If you’re like us, you’ve probably tried every trick up your sleeve to fix your car problems with car hacks. The number of repairs you have to do on your car can be frustrating, never mind the expenses that incur. Owning a car is no joyride – sure, it can take you anywhere you need to go, but maintaining it is a huge killjoy. Plus, don’t forget all those bags of groceries, crater-like dents, and cracked windshields to add to the list of painstaking fixes.

Besides, a study showed that passenger car maintenance costs per unit, per month increased by 5-7 percent. In addition, painting alone takes up 21% of the total repair and maintenance costs. Now that has to hurt your wallet.

What if we told you that a majority of these problems can be solved with some effortless car hacks? You don’t have to bring out the big guns for these car hacks – all you’ll need are regular household items. With these life-saving car hacks, you won’t have to worry about ruining your ride ever again.

1. Toothpaste for headlights

Are your headlights dimmer than usual? Research shows that if headlight illumination drops to 20% of the original brightness, visibility could drop enough to make night driving riskier than it already is. Changing a headlight’s casing can be rather costly, but don’t worry, we have one of the best car hacks for you: toothpaste. Yes, your daily, hygienic, teeth-whitening toothpaste. Just smear some toothpaste on your hazy headlights, rub it with a cloth, and rinse it off with clean water. Leave it to dry and voila!  With car hacks like these, you’ll have headlights that, as Rihanna puts it, “shine bright like a diamond”.

2. Nail polish and scratches

Do you ever have a really bad day and can’t wait to go home? Huffing, you step into the parking until you see it – a long, gnarly scratch running along the side of your car door. You curse at your luck in all kinds of colorful words, and wonder if your day can get any worse. Now hold your horses, it’s time to let you in among the best car hacks: nail polish. Find a shade that’s as close to your car’s color as possible, and simply paint it on. Car hacks like this will make that scratch seem like a long-forgotten nightmare in no time.

3. Newspaper and car stickers

Stickers are like tattoos – they reflect your interests through your car. Whether it’s for a cause, sports team, politics, educational affiliation, or to hide a scratch or two (who are we kidding, right?) – car stickers are cool. On the flip side, though, removing them can be a hassle. From an arsenal of car hacks, we bring you: newspapers. Just put some warm water over the sticker, and cover it with a newspaper. Leave it for 10 minutes. The residue will soften up and it’ll be easier to wipe off the entire thing.

4. Stockings and worn out wiper blades

A worn out wiper blade can lead to two different disasters: a scratched windshield, and possible accidents during rainfall. If you’ve realized this, and are looking to replace your worn out wiper blades but can’t get them yet, we’ve got one of the easiest car hacks in store. Time to stretch your legs and grab some stockings – not for your legs, of course. The trick is easy: wrap some stockings around the wipers’ arms, and just use the wipers. Stockings can work equally well as a protective cover and a cleaner – the benefits of two car hacks wrapped up in one.

5. Plunger and small dents

In this day and age, a dent on your car is equivalent to what a chink on your armor would’ve been in the 18th century – not a sight to be proud of. Whether it’s from an accident or a rookie mistake, dents are annoying. While huge dents are hard to fix, smaller ones can be fixed with one in many car hacks: a plunger. Just press the plunger on the dent and pull it back really hard. One of the quickest car hacks, don’t you think?

6. Carabiner and bags

Shopping is fun until you have to stow the end result of your shopping spree into your car. Out of all the nifty car hacks up our sleeves is the use of a carabiner – and holy moly, can it be a lifesaver. Hook a carabiner on the headrest supports of the front seats or grab handles. You can use it as a hanger to keep your bags managed and off the floor. It’s a part of the niftiest car hacks to keep your groceries, purses, sunglasses, umbrellas and pretty much anything else.

7. Tennis ball and parking

Parking your car is nothing short of a gamble – especially since you have to guess the distance between the front or back of your car and the garage walls. Out of the other car hacks, this might require you to be a bit crafty. Get a tennis ball, two hooks and a strand of yarn. First, park your vehicle in the right position. Then, measure the distance between the roof and the centre of your windscreen with the yarn, and cut it. Proceed to screw the first hook into the tennis ball, and the other one on the roof directly above the centre of your windscreen, and then tie the yarn to each hook. Use the ball as a focal point so that you’ll never have to guess again with car hacks like this one. Cheers, the ball’s in your court now!

Wrapping Up

Repairing and maintaining cars can be troublesome, but with these car hacks, it can be done in a cinch. Did you find these car hacks helpful? Don’t hesitate to try them out.

Of course, if you’d rather visit a mechanic than take things in your own hands, BATAS has the right one-stop solution for you. Visit our express workshops of Mahindra and Maruti Suzuki in Kathmandu and Pokhara for a reliable maintenance service.

For more information, contact us.