Car batteries are highly hazardous to our environment if not properly disposed. So please dispose your old battery properly and avoid keeping it inside your garage. :)

Congratulations! Many little car maintainence things are not as difficult. It just takes a little time.

As for a socket..Get yourself a small mechanics set..I have two tool sets. Unfortunately though as our vehicles become more computer chip engineered the less do it youself can work.

Wear exam gloves, protects your hands but you can still grab things well. My Dad taught us how to do simple maintainence he said that we shouldn't wait around for a man to do it because they may not know how....

I just go to WalMart, get the oil changed, I shop there too and save on everything. If I need a battery, very reasonable $50. - $60. and they will be glad to put it in for you. I guess I just don't want to get experience with a socket wrench or any other tool fo that matter. I still stab myself everyother time I use one. I would probably kill myselg with a socket wrench. I just couldn't go through all that effort to save a few dollars.

I do honestly love the way you told your story, you painted incredible word pictures, you need to consider writting for a living, you have some exceptional talant. Stick to non-fiction humor.

$25.00 dollars labor is a really fair price !!! That the mechanic was charging I wouldn't touch that for under a $50.00 minimum !!

Congrats to the young lady for the DIY!  Huge self-esteem boost!  How many times have you paid to have someone do something . . . then said "geez, I could have done that".  The moral to the story is  . . .find a teacher, someone who is patient and likes to see someone succeed . . .LEARN something America.  God Bless!

If you have a newer car with an alarm or ANY anti - theft device on the factory stereo, replacing the battery will render the stereo useless and the alarm may go off when you install the new battery. You will need the reset code for the radio and alarm systems. Please check this out before you replace the battery yourself. Finding that code can be a real pain. The dealer will gladly provide it for around $40.00, quickly zapping any savings you realize by self performing the replacement.

Mark Hunter

I'm excited to see that there were other women who've had to bite the bullet where car repair is concerned  it takes guts to do those things we REALLY weren't sure we really wanted to do. I've been lucky , I was married to a mechanic, & after my divorce I had to do my own repairs. I didn't like the greasy hands either, but you do what you have to do.

Lava Pro is a substitute for Orange Goop and it's at the 99 cent store

It is great when you can do things yourself. But in reality, some shouldn't replace the batteries in their flashlights themselves.

Like Paul mentioned, remove the negative first. If the tool you are using comes in contact with some metal while removing the positive first, you will at the very least do some damage to the tool, or at worst cause personal injury and the battery may just explode.

Car maintenance, even the most basic stuff, needs to be approached with care and caution. No doubt many can do some basic procedures themselves, but you should always have a tutor to guide you through the process first.

I am a professional mechanic and I have seen and had to fix many instances of damage cause by over ambitious people who try and take on repairs themselves. They lack the knowledge and equipment to do the job properly. That results in a repair bill equal or larger to the one they would have faced if they had let the proffessional do it in the first place.

I'm not trying to rain on your parade, but just make sure you have the technical backup to do a job first. When you are done, you will have that feeling of satisfaction of completing a job sucessfully instead of having to deal with a disaster and having the car towed away to a shop to have it fixed correctly.

i went to the university of friega te i learn almost to fix everithing if some one wants take clases similar to that university, buy an engine in the junk yard and i can teach you desasembly aand asenbly many times, only need to have a tools and video camera and we can chat about your engine mean time you learn to repair the complete engine. for ejemple : i can desasemble one engine in 1 hour and asemble right in four hours you will learn technical english too. like block,crank shaft,oil pen,timing belt . friega te mean : hard way to learn . in ten years i never take may uded car to any shop because the doctor is in front the drive wheel , how much i saved?