LebGeeks

sero

Member

Car Maintenance

Hello

So my main question is how often do you replace car parts, and what are these parts?

To maintain my car i usually:
1- change oil and filter every 5km
2- change battery every 3 years
3- change break pads every 2 years

I also regularly check the radiator water level and other oil levels when i am changing oil

However i often hear people saying i need to change Boujiyet and baydat and other stuff.
what are Boujiyet and baydat  in English and how often do i need to change them?
is there a need to change the Belt often?
Are there any recommendations for car maintenance i should consider doing?

Guitaret

Member

Re: Car Maintenance

Hello sero,

Welcome to the car enthusiasm world.
You are starting on the right foot here because you need to know the bare minimum about car maintenance if you want a healthy car as you cannot rely on the mechanics here in Lebanon for many reasons.

Please understand that replacement parts lifespan depends on its quality.

Oil change
Please pick the oil described on your car manual (and pay attention to the weather description, in hot summer it is better to use a thicker oil otherwise it may burn in the engine quicker than it should be) but every 5000km is the safe lifespan. Better quality oil lasts 10000km.
Oil filter: every 2 oil changes (this is what I do myself and this is up to you)

Battery
This is usually done when the battery begins giving you problems on cold starts.
3 years: safe bet but once I have had a battery replaced earlier.

Brake pads
Extremely dependent if you buy the original one or not and highly dependent on your car, roads and driving habits. But I once had a non-original BMW brake pad lasting me 21 months. Advice: when on a long trip down from the mountains use the transmission to slow you down instead of braking all the time, hence you will save your brakes from overheating and wearing down quickly.

Boujiyet
Spark plugs: change that each 30000 km max and your mechanic can easily test if they need to be changed.

Baydat
Ball joints: change that when you feel a vibration coming from the wheels, especially when braking (this is different from when your wheels need alignment or balancing). You can test those if you lift your car and try to shake the wheel. Another symptom is the feeling of the car being overly shaken on potholes. With experience, you will recognize the difference.
n.b. some cars (like SUVs) have 2 on each side.

Belt
Mainly the serpentine belt, this is very long term maintenance as they may last more than 100,000km. You should change it when it gets dry, worn out or make squeaky noises coming from the engine compartment. The best test you can do to know if its needs to be changed: When you spray the belt with water and the squeaks disappear for a few minutes. With experience, you can know that sometimes the squeaks are coming from a bad pulley instead of the belt. Watch some videos on youtube to know more.

Are there any recommendations for car maintenance i should consider doing?

This is a long subject and you should learn to enjoy its journey of knowledge instead of being overwhelmed with facts. But we are here for further questions.

Last edited by Guitaret (May 14 2019)

TheIlluminative

Member

Re: Car Maintenance

Great advice there Guitaret! Thank you.

xazbrat

Member

Re: Car Maintenance

Would add to actually use antifreeze and not just water in your radiator.  Antifreeze usually contains components to help your cooling system including rust protection and lubricants for your water pump.  Antifreeze is a little expensive here, but you don't need to use it much.  Also, it is recommended that you flush your cooling system once every 5 years or 50k km.  You can do it yourself as it may be difficult to find someone here to do it properly.

And l prefer to change the filter each time I change the oil---the cost is minimal and since the oil it getting changed, why not change all of the oil.

Bahij.M

Member

Re: Car Maintenance

Changing the filter every oil change is recommended, also please use high quality oil and filters not those generic filters that are sold everywhere here, Acdelco and k&n filters are great and are available at distributors, i also would like to recommend cleaning the MAF sensor with crc cleaner (pretty easy task) which helps a lot with rough idles and decrease in power(since a dirty MAF f***s up the A/F Mix ratio) especially if you car has a lot of miles on it, changing trans and rear differential fluid as well is recommended every 50k km.
There is a lot more but almost all preventive maintenance is already stated above, so unless you feel something is wrong in the car( shaking, misfires, bumpy ride, smoke from exhaust, etc) you are good to go.

sero

Member

Re: Car Maintenance

Thanks Guitaret and everyone for the great advice!

nuclearcat

Member

Re: Car Maintenance

One important advice, based on personal experience - do not allow guys on fuel stations to refill your windwasher washer fluid with tap water! You might get lot of hassle with nozzles later.
Each year change your A/C filters, full of dirt and humidity - they are perfect soil for bacterial growth, especially dangerous are legionella.