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AIBU?

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Original poster

AIBU to think they NEED to teach car maintenance at school?

392 replies

MeMyCatsAndMyBooks · 28/01/2023 15:50

Today my car tyre popped on a piece of metal left in the middle of the road, and I had no idea what to do.
I've been driving since I was 17 and I'm in my 30s and never had an accident touch wood or anything wrong with my tyres.
I instantly panicked as it happened in the middle of a giant hill and knew I couldn't do it there, thankfully a really kind man ran out and helped it be pushed to the side & changed my tyre for me.

I had no idea how to do it, or what a space saver tyre really was! Luckily I got it home driving very slowly & onto my drive and have my breakdown cover coming out next week to change the tyre.
But I just had no idea about any of it. Im aware I sound like a helpless woman, but im usually quite independent but this knocked me for six!

AIBU to think they need to teach car maintenance in school rather than pushing maths (which lets face it isn't anywhere as important) onto students till they turn 18?

OP posts:
winewolfhowls · 28/01/2023 17:50

My car is a Honda and doesn't have a spare tyre anyway. It does have some of the emergency foam stuff but surely after a few years it must degrade?

Original poster
MeMyCatsAndMyBooks · 28/01/2023 17:50

FavouriteSlippers · 28/01/2023 17:46

Just take it to a tyre shop and do it. It takes them minutes!
You have you're spare on it will be fine

Can't drive to a tyre shop with a flat can you? Hmm

OP posts:
PuttingDownRoots · 28/01/2023 17:53

@MeMyCatsAndMyBooks the poster was meaning you can drive to the tyre shop with the emergency space saver on to get the other one repaired (which they then put back on for you)

Sirzy · 28/01/2023 17:54

winewolfhowls · 28/01/2023 17:50

My car is a Honda and doesn't have a spare tyre anyway. It does have some of the emergency foam stuff but surely after a few years it must degrade?

I had to use mine when the car was about 6 years old (so I assume the emergency kit was too) and it worked fine to get me to a garage for a proper replacement.

i was cynical about it but it was a lot easier than trying to change it myself or have to wait for recovery.

deplorabelle · 28/01/2023 17:59

Nope! We should stop this default assumption everyone needs to drive. If schools were to cover any of this then journey planning using a variety of modes could come into the geography curriculum (probably does already).

My driving instructor would have taught me to change a tyre. I declined to do that session because I have hidden disabilities that mean I would struggle to do it myself. I pay rescue to do tyres for me on the few occasions I've had a puncture.

If you don't know how to fix your car please pay for a recovery service. I am inclined to think a minimum level of recovery should be a requirement of motoring, like insurance.

realmsofglory · 28/01/2023 18:00

Lots of catrsnowadays dont come with a spare whelel, you are epected to use a can or tyre weld to get yo to home/help

NumberTheory · 28/01/2023 18:06

deplorabelle · 28/01/2023 17:59

Nope! We should stop this default assumption everyone needs to drive. If schools were to cover any of this then journey planning using a variety of modes could come into the geography curriculum (probably does already).

My driving instructor would have taught me to change a tyre. I declined to do that session because I have hidden disabilities that mean I would struggle to do it myself. I pay rescue to do tyres for me on the few occasions I've had a puncture.

If you don't know how to fix your car please pay for a recovery service. I am inclined to think a minimum level of recovery should be a requirement of motoring, like insurance.

You know you can just call out a 24hr mechanic if you get a flat and don’t want/can’t sort it yourself? You don’t need to pay up front for a recovery service every year on the off chance you might need it.

Midge75 · 28/01/2023 18:07

YouTube is pretty useful to be honest, as is the car manual. We had a puncture on our way to our summer holiday in west wales. We had been hoping to get to the beach before going to the cottage. It was 10 to 6 so we found to the nearest garage but it was already closed. Tried to change the tyre but couldn’t take manage to loosen one nut. Called RAC and they said it could be a 4 hour wait. We all felt a bit flat and I was not looking forward to a 4 hour wait in the middle of nowhere. I was determined and decided to have another go. Rolled the car forward a bit so the nut was up the top and did what a previous poster said - stood on it and it did the trick. Jacked it up, followed the instructions in the manual, called off the RAC and even made it to the beach in time for a beautiful sunset. Our girls were so happy and I think it’s good for them to see that you can do this stuff if you out your mind to it.

