I know nothing about the inner workings/upkeep of automobiles, but I think I should. I was wondering if anyone could recommend a book about general car maintenance, parts, and functions.
I don’t want anything too technical, but it would be nice if it could explain things clearly and allow me to sound informed when talking to a mechanic. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance.
If you want to do your OWN work on your car, I’d recommend the Chiltons manual for your car (do a google search, they are easily found). Much of the work most folks need to do can be done in the driveway with a few simple tools, and a good manual like Chiltons, or those made by Bentley (I had the Bentley version for my VW Golf, but have used Chiltons for other cars).
For a more general book, I’ll leave it to the others to recommend one, as I don’t know of any.
I used to purchase either a Chilton’s or a Hayne’s manual. They’re both good IMO but I like the Chilton’s better.
I meant to add that I am not any kind of mechanic by any stretch of the imagination. When I was a poor college kid and driving a heap of crap on wheels I taught myself car maintenance and repair because I couldn’t afford to pay a mechanic. The Chilton’s are good if you are a layman or a pro. They pretty much have step by step instructions on just about anything you may need to maintain or repair with exploded view diagrams so you should be able to figure out the basics.
I think you’ll be glad you purchased the manual. It was my bible and I kept it in the trunk of my car in case my car took a crap away from home. (Which was often the case.)
If you’re seriously into doing your own work, get both Chilton and Haynes books for your car. That way, if one book skimps on the subject you’re dealing with, there’s usually a good chance that the other has good coverage of it.
One or the other might also have a simplified procedure. eg: one is “by the book” and directs you to remove the intake manifold, mass air sensor, drain the radiator and remove the water pump to get at whatever you’re doing, and the other book says “Jack up the car, remove the right front tire and reach around the shock absorber to get at the item from below without draining the radiator and removing half the engine.”
What the world really needs is for someone to pick up where John Muir left off with his How to keep your Subaru alive and *How to keep your VW alive. * Those are some of the best do-it-yourself auto repair books ever written, but they’re sadly specific to those brands in rather old model years.
It seems to me that the OP is looking more for a book that talks about subjects like, “What an intake manifold looks like and what it does” rather than “How do I replace the intake manifold on my 1983 Toyota Celica?”
A good place to start is, not suprisingly, How Stuff Works.
After that, maybe Auto Repair for Dummies ? Probably that, and a good, car-savvy friend (or the SDMB :)) can help you fill in the blanks on any questions you may have.
That is what I originally had in mind, but I’ll also check out the Chilton’s book, too. It can’t hurt, after all.
Anyway, thank you all for the suggestions! I’ll look them for them soon.