“Do you know where the owner’s manual is in your car?”
This is the question Scott Jeffrey, a safety and security shift supervisor, asked the group of twelve female students gathered in Union’s facilities warehouse on April 12 at 7 p.m. to learn about car maintenance for Residence Life’s first “Senior Disorientation” session.
In a university environment, students spend most of their time focused on academics. However, Residence Life is providing seniors with the opportunity to learn some applicable skills before they graduate and move into the real world.
The 12 participants were split into two groups of six. One group was led by Jeffrey and the other by Dr. William Nettles, a professor of physics here at Union.
Jeffrey began by going over some basics for car maintenance. He explained how to jump your battery, connecting the positive clamp first and then hooking the negative clamp to the frame of your car. He said that once your car is started and somewhat charged, you should always disconnect the negative clamp first, then the positive. He then taught students how to check and replace the fluids in your car including brake, radiator and windshield washer fluids, as well as how to check the oil.
“If you change your oil early rather than late, your car engine will last much longer,” Jeffrey said.
He then turned it over to Nettles, who demonstrated how to change a tire.
“You need to make sure you have a lug nut wrench in your car that fits your lug nuts,” Nettles said. “And that it’s in good condition and not stripped.”
He started by talking about some safety precautions concerning jacking up your car, explaining that you never want to get under a car that is only being supported by a jack because it’s not stable enough. He showed students the difference between a bottle jack, scissors jack and a floor jack. Students then took turns loosening the lug nuts, and the car was ready to jack up. Once the car was up high enough, the lug nuts were taken off and the tire changed. Students again took turns, this time putting the lug nuts back on, tightening every other one until they were all tight to ensure the tire wouldn’t shift.
One of the biggest takeaways: you should always know where your car manual is. It will tell you the location of everything as well as the kind of oil that goes in your car, the size of the air filter and other useful information. It really is an essential tool in car maintenance.
Overall it was an educational experience with several benefits. Jeffrey explained that employees at car dealerships are prone to take advantage of women and tell them there are things wrong with their car that really aren’t. It’s always a good idea to have some knowledge about the subject so that you won’t be taken advantage of, and you may even save some money by being able to repair or replace some small things yourself.