ErrolTheDragon · 28/01/2023 18:09

Murdoch1949 · 28/01/2023 17:41

What about home plumbing, washing machine maintenance, radiator bleeding, fitting new taps etc etc. There's LOADS of free room on school curriculums. Wanna learn car maintenance, go to evening classes.

Most of those other things it's pretty easy to find a good YouTube for now.

DH showed our DD how to do basic car maintenance including how to deal with a punctured tyre when she got a car. The mirror fell off one of her wing mirrors recently, she was able to get a replacement from Amazon by the next morning and then find instructions on how to fit it.

Rebel2023 · 28/01/2023 18:18

winewolfhowls · 28/01/2023 17:50

My car is a Honda and doesn't have a spare tyre anyway. It does have some of the emergency foam stuff but surely after a few years it must degrade?

It does, should have a date on it. Worth checking and relaxing because Sod's Law it won't be ok when you need it!

Chickenly · 28/01/2023 18:20

UsingChangeofName · 28/01/2023 17:16

I could make a snippy comment about the teaching of reading comprehension skills, but I won't.

Nowhere did I say schools don't teach the things you've listed (though I am surprised wiring a plug is still in there for those that take GCSE physics, which clearly isn't everyone, and I would also say that what is taught in 'food technology' isn't really the best curriculum for 'how to feed yourself well, particularly when on a tight budget'). I very clearly stated what was taught to my brother, 40 years ago, and how useful it was to the pupils who had gone through that school, on that era, and who hadn't done cooking, sewing, DIY, etc in the 70s when he was at school.

Show quote history

I could make a snippy comment about the teaching of reading comprehension skills, but I won't.

As could I considering I never said you did… the person you agreed with did though, didn’t they? Smug isn’t a good look.

Reugny · 28/01/2023 18:21

user8545 · 28/01/2023 17:43

Parents will be demanding schools teach kids to load the dishwasher next. Let's have some parental responsibility yes?

Is loading a dishwasher to maximise the number of items washed properly maths or physics?

Oddly some of the most common household tasks e.g. how to hang clothes on a clothes horse so they dry quickly have a scientific basis.

phoenixrosehere · 28/01/2023 18:21

XenoBitch · 28/01/2023 17:49

YABVU. You having no idea how to change a tyre is down to you, not school.
I didn't learn to drive until I was in my 30s. There is no way I would have remembered how to change a tyre from being taught over 15 years before then.
Some people never go on to drive or own a car. And even if they could, they might not be physically able to change a tyre. This stuff is literally what your breakdown cover is for.

You having no idea how to change a tyre is down to you, not school.

Agree, one can learn such things from YT videos from trained mechanics. A simple Google search would bring up tons of information.

All it takes is a bit of initiative.

Justtrying · 28/01/2023 18:23

We had to do simple car maintenance in 6th form, before we could use wednesday afternoons for driving lessons. This was early 90's and covered changing a wheel, checking oil, washer bottle etc. As a grease monkey growing up I'd learnt all this with my DDad. But it has certainly come in useful as I work shifts and had to change a wheel at 4am due to a puncture on my way to work.

PurplePinecone · 28/01/2023 18:23

VickyEadieofThigh · 28/01/2023 15:55

This here.

I wish people would pack it in with the "Schools should teach..." crap.

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Agreed. Also fed up of people saying schools should be teaching everything. If it was taught by anyone it should be covered by your driving instructor.

superdupernova · 28/01/2023 18:24

I think I'd prioritise money management over car maintenance. I did a personal finance module with the open university and was stunned by how little I knew.

Reugny · 28/01/2023 18:25

Elmo230885 · 28/01/2023 17:46

Maybe there is a gap in the market for classes for drivers relating to basic maintenance?

