A failing fuel pump shows itself through a pattern of fuel starvation: the engine cranks longer than usual before starting, it sputters or loses power when you ask for speed, it surges at a steady cruise, or it stalls and refuses to restart until it has sat for a while. You may also hear a
An airbag light that stays on means the car has found a fault in its airbag system, also called the SRS, and it has switched part or all of that system off to be safe. Your car will still drive perfectly normally, but in a crash the airbags may not deploy, or may deploy in
The TPMS light means one or more of your tires has dropped well below its correct pressure, usually by a quarter or more. TPMS stands for tire pressure monitoring system, and the light looks like a horseshoe shape with an exclamation mark inside. In most cases the fix is simple: check all four tires with
A standard wheel alignment costs 80 to 150 dollars at most independent shops and tire stores in the United States. That price covers a two wheel, front end alignment on a typical car. A four wheel alignment, which most modern cars need because their rear wheels are adjustable too, usually runs 150 to 250 dollars.
For most cars, a timing belt replacement costs between 500 and 1,100 dollars all in at an independent shop. The belt itself is a cheap part, often under 60 dollars. What you are paying for is labor: the mechanic has to strip the front of the engine to reach it, a job that takes three
You can clean foggy headlights at home in about an hour, and in most cases you do not need new lights. The cloudiness is almost always a damaged surface layer on the outside of the plastic lens, and removing that layer with fine abrasive polish, then sealing the lens against the sun, brings back most
A clutch replacement on most cars costs between 800 and 2,500 dollars in total, with the parts kit usually running 200 to 600 dollars and labor making up the rest. Small front wheel drive cars sit at the cheaper end, trucks, all wheel drive models and performance cars can pass 3,000 dollars, and the job
Most electric car batteries last far longer than people fear. A modern EV battery pack is generally expected to serve 10 to 20 years and cover 150,000 to 300,000 miles or more before its shrinking range makes the car hard to live with, and almost every EV sold today carries a battery warranty of at
Replacing windshield wipers takes about 5 to 10 minutes for the pair, needs no tools, and costs 15 to 40 dollars for two decent blades. You lift each wiper arm, press a small release tab or button, slide the old blade off its hook, click the new blade on until it locks, and lower the
The difference is simple. All wheel drive, or AWD, is an automatic system that runs all the time and sends power to whichever wheels have grip, with no input from the driver. Four wheel drive, or 4WD, is a stronger system the driver switches on when needed, usually with a choice of high and low
