Auto Repair Manuals: Are They Useful?
Each new vehicle comes with its own manual, like any other new gadget or appliance. There are no instructions on how to drive your car because this is something you should have already learned before you were given your driving license. Instead, it provides explanations on how you can use the car’s different features and components, such as defrosters, turn signal lights, heaters, and many others. Although this depends on the car’s manufacturer, the owner’s manual may also include tips on responsible car ownership such as when you should replace your tires or what road rules you are expected to comply with.
However, a car owner’s manual is different from an auto repair guide or manual. The former deals with the basic information on operating and maintaining a car’s features. The latter deals with auto repair. A repair manual may also contains instruction and tips on using and maintaining your car, but it concentrates on giving comprehensive guides in system repairs and replacement of auto parts. Car repair manuals are useful when you need to fix small issues on your own or if you want to save money on car repair shop bills.
Due to the wide scope of topics that auto repair guides can deal with, it is difficult to condense everything in just a single manual. As a matter of fact, we could, in all likelihood, be able to print thousands of pages if we were to gather every single kind of repair guide one can use on a problematic car in a single manual. This is why auto repair manuals usually come in different kinds, both available in print or online.
Generic car repair manuals cover basic troubleshooting of the most commonly replaced parts like turn signals, fuses, and windshield wiper inserts. Because they are generic, they can be referred to when you are troubleshooting cars of different makes and models.
Vehicle specific repair manuals also exist like generic car repair guides. They contain the same kind of guides and instructions as the generic repair manuals. The difference is that they are especially made for certain car makes and models. They provide instructions that are tailored to certain types of cars making them suitable for more complex repairs.
If you decide to troubleshoot and repair your car by yourself, make sure to refer to the correct kind of car repair manual. Use a generic repair manual for basic repairs and a vehicle-specific repair manual if the problem is limited to your car. As long as you have the correct auto repair guide in your hands, learning and performing repairs on your car should be straightforward and effortless.
Source: http://www.topautomag.net/car/how-to-fix-your-car-without-harming-it-or-yourself.html
