There are lots of auto repairs and maintenance you can do yourself, but there's nothing more satisfying to an entry level DIY mechanic than performing your own oil change. It's easy to do on even the most sophisticated cars, and every gas or diesel engine needs an oil change on a regular basis. Changing your own oil really is a great way to start down the road of home auto repair. If you've never changed your own oil, try it out. You'll feel satisfied and accomplished when it's done, and you'll only use up an hour or two of your weekend!

I recently wrote about common causes of engine overheating and received a great tip from a reader. Allan wrote to share this common overheating issue:

Many modern vehicles use solid state relays instead of the electro-mechanical ones of the past. The fans they control draw a huge amount of current and the connectors which plug into the solid state felays to power these high current fans fail over time. The connectors get to HOT the pins melt which causes high resistance and finally an open circuit and the fan shuts down. This is so common the dealerships actually sell the connectors to be spliced onto the wiring harness with butt connectors without having to replace the entire harness. This is almost unheard of except that it has become so common the manufacturers had to do something about it. If you have an electric fan problem be SURE to pull off the connector going to the solid state relay and look INSIDE of the connector and smell it(the inside). It will smell burnt and look like charcoal if it is bad. You can't tell by looking at the outside surface. You MUST pull it OFF and look and smell on the INSIDE.

Having a community of repair people sharing their experience means no stone goes unturned in diagnosing your car or truck's problems. Thanks for the tip, Allan!

If you have an overheating problem, or if your engine just seems to be running hot, you should check out this quick list of things that can cause your engine to build up excessive heat. It won't solve all of your cooling problems, but knowing the most common overheating causes could help you diagnose your hot engine problem more quickly, and save you money.

If your car is having starting problems, or you have a sudden bout of no-startedness, you should have a look at this No-Start Troubleshooting Checklist. It could really help you narrow down the problem if your car down't start, and can save you some serious cash. It's always worth taking the time to see if you can diagnose or troubleshoot a problem before you have it looked at by a pro. If nothing else, it will leave you a little more educated and prepared for the bill.