Growing up neither of my parents had a car so when I learned to drive everything was new. If something happened to the car I ended up paying for it to be sorted, outside checking the oil level and putting water in the wiper tank I knew nothing.
My first flat tyre, I panicked but made it to placement ( was a student ) and luckily someone there's husband wasn't far and came to change the tyre. I had no idea that the spare wasn't a proper tyre, and had no clue what a space saver was! I tried using Google/YouTube to educate myself but it wasn't the same as having someone talk you through it.
My DH is great with cars so I just call him now.

I bet people would pay for a short class on changing tyres, wiper blades, oil etc I likely would have done.

My sister and a woman I worked with went to a few evening classes on that on the early 00s.

Unfortunately the money for adult learning has been severely cut since then and such classes don't exist in most areas.

One of my friends who worked for a few decades abroad said adult evening classes was one thing the UK should really hold on to.

OnceAgainWithFeeling · 28/01/2023 18:27

Dandelionsinthegarden · 28/01/2023 15:55

I'm a qualified mechanic and I don't think the general public should be allowed to service their cars themselves or change parts. Basic maintenance yes-learning how to change a tyre, wiper blades, bulbs, top up fluids etc is important but as a driver it's your responsibility to know how to do that. Not everybody in school will go on to drive so it's pointless making it a part of the curriculum.
The amount of idiots I've seen when I worked in a garage who tried to do something to their car and then broke it is unbelievable. Only a qualified person should be able to work on cars past the basics IMO.

My dad taught me on my mum’s old Renault 5. Simple engine. I was helping to change spark plugs at 6 and all fluids at 10. 🤷🏻‍♀️ My sister and I could change a wheel by 12.

Modern engines are too complicated for much home tinkering. Dad’s BMW’s windscreen washer bottle is between the inner and outer skin of the front wing, FFS.

We maintain a 16 year old rally car between home maintenance and a specialist. The other cars are pretty straightforward in their needs.

I’m teaching my 12 year old how the car works ahead of young driver lessons. It’s important she knows about it, I think, even though most of her driving experience will be in automatic electric cars. 😭

Reugny · 28/01/2023 18:28

MeMyCatsAndMyBooks · 28/01/2023 17:50

Can't drive to a tyre shop with a flat can you? Hmm

Show quote history

I have twice.

Well one was a local garage around the corner from me, while another was a tyre shop in a small town I was working in.

They were both less than a mile away and fitted me in because I was an emergency.

Reugny · 28/01/2023 18:30

@MeMyCatsAndMyBooks speaking to the mechanic at my local garage about one of my previous cars, he basically advised people to get popular cars as garages and tyre shops are more likely to have the parts/tyres in stock or can get them the same day.

User17498765 · 28/01/2023 18:35

Most small cars don't even have a spare tyre to change, I bought my car a spare spacesaver off eBay as it hasn't got one. Changing a tyre is quite difficult though if the nuts are tight, I have full breakdown cover. It's not something that should be taught at school though as many wouldn't use it nowadays

MrsMikeDrop · 28/01/2023 18:36

Not one of these threads again. Maybe children should be sent to boarding school when they are born where they can be taught everything then returned back to their parents when they are 18.
Parents need to teach their children basic life skills or else teach yourself or find someone to teach you.

Shinyandnew1 · 28/01/2023 18:39

Wouldn’t it be far better for a driving instructor to teach basic car maintenance skills 1:1 to people who are currently learning to drive rather than a teacher who might know nothing about cars trying to teach a class of 30, many or whom will never learn to drive!?

I have read huge lists of things people ‘want taught in schools’ - mouth to mouth resuscitation, playing an instrument to an exam level, learning Makaton, speaking a particular language. Schools can’t be responsible for everything

PurpleRaindancing · 28/01/2023 18:40

I can see why you'd think it'd be useful but I agree with the mechanic that a little bit of knowledge and trying to DIY could be dangerous
I wouldn't try to change a tire , I'd call out RAC and either Rhys fix it by road enough for me to drive to a local tyre shop or they'd convey me there
It's white physical changing a tyre and I can't do it (phys dis)

PurpleRaindancing · 28/01/2023 18:42

I think teaching children how to clean a kitchen and toilet would be very useful 😃 , how to stick to a budget, but then that's a parents job! We can't expect school to teach everything and I can't imagine a school having old cars for children to work on...!