Car mechanics reveal tech secrets that save you a tow and thousands
Your car is a rolling computer, and mechanics know its hidden tricks. Here’s how to find your vehicle with your head, dodge a $2,500 repair and more.
🤯 WOW! Your car runs on more code than a jet. A modern vehicle carries about 100 million lines of software, and Ford’s F-150 tops 150 million. Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner needed roughly 6.5 million to fly. Mechanics today spend as much time with laptops as with wrenches.
The Short Version: Your car has computer quirks most drivers never learn, and knowing them saves real money. Steps below.
📖 Read time: 2 minutes
ChatGPT/Kim Komando
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I’m a car gal. My daily driver is a Porsche, but my true love is a 1946 Chevy truck. No tracking with that one. Take that, Big Tech and data brokers.
I talk to a lot of mechanics (occupational hazard of owning cars that think they’re smarter than me).
Here’s a trick Mike, my trusty mechanic, shared with me that you’ll love knowing.
The secret to finding your car in a packed parking lot: Hold the key fob against your head and press the button. Stay with me here. The water in your noggin acts like an antenna and stretches the signal. Engineers who tested it found the head boost reached farthest.
🔑 Tricks that save you a tow
A dead fob doesn’t mean a dead car. How to get rolling:
- Hold the fob right against the push-to-start button. Press the button with the fob. A backup chip lets the car read it up close, no battery required.
- Some cars use a special slot in the console instead. Check your owner’s manual now, not at 10 p.m. in a dark garage.
Your check engine light has two moods, and they mean very different things:
- Solid: Get it checked soon. AutoZone, O’Reilly and Advance Auto Parts read the code for free, so you know what’s wrong before a shop quotes you.
- Flashing: Pull over immediately. It usually means a misfire, which dumps raw fuel into your catalytic converter and cooks it from the inside.
A bad ignition coil runs about $500 with the tow. Keep driving, and you can tack on $1,200 to $2,500 for a new converter. That’s your cash walking out the door.
💸 Repairs with a hidden tech tax
Some everyday fixes need a computer step most people skip:
- New windshield: The camera behind your rearview mirror runs lane assist and automatic emergency braking. New glass can knock it a hair off. AAA found recalibration averaged $360, so make sure it’s in your quote.
- New battery: Many BMW, Audi and VW models need the battery “registered” with the car’s computer. Skip it, and the car can overcharge the new one and shorten its life.
Your car remembers you. Pair your phone, and it can store your contacts, call logs and favorite addresses. Wipe the memory before the vehicle leaves your hands.
- Selling or trading in: Look for a factory reset or “delete personal data” option in the infotainment settings.
- Returning a rental: Delete your phone from the Bluetooth list.
The mechanic asked me if I’d ever rotated my tires. How does he think I got there?
🗣️ Text/post this stat: Your car runs on about 100 million lines of code. A Boeing 787 needs around 6.5 million to fly. Get tech smarts like this free at GetKim.com.
📩 Send this to someone who drives with their check engine light on and calls it “mood lighting.”