If you’re going to own something, it’s generally a good idea to know how to take care of it. Whether it’s shoes, gadgets, accessories, or cars, there’s bound to come a time during your ownership when wear and tear starts to show. When this happens, it’s okay for your first instinct to be to call a professional — especially if you’re inexperienced. You might not know what to do or how exactly to do it, and the last thing you want is to make things worse.

However, in the case of vehicle maintenance or repair, calling a mechanic can get pricey fast. Depending on the task, even routine tasks can end up costing you well into the hundreds of dollars. With this in mind, there’s a tendency to reserve your professional calls for only when it’s absolutely necessary.

In an ideal world, provided you stick to your vehicle’s recommended maintenance schedule, you shouldn’t run into any problems. Unfortunately, life happens — you could run over some nails with your tire, your battery could degrade; any number of things can go wrong. The inexpensive option, if you know what you’re doing, is to roll up your sleeves and do the dirty work yourself. Of course, this means you should always keep some tools in your car, but with a handful of maintenance skills like we’ve listed below, you could save thousands of dollars in repairs.

The importance of caring for your tires can’t be overemphasized — they are your car’s only contact with the road. Over time, all that friction from pounding pavement (and climbing rocks, if you like offroading) is going to wear the tire out. That wear primarily shows up in two forms in the rubber: a loss of pressure and a reduced tread depth. Driving around with underinflated tires is a dangerous sport; your car’s equilibrium is distorted, the tires don’t grip the road as they should, braking isn’t as predictable, and the wear on the outer tire treads accelerates. You’re also getting worse gas mileage thanks to the increased rolling resistance of a partially-inflated tire.

Furthermore, there’s an increased risk of a blowout, which can lead to an accident. Generally speaking, you should run a quick visual inspection of your tires before getting on the road. To confirm your suspicions, you’ll want to keep a tire gauge handy. Pick a tire that looks underinflated, remove the tire valve cap, and attach the tire pressure valve to the open valve stem.

You’ll hear a hissing noise first; take the reading when it stops and compare it to your recommended tire pressure. If it’s lower than it should be, check and patch any punctures with sealant, and get it pumped. Tread depth, on the other hand, is a slightly more insidious problem. It’s not as immediately obvious as pressure to the eye, and it’s essential to your grip and braking abilities. If your tires have wear bars, use them, and get ready to change them if they’re getting into legally bald territory.

You could take all the necessary precautions and still run into a situation that needs you to change a tire. It’s a fairly simple procedure, but before you get to work, make sure to avoid common mistakes when changing tires, like not securing a safe work area or working on an incline. First, park as far away from traffic as possible. Target flat, solid ground, and engage your parking brake. Then, whip out your tire-changing equipment: the spare tire, jack, and lug wrench. You’ll typically find them somewhere in your rear cargo area.

Next, as an optional step, you’ll want to find something to wedge against the tire on the opposite side of the one you’re replacing. This step will keep your car from rolling during the change; a large rock or wooden block is enough. Once you’re done with this, take the lug wrench and slightly loosen the lug nuts holding the wheel — personally, I find it easier to do this step before jacking the car up. Don’t remove the tire yet, though.

Locate the jacking point closest to the faulty tire, turn the jack handle until the tire lifts off the ground, then fully loosen the nuts and remove it. Slip on your spare and tighten the nuts about halfway before lowering your car all the way. Remove the jack and tighten the lug nuts completely. Pro tip: Don’t let your hands do all the work — lean into the lug wrench for some extra leverage.

You can expect your car’s fluid levels to deplete after a reasonable period of driving. Not monitoring them increases the risk of overheating. Thankfully, checking the fluids is pretty easy. First, make sure your engine is cool — it’s best to run this check before you start the day’s commute. A pro tip is to make sure you’re on level ground for this, as any incline can give deceptive readings.

Then, if your car doesn’t monitor oil levels electronically, pop the hood and locate the oil dipstick by looking for the handle. It’s usually a shade of yellow or orange located right on top of the engine. Once you find it, pull the handle all the way out to reveal the dipstick, which is a long, flexible metal wand. Next, take a paper towel or an old cloth rag and wipe the oil from it. Re-insert the dipstick all the way in, then take it out again to find out your car’s oil level.

Depending on your automaker, the dipstick may have guidelines like “LOW” or “HIGH” etched in the material, or simply two dots. The trick is to make sure your oil level is between those lines leaning towards the upper boundary. Similar logic applies to the other fluids in your car; remove their caps and note their level. If they’re running low, top them off (it’s a good idea to carry spare fluids at all times), and remember to stick to your oil change schedule.

As your vehicle’s air filters age, their ability to keep unwanted particles out of your engine and air conditioning system degrades. If left unchecked, these particles build up and clog the filters, blocking airflow that the engine needs to work optimally. For the engine filter, this manifests in reduced fuel economy; if enough dirt passes through, your cylinders and pistons can get damaged. In the case of the cabin air filter, you might notice musty odors and weak circulation when you use your air conditioner. That can make summer trips very uncomfortable — it’s why we recommend addressing it well ahead of time.

The first step to changing your filters is to locate them. While it’s different in each vehicle, you’ll typically find the cabin air filter behind the glovebox (check your owner’s manual for more information). To access it, empty your glovebox and look for a pin on the outer edge of the framing. Use a screwdriver to loosen it — remember to keep it safe, as you’ll need that pin to reverse this process — and gently press on both sides of the glovebox to lower it and expose the air filter cover.

