n00b wants to start doing own work on car

There is no reason why you cant do this, clearly doign houses you have a reasonably logical mind and can use your hands.

Get the halfords set, the £199 set is good value (especially when on offer) and it comes with lifetime guarentee, its easy to add to using their bargain bin which is where you find odd, but useful things like 15 or 18mm sockets (used on audi's and others).

Grab a breaker bar for extra leverage, a torque wrench, jack and stands and you're set, there is very little else you will need although when you start there will be lots you want. Between halfords and machine mart you can get everything you like and whilst the latter gets slagged off in here i like them, the kit is good and its cheap, i abuse mine building and destroying landrovers and things so it doesnt have an easy life but it never gives me grief.

If you get into air tools then consider axminster tools, superb quality and cheap too.

The jobs you listed, brakes, radiator etc can all be done with common sense, courage and a haynes manual, the head gasket is a fair bit more complex but certainly not unachievable.
 
General servicing - Very easy
Brake pads, etc - Very easy
Possible radiator change (may need doing on a car I'm considering) - Pain in the arse but not too bad
Head gasket (I've read this is not a DIY job but my dad used to do it 100 years ago?????) - Depends entirely on car!
 
doing any job on car with the correct tools and a haynes manual is 'easy' if you follow the steps, understand what you are doing and are not an idiot (ie bash the thing to bits with a hammer if you can't undo a nut!).

When I got my first car, I had no idea about mechanics. Then the head gasket blew, considering it was cheaper to buy the tools and do the job than pay a garage - i thought i'd give it a go. Since then i've done head gaskets on other engines/cars, engine swaps, modifiying to fit engines from other cars into others, brake upgrades, ecu replacements, customising cooling / charge cooling systems. All sorts really.

Build up a good understanding of what you are doing, and how what you are working on actually does what it does and you should have no trouble at all.
 
GeX said:
doing any job on car with the correct tools and a haynes manual is 'easy' if you follow the steps, understand what you are doing and are not an idiot..
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And nothing goes wrong. Can be a PITA if a bolt snaps or a nut rounds off and you don't know what your doing. Or your trying to do a job and what the manual says is not the right/easy way to do it.

That said the best way to learn is to get stuck in :).
 
covered by the 'not being an idiot' and

Build up a good understanding of what you are doing, and how what you are working on actually does what it does and you should have no trouble at all.
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caveats :)
 
Halfords will definitely be the place to have a mooch round first.

Combination spanners
Socket set
Screwdriver set
Plier set
Hammer :D
Punches
Lever / pry bar
Toolbox

Axle stands
Jack

That should pretty much cover you for a while..
 
I used to love working on my car, now I don't like getting my hands dirty, I'd rather pay someone else to do it. I don't even like washing my car anymore:(
 
Hades said:
Thanks. Halfords Pro toolset noted :)

I've recently had a bit of an epiphany thinking "why am I so reliant on other people for cars" and "why don't I buy an older, better, car rather than something new simply because it scares me". I have quite a complex job which requires a lot of logical thinking and problem solving (although not physical) and it just bemuses me why I've never applied that progressive logical thinking to anything mechanical.
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Im like that, dont beat yourself up, not everyone is cut out to do DIY car repairs.

Good on you if you can though.
 
Haynes manual + mates advice + online advice.
Build up your tools, borrow from mates is also an option at the start.

Seriously, I knew next to nothing about cars the start of last year, now, i feel as if given the proper equipment I could do just about anything.
 
Learn electronics
As most modern cars are full of them.

You may need a digital camera to photo things, so you know how to put it back together after.

And with head gaskets, why did it fail?
If may have warped, so needs skimming.
 
Thanks again guys. All good advice there. I had a minor victory today. I've had a damn annoying rattle coming from the door of my Golf. So I took the panel off and fixed it. That's minor to all you guys but a nice step in the right direction for me. My next task is to get myself a jack and some axle stands and fix the other annoying rattle the Golf has, from the underside of the car (exhaust most likely).

I'm just testing myself really, to see if I would actually be prepared to work on an older car doing some more serious stuff.
 
Yea that lifting set is ok, I have the same one myself. Although I'd rather have something a bit beefier for my 1.7 ton car but it works fine none the less. It's good value for sure, the axel stands are basic pin types though not ratcheting ones and jack leaves a bit to be desired really ...but you can't have everything for £39.
 
Thanks. That Amazon jack is a touch out of my price range. At this stage I'm only looking to start doing basic stuff. If I get more serious then I may well consider it.
 
Yes, never hurts to have a back up jack anyway...
You'll find once you get into it and buy the better jack, the old one will still have it's uses.
Usually rattling around in your boot while the good one sits in the garage :D
 
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