4 ms·

My awareness in this subject only goes back to the mid-70s so maybe your comment references a time before then but I can definitively say that since then there

by tssva 8y ago

My awareness in this subject only goes back to the mid-70s so maybe your comment references a time before then but I can definitively say that since then there has not been a time when people in the US didn't know how oil changes worked. In fact back then car owners probably had more awareness of how oil changes worked since tasks such as oil changes, spark plug replacement, tune ups, brake drum/pad replacement were much more commonly done by the car owner than they are today.

dragontamer 8y ago
I'm much younger than you :-) I've mostly heard horror stories from my dad about how some of his neighbors didn't know how to take care of their cars. > In fact back then car owners probably had more awareness of how oil changes worked since tasks such as oil changes, spark plug replacement, tune ups, brake drum/pad replacement were much more commonly done by the car owner than they are today. On that point, I think I can agree, at least based on the stories I've heard of that time. But the question is: what about all the car owners who didn't know how to do those things? The car owners who weren't in the know? It wasn't like today where you could easily look this stuff up, you had to have been brought up correctly in the correct car culture to know those sorts of facts. Only when cars broke down, they would come around to the "car guy" in the neighborhood to ask for help. And that's when you hear the crazy stories about how many people didn't know how to handle their cars.
- tssva 8y ago
  Car owners that didn't know how to fix their cars themselves took them to garages or to dealers to be repaired or serviced. Unlike today most gas stations had garages with mechanics on staff. Knowing that your car needed regular servicing wasn't some secret fact that you had to somehow search out or be raised in the proper household to know. Like today it was common knowledge and service information as such oil type and frequency of service was included in owners manuals just as it is today. Did some people then not take care of their cars? Yes, but it is the same today. As for how you learned to fix or service a car yourself if you weren't raised in the "correct car culture", you went to the library and looked it up in the Chilton repair manual for your vehicle. Most libraries had some physically and a more complete collection on microfilm from which you could print out the pages you needed. I was in middle school and high school during the 80s. In this time it was common for middle school/junior high students to be required to take industrial arts along with home economics. Industrial arts included things like wood and metal working, printing and in many school districts small engine repair. In my school district during part of 7th grade all students tore down and rebuild a 4 stroke lawn mower engine.

by tssva 8y ago

dragontamer 8y ago

I'm much younger than you :-) I've mostly heard horror stories from my dad about how some of his neighbors didn't know how to take care of their cars. > In fact back then car owners probably had more awareness of how oil changes worked since tasks such as oil changes, spark plug replacement, tune ups, brake drum/pad replacement were much more commonly done by the car owner than they are today. On that point, I think I can agree, at least based on the stories I've heard of that time. But the question is: what about all the car owners who didn't know how to do those things? The car owners who weren't in the know? It wasn't like today where you could easily look this stuff up, you had to have been brought up correctly in the correct car culture to know those sorts of facts. Only when cars broke down, they would come around to the "car guy" in the neighborhood to ask for help. And that's when you hear the crazy stories about how many people didn't know how to handle their cars.

tssva 8y ago
Car owners that didn't know how to fix their cars themselves took them to garages or to dealers to be repaired or serviced. Unlike today most gas stations had garages with mechanics on staff. Knowing that your car needed regular servicing wasn't some secret fact that you had to somehow search out or be raised in the proper household to know. Like today it was common knowledge and service information as such oil type and frequency of service was included in owners manuals just as it is today. Did some people then not take care of their cars? Yes, but it is the same today. As for how you learned to fix or service a car yourself if you weren't raised in the "correct car culture", you went to the library and looked it up in the Chilton repair manual for your vehicle. Most libraries had some physically and a more complete collection on microfilm from which you could print out the pages you needed. I was in middle school and high school during the 80s. In this time it was common for middle school/junior high students to be required to take industrial arts along with home economics. Industrial arts included things like wood and metal working, printing and in many school districts small engine repair. In my school district during part of 7th grade all students tore down and rebuild a 4 stroke lawn mower engine.