Your car is fantastic to use until the day that some indicator light goes on. You rummage through your glove compartment to find the owner’s manual and all it tells you is you need to take it into a mechanic.
Basically, the manual is not very helpful.
Maybe you want to feel like you understand your car better. Or you may be wary of mechanics who try to convince you of more work than actually needs to be done. Whatever your reason, you want to know how to diagnose your car’s issues.
How to Diagnose Your Car
Without attending mechanical classes, you can find out what is wrong with your car. You will need a car health monitor and yourself to help you properly diagnose your car problems.
Car Health Monitor
Most people don’t realize that they don’t have to go to a mechanic to run a diagnostic test on your car. In fact, those tests could cost over $100. Then, you would still have to pay for any repairs. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a tool that would tell you exactly what’s wrong?
A car health monitor is the same as an OBD2 scanner, and it will tell you important information about your car and especially notify you when you need to take your car in for repair.
Our car health monitor is easy to install and is unobtrusive so people hardly notice that it’s there. It plugs into your OBD2 Link connector and once you download the ZUS app, the Smart Vehicle Health Monitor will start running a diagnostic. Within a few moments, you’ll have a diagnosis of any current car problems as well as key issues that could turn into potential problems in the future.
Your Senses
Your car health monitor works, but for those who are not used to using your app, you also have some pretty big tools at your disposal: your eyes, ears, and nose!
Take a Look at Your Car
Notice the indicator lights on your dashboard? Never ignore these lights! Use these as a signal to check your app or otherwise take a look at your car. Small repairs prevent bigger repairs down the road.
You should also look at your tires regularly to make sure they have tread depth. You also could install a tire pressure monitor if you don’t trust your eyes.
You should also look for drips or puddles. Leaks are usually symptoms of big problems, so don’t ignore any puddles.
Listen to Your Car
You may love blasting your music or paying attention to the latest episode on your favorite podcast, but make sure you also pay attention to the sounds your car is making. Clunking, creaking, squealing, or grinding are all signs that your car may need a little more attention. “The squeaky wheel gets the oil” is a saying for good reason! So next time you’re driving, turn down the volume and let your car do some talking for a change.
Follow Your Nose
This one is pretty easy and typically is the one that most people notice. You may hang an air freshener, but these smells are not going to be cured by a pine tree scent.
If you’re smelling smoke, exhaust or fuel, it’s definitely time to check and see if you have a leak or other issue. These smells are typically not a good sign and can definitely make you want to open your windows even on a cold wintery morning. Pay attention to when the smell is strongest – is it when you’re braking? You may be causing your brakes to overheat.
Figuring out what is wrong with your car isn’t as difficult as many would make you believe, you can notice the issues on your car or use a car health monitor to help you pinpoint the problems. You may not be able to fix all the problems, but diagnosing the issues can save you time and money.
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