource, what each one actually takes, and the mistakes that turn a twenty-minute job into a tow truck.

Names.com — The name is the first thing you sell

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GuideDean Shaw22 Sept 20266 min

Jump a dead battery without wrecking either car

The clamp order, the one connection everybody gets wrong, and why a twenty-minute drive home doesn't actually recharge anything.

Quiz

Does your wardrobe actually fit you?

Five questions, honestly answered, and a plan for the next fortnight.

GuideDean Shaw22 Sept 20265 min

The used cars still worth buying and how to spot one

Boring, high-volume, mechanically simple and four to eight years old. That profile still beats almost anything clever on the lot.

GuideDean Shaw22 Sept 20266 min

What should actually be in your boot from November to March

Tires do most of the work, but the kit behind the parcel shelf is what gets you home when the road wins.

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Build me a 30-day training plan around two sessions a week

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GuideDean Shaw22 Sept 20266 min

The car servicing that can't wait, and the kind that can

Brake fluid, coolant and a timing belt will strand you or bankrupt a repair bill. A dirty cabin filter won't. Know which is which.

CancerDefying.com — The research, protocols and reading in one place

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GuideDean Shaw22 Sept 20266 min

Twenty minutes with the engine off tells you most of it

Before you turn the key on a used car, the metal, the tires and the carpet have already told you what kind of life it had.

Poll

What was your first ever job?

GuideDean Shaw22 Sept 20266 min

What it really takes to get a car past 250,000 miles

Most cars die of neglected fluids and small leaks, not worn-out engines. The schedule that prevents it's shorter than you think.

The Ten Minutes Before You Start a Chainsaw After a Storm

Chaps, chain tension, a clean air filter and fresh fuel. The checks that keep a cleanup Saturday from ending in the emergency room.

Coconut.com — Tell us when. We find where the sun is.

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GuideWoodworkingWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Your fingers go white in the cold and that's the tool talking

Vibration white finger creeps up on weekend builders too, and by the time you notice it, most of the damage is already permanent.

Quiz

Is your money actually in order?

Six questions. No email required, no sales pitch at the end.

Style6 min

Make a good pair of shoes last ten years

Tools & Organizing6 min

The 20 Tools Every Homeowner Needs and What to Pay for Each

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Rewrite my CV so it actually gets read

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GuideHealthCal Brennan23 Sept 20265 min

Cold Showers Do Most of What a Cold Plunge Does

A tub with a chiller costs thousands and needs maintenance. Your shower is already plumbed. The difference is smaller than the sales page says.

GermProof.com — An invisible germ barrier on your skin for hours

PartnerGermProof.com

Country Style6 min read

Reproofing a waxed jacket without ruining it

A tin of dressing, a warm room and two hours of patience will get another decade out of a jacket most people replace far too early.

Poll

How often do you see your closest friends?

Older articles

Maintenance in Autos

Latest news · Maintenance

The spark plug job is easy until the last quarter turn

The Classic Cars Still Cheap Enough to Buy This Year

Start With a Weekend Project, Not a Barn Find

Find the Rust Before It Finds Your Brake Lines

Pull Your Own Check Engine Code in Ten Minutes

Replacing a Car Battery Without Waking Every Warning Light

What Actually Kills a Truck Before 300,000 Miles

Headlights, Wipers and the Cabin Filter in One Afternoon

Change Your Own Brake Pads Before Lunch on Saturday

Rotate your tires at home and read what the tread tells you

The Saturday morning truck detail, start to finish

Five car jobs worth learning before you pay someone else

Jump a dead battery without wrecking either car

The used cars still worth buying and how to spot one

What should actually be in your boot from November to March

The car servicing that can't wait, and the kind that can

Twenty minutes with the engine off tells you most of it

What it really takes to get a car past 250,000 miles

The Ten Minutes Before You Start a Chainsaw After a Storm

Your fingers go white in the cold and that's the tool talking

Make a good pair of shoes last ten years

The 20 Tools Every Homeowner Needs and What to Pay for Each

Cold Showers Do Most of What a Cold Plunge Does

Reproofing a waxed jacket without ruining it