Fluids

Sorry to disappoint those of you with dirty minds, but I am talking about fluids in your car. Not as sexy but just as entertaining. Ok, maybe not entertaining, how about useful?

The first fluid we're going to cover is oil. No, we're not going to talk about changing our own oil, I've done it and it's messy. However, you do need to know if our oil is low and if you don't have a brand spanking new car, then you'll have to do this the old fashioned way.

Now, there are a few advantages to doing this. First it looks like you know something about cars because it requires you to pop the hood of your car and this, of course, will always impress the guys. Need an example? How about Megan Fox in Transformers, see below.



And yes, I do suggest doing this in a belly shirt in the middle of summer because oil does not come out of clothes. And here we go:

Step 1: Be sure to have your car on level ground, that way you'll get an accurate reading, then pop the hood of your car. If you've never done this, there's usually a latch in the center underneath. It will either slide to the right or the left in order to open the hood. After the hood's released, prop the hood up with the arm that usually resides on the side or in front of the hood.

Step 2: Grab an old towel you won't use again for showering or cooking. Paper towel will work as well.

Step 3: Locate the dipstick that is usually near the engine oil cap. All cars are different, but see picture below, you'll be looking for something similar to this.



Step 4: Once you've located the dipstick, pull it out and wipe it clean with the towel. You should see at the bottom of the dip stick something that looks like this:



The X's are sometimes dots or the stick might actually say full or low.

Step 5: Place the dipstick back in its place, then pull it out again and check to see where the oil line lies. if it is below the X's then this means you need about a quart of oil, otherwise you're fine.

Step 6: Check your owner's manual to see what kind of oil your car takes, buy oil, then pour a quart of it into the tank where the engine oil cap is. Using a funnel for this makes life cleaner and easier. When you're done DO NOT FORGET TO SCREW THE CAP BACK ON!

And you're done. Remove the arm stand and shut the hood. Wasn't that easy? Especially given when the alternative is having your car start smoking and break down on the side of the road...leading to potentially expensive repairs and towing. And let's face it...most tow truck drivers...not hot.