Lucille's Car Care: Everything You Need to Know from Under the Hood-By America's Most Trusted Mechanic [Hardcover]

Lucille Treganowan (Author), Gina Catanzarite (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1996

In a practical guide to car care, the star of her weekly cable show Lucille's Car Care Clinic walks car owners through basic repairs, reasonable rates, dangers of bad driving habits, and even how to make clocks out of old pistons. Tour.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The little old lady who knows all about fixing cars, Treganowan is the Martha Stewart of auto repair. She went into the auto-shop business in the sixties, became a popular success and went on to develop a cable TV show on car mechanics for those who are not mechanically-minded. (Co-author Catanzarite is the producer of the TV show.) Now she has a huge audience for her non-technical, no-fuss advice on how to keep your car on the road. She resists the obvious temptation to indulge in down-home folksiness and manages to convey in clear simple language the basics of do-it-yourself auto maintenance and repair.

From Library Journal

There is always a ready audience for books that provide simple explanations for how an automobile works and how to obtain good service. Treganowan, who boasts nearly 30 years in the automotive repair business, has penned a book that shows how to make minor repairs, prevent large problems through routine maintenance, buy and sell a car, and more. Thanks to her lighthearted approach, the book will appeal to those who want to know more about how their automobiles work but don't want scientific or overly mechanical explanations. Similar to Deana Sclar's Auto Repair for Dummies (Ten Speed Pr., 1989. rev. ed.), which has been a best seller for well over a decade but is geared more toward maintenance than repair, this book is recommended for public libraries.?Eric C. Shoaf, Brown Univ. Lib., Providence, R.I.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 257 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion Books; 1st edition (June 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786862017
• ISBN-13: 978-0786862016
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,426,702 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great reference for mechanically challenged drivers., June 5, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Lucille's Car Care: Everything You Need to Know from Under the Hood-By America's Most Trusted Mechanic (Paperback)

This book is a valuable reference for all drivers who would like to understand how their cars work and how to talk to and understand a mechanic. It is well written and organized. I learned what many of those squeaks, clunks & chirps mean & how to do my own maintenance. I'm giving Lucille's to my neice for her 16th birthday.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great introduction, February 10, 2003

By 

greasergrrl (Seattle, WA United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Lucille's Car Care: Everything You Need to Know from Under the Hood-By America's Most Trusted Mechanic (Hardcover)

This was a great introduction for someone who knows very little about cars. She explains what the major systems of the car are (like the drive train, suspension, etc) and identifies key components (like the radiator and catalitic converter) and explains what they do in simple terms. My only complaint is that as someone who just bought a classic car and wants to really learn to be a weekend mechanic I wanted to know more about certain things and was frustrated by not being able to "double-click" to get more information about something she had described too generally. She really does explain things in an easy-to-understand and entertaining way and gives a great maintenance plan for the average car owner who wants to save money by doing it themselves or just know what mechanics are talking about so they don't get taken for a ride.

Lucille herself is quite inspiring - I'd like to know her! Stop by greasergrrls dot com if you like and say hi :)

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding, May 13, 2003

By 

"kyms66" (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lucille's Car Care: Everything You Need to Know from Under the Hood-By America's Most Trusted Mechanic (Hardcover)

I bought my first car and this book at the same time. I have had many car problems in the past few years and this book was the only thing that made conversations with a mechanic seem almost painless. Lucille's book helps to identify smells, fluids, sound and much more. Without this book I'd never know how or when to change fluids, what smells or sounds to be concerned with. What is safe and what is not...even if a job will be very expensive! A great book, maybe the most well used book I've ever bought.