Put on some gloves for this part: Squeeze the tabs on either side of the cover to remove it and pull out the old filter. Before installing the new cabin filter, clean the compartment with a damp rag or vacuum. Then slot the new filter in — make sure the airflow arrows on the edge of the filter point in the same direction as the old one. As for the engine filter, it’s a similar process, but we have a separate segment on how to change it.

When I first started driving, my car battery died on me more than once, and I couldn’t figure out why it kept happening. Between power drain, faulty terminal connections, and a host of other reasons, I found myself stranded multiple times since I’d never changed a battery before. The long waits were no fun, but you don’t have to go through the same learning process.

If your battery is old and needs replacement, having a professional handle the installation adds labor costs to the $100 to $250 it’ll set you back to get a new battery by itself. To save cost, you can replace the old one yourself, as it’s not that complicated. Before touching anything, make sure the engine is off. Then, pop the hood and disconnect the negative terminal first — it’s grounded to your car’s body, so removing it first shuts off the circuit. That’s important since you’ll be working with a metal tool like a plier to loosen the bolt securing the cable to the terminal; you don’t want to risk blowing a fuse by starting with the positive. It’s also a safety issue as well, as you don’t need to accidentally give yourself a nasty shock. 

Once the negative terminal is disconnected, do the same to the positive, and remove the battery. Take the new battery and connect it, starting with the positive terminal this time, and that’s the entire process. If you don’t have a new battery on hand, though, jumpstarting is a viable option. All you need is a pair of jumper cables and a “rescue” car to power your battery; we’ve provided a detailed walk-through on how to jump-start a car properly in the past.

You need a clear line of vision to see the road ahead when driving, and wipers are essential to achieving this in the rain and winter. However, like nearly every component in a car, wiper blades wear with time. In the winter, for example, if you let your wipers rest on your windshield, they can get frozen in place. That exposure to ice can weaken the material, especially when you consider the chipping and scraping techniques one might deploy to free them.

A telltale sign your wipers need changing is when they start streaking the windshield or making squeaky noises. So, if you notice this, instead of having them installed at an auto shop, you could buy and install them yourself. If you’re going down the DIY path, the most important step is the actual purchase — make sure you’re buying the right set for your car’s dimensions. They’ll usually set you back considerably less than $100 for a the pair depending on the make and model of your vehicle, but you’ll save some change on labor.

To install the new wipers, lift the old ones off the windshield and make sure the wiper arms are fully upright. Then, press down on the tab and slide the wiper blade off the connector. Proceed to attach the new wipers to the arms by inserting the blade into the arm’s hook until you hear a click. Most wipers feature the same or similar attachment methods, but double-check your owner’s manual to avoid running into any problems.

Driving at night calls for your lamps to be in top condition; you don’t want to be on the highways with dim beams. According to the IIHS, cars equipped with headlights that have good visibility ratings are involved in 19% fewer crashes at night. That’s a significant number, so if you notice your lights dimming, you should replace them as soon as possible. Since estimates show that hiring a professional can cost as much as $300, you could save a couple hundred bucks by doing this yourself.

The first thing to do is to check your owner’s manual to discover what type of bulb you’ll need to replace your non-working one. When you’ve got your replacement bulb in hand, park your car, turn off the engine, and remove the key from the ignition. Then, pop open your hood and find the headlight cover. Unplug the connector to disconnect the power before removing the bulb housing. Depending on your automaker, you might need to press a clip, slide a lock, or unscrew a few fasteners to do this.

Once the bulb housing is out of the way, you can remove the dim bulb (unscrewing counterclockwise is usually the go-to move) and install the new one. If you’re using a halogen bulb, avoid touching the glass with your bare hands, as this can lead to the bulb burning out quicker; LED bulbs don’t have this limitation. Reconnect all the electrical components and fix the headlight cover back into place. Before driving, test your new headlamps to confirm they work — driving without functioning headlights is illegal.

Hear a grinding or clicking sound whenever you apply the brakes? Those are usually telltale signs that your brake pads are worn and need to be refurbished. Now, you might want to leave this skill to the professionals since brake pads are essential to your safety. However, brake pad changes can be quite costly; labor costs range anywhere from $80 to $200 per axle.

You’re going to need to buy new brake pads — don’t be afraid to splurge on parts from an original manufacturer here; cheap ones aren’t worth it. The first step in installation is to loosen the lug nuts on the tire with the problematic pad. After this, raise your vehicle with a jack, place a jack stand where it can safely support the car’s weight, lower the car onto it, then remove the wheel. Next, you’ll need to find and remove the caliper mounting bolts. A brake caliper press tool could make your task much easier here.

If your car model has guide pins that hold the caliper in place, check them for rust — if there’s any, you’ll need to replace those too. The brake caliper should pivot upwards without the bolts, at which point you can easily slide the old brake pads out from the retaining clips. Replace the old retaining clips as well (they usually come with the brake pads you’ll purchase) and apply some grease to the new ones. Then, put the new brake pads in and set to work reassembling the caliper mounting bracket. Considering changing your rotors as well, or want an even more in-depth explainer on the process? We’ve got you covered with this guide on changing your brake pads on your own.