Car engine repair is one of those things that most car owners refuse to do themselves. That is understandable, considering the fact that most car owners do not know how a car engine works, much less the various parts that go into an engine. If you have decided that you want to know how a car engine works, you should learn car engine repair from a mechanic. Here is what you can learn through observation and helping your mechanic work on your car.

What a Mechanic Can Show You

Many mechanics are willing to take the time to explain how an engine works if you ask him or her. If you also ask the right one to teach you about car engines, you will learn a lot. 

Mechanics who are willing to share their knowledge and expertise often charge for their time. However, you will probably learn how to take an engine out of a car, and how to take the engine apart. You learn the names and functions of every part of the engine as you take it apart. Then you put the engine back together again. 

You Will Need to Understand Car Diagnostics, Too

Additionally, you should ask the mechanic to show you how to use an automotive diagnostics computer. These devices plug into the onboard computers in a modern car to determine what is wrong. You have to read the diagnostic readout on the machine's screen to figure out what the problem is.

Then a mechanic takes the engine apart until he/she can reach the parts that the diagnostic computer says are faulty, broken, or in need of repair. Every once in a while, the diagnostics computer is wrong, which means that the mechanic has to check all of the car parts that have already been removed. Your hired mechanic/instructor will then continue removing, checking, and testing other car parts until he/she finds the source of the problem. Pay close attention to what he/she is doing.

Listen and Feel for Problems

Something else you will learn while observing your mechanic work is how to listen and feel for problems. You may already know how to do this, even if you did not know what the related problems were before. Now you will listen for unusual sounds coming from the engine when the car is running. You will feel for strange vibrations or movement that seem out of place with a normally functioning car. Then you will determine what these sounds or movements mean based on what you have already learned about car engines and repairing them from your mechanic.

To learn more, contact an auto mechanic shop like Redford Auto Repair.

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