How to Jump-Start a Car, Check the Oil, Change a Tire, Find a Mechanic and Prepare for a Roadside Emergency

It was 2 a.m. when it happened. I had just stopped at a traffic light when I heard "clank, clank, clank." It had died. My aging car's engine had choked on its last breath.

The engine had completely run out of oil, its lifeblood. It would not start again without major surgery, and it was my fault.

My father had reminded me repeatedly to check the oil in my car because it was nine years old and drank a lot of the slick stuff. I guess I should have checked it just a little more often. But as a young woman in college, it wasn't a priority for me. And with that final "clank," it became too late to make it one.

If you're a new driver, you should know a few things about your car so that you can avoid being stranded in the middle of the night as I was. By keeping certain tools and items in your car at all times, knowing how to jump-start a dead battery, how to check your car's oil, what to do if you have a flat tire, and how to find a good mechanic, you'll be on the road to becoming a safe and responsible driver.

Items to Carry in Your Car

Preparation includes know-how as well as a few essential items. You should never leave home without a spare tire, jack and lug wrench, and a can of inflatable tire sealant. A few other important items are an extra quart of oil, a few rags and a flashlight with fresh batteries.

A set of jumper cables can come in handy, too. It can be hard just to find someone who'll give you a jump-start, so you don't want to have to go through the trouble to find and borrow cables, too.

How to Jump-Start a Car

Using jumper cables can be dangerous, but it's not difficult to do it safely if you know how. For a safe jump-start, follow these step-by-step instructions.

1. Place both cars in "park" or in neutral with their ignitions turned off.

2. Open both cars' hoods and look for the positive terminals on both batteries. A positive terminal will have a plus (+) sign, the letters "pos," or will be the larger of the two terminals.

3. Connect each of the red clips of the jumper cables to the positive terminals on each battery.