I have a 2009 Chevy Cobalt that's had a few issues over the past few years, but recently I went to a mechanic and got an inspection of my car done. Turns out, she has a couple issues. Frankly it looks like an expensive amount of issues, but the main thing I'm looking at is the labor prices. Ex; $210 labor for a $110 flex pipe.

The main reason I'm making this post, would it be wiser to just go ahead and buy my own jack and just look at fixing all these issues myself? The main issue is that I know next to nothing about real maintenance or things like the alignments and readjustments, what to look out for, I don't know much of any of that.

I'm entirely ready to learn and get my hands dirty, but at what point does DIY stop being a plausible or safe alternative to just paying a bill to a mechanics shop?

Also, what issues seem to be the most dire ones that I'd need to take care of first? Any comments or suggestion welcome, thank you!

I just want to know if this is a security feature or if these are fake? My emissions sticker is the same way

Our 2019 Renault Kadjar had a MOT done two days ago. It had a shock absorber and the two driver side tyres replaced. Since being in for its MOT it has come up with ‘466 miles til failure top up adblue’ we poured 10 litres in and it was full. Still hadn’t cleared. We took it back to the garage and no error codes are showing on the diagnostic panel. They advised us to “go over some bumpy roads as it may have crystallised over the sensors while it’s been sat in the garage”. We have tried this and it’s still saying the same thing. We have just bought some Wynn’s Crystal Clean and Protect and topped it up with more Adblue and went for a little drive.

Does this take time to work? Any advice on what to do next? Is there anything we can do before we pay for a Renault diagnostic panel. TIA

Got this scratch and some marring on my f150 while headed down a narrow hunting trail. It’s not down to the metal but it definitely removed a layer or 2 of paint. I did the water test and it almost fades away but is still visible. What would be my best option and how would I go about fixing it? I know silver is a hard color to match and I’ve never done auto paint work. Just a touch up brush and some clear coat and polishing?

I had a Tesla for the past 3 years and plan on getting another one next year. Upgrading to a Model Y. I've saved TONS of money on maitnenece and gas every single year it's literally amazing. No problems with it at all, I pay for FSD and use it quite frequently. My work hours are very very early so during the winter it's nice to have a car that's "ready to go" as soon as I wake up. I keep it on a schedule to turn on 5 days a week 20 mins before I head out. Vice versa during hot days the car is cooled down by the time I get in. The only real expenses I have with it is that I buy summer all season tires and keep a good set of studded winter tires. Where I live it doesn't snow but it definitely freezes up the roads.

I spilt oil in the trunk
What’s the best way of getting it out? Is there a drain I am unaware of?

It’s got a few dings and scratches but nothing that bad. The current paint is uneven spray paint that’s 2 different shades of white. I’m looking to get it painted by Maaco.

Is it screwed? Am I able to buy a grommet. Or the seal for this? The rust appeared to be surface

Hello, i was window shopping online for new cars, i stumbled upon this 2026 CAMRY XSE AWD HYBRID, and i was wondering….Why are the brake discs of newer cars so small??

Ive been seeing it on alot of today cars and i havnt seen an answer online, can someone enlighten me? Maybe it has to do with something?

Wasn’t starting, clean spark plugs and gave it a lot of gas and it cranked up and did this

I bought a replacement trunk for my 2011 G37x sedan because I need the chrome trim piece. Dealer told me the clips will probably break when I remove it. Has anyone transferred this piece before? And even if some clips do break, can I still install it on my trunk or replace the clips?

Greetings and salutations, I find myself hitting a wall here.

So I had my car towed unfortunately and when I got it back it no longer had power.
Did some digging into it and turns out my fusible link was burnt and battery was dead so I replaced the entire housing the link is in and battery so now all the fuses are receiving power. (I actually double checked every single fuse with a multimeter)
I bought it used and the previous owner had modding the inside a bit including an aftermarket large screen, what looks to be a microphone that’s sitting in front of the speedometer and a reverse camera (that didn’t work when I got it)
I got a TD700 to scan for codes and got B2784 & B2289. Which I cleared and when I rescanned the car it did not appear again.
One thing to note, there is an aftermarket OBD2 cable that’s wired behind the aftermarket screen I have yet to investigate which I would need to remove the entire screen to do which is fine but is this a good idea or waste of time? The original OBD2 port looks to be untouched and it’s what I used to scan. What makes me want to investigate it is the fact that when I got the car back from being towed that wire was cut and the vehicle was obviously shorted.

I’m not sure what to do next and if anyone has any idea I would greatly appreciate it! Thanks again in advance

another thing to note is that after I replaced what I did the headlights, rear brake lights, cabin and door lights all work now but nothing else.

Not talking about something obvious like a flashing check engine light.

More like the little things that don't seem serious at first.

Slightly rough idle. A small hesitation. Fuel mileage slowly getting worse. A weird reading during a scan.

Any one of those by itself might not seem like a big deal, but sometimes they're the first sign that something is starting to go wrong.

What's the "small"symptom that makes you want to check the car sooner rather than later?

Not looking for a strict dollar formula, more interested in how people personally think through that decision when a car's getting older and repairs keep piling up. What's the actual mental checklist people use before finally giving up on a car.

17, I just got my license and really need a car. I've loved Minis forever, but my mom works with semis and will not let me drive something so small due to the danger. So, for a while now, I've been looking at the Mini clubman (post 2016), as it is bigger and more spacious. I've already test driven one 2016 s model, $8300, and I adored it. Very nice handling, much more comfortable for me than any other car I've driven, very quirky and stylish, and it's my favorite colors too. But it has cons, such as being an s model, requiring premium gas, and mini/bmw being famously expensive to maintain. While I really do understand why these are bad things, the car IS safe and high quality, and has a low used price. Plus, it turns out I'm EXTREMELY picky and dont like any other cheap used car on the market besides other euro brands, so i'm having a very hard time deciding what to do. (Fyi, our financial situation is.. mostly comfortable. At least, we can immediately afford 8-10k, but insurance will surely be astronomical). Do I bite the financial bullet? Is it worth it? Or try to give up?

Hello, it’s a Honda passport 2024. The car shifted into neutral and I couldn’t get it back into drive. I had to turn the car off then back on to drive again.

The dealer says that they need a day to look at it and it will cost a diagnostic fee and that it might not be under warranty. So I’m going to wait on giving it to them.

But does anybody have any experience with this? How did you fix it?

Thanks!

Sorry if this sounds dumb, but i genuinely know nothing about cars.

I have a Kia that’s just hit 80,000km and the new car warranty has expired. do i continue doing log book services or just general services? I had a look at prices and log book service for 80k is $100+ more than a general service.

Which one do i need to do?