Everyone thinks they’re the best driver, to the point where most people are happy to dish out driving advice to anyone who will listen. But not all car advice is good, and some is just downright dangerous.
This morning, we asked what the worst driving advice was that you’ve ever heard. Here are some of your answers.
“A car salesman told my dad once sometime in the 1990s that ‘you should always turn off the HVAC before you turn the car off so that it doesn’t strain the battery when you start it again.’ For 25 years, I’ve been trying to convince him that this was dumb advice and unnecessary but he’s never believed me.”
Don’t listen to the 90s car salesman, there is really no need to turn off the AC before you switch off your ignition.
Suggested by: jebhoge
“Shift into neutral and coast down hills; you’ll get better gas mileage!” The same guy couldn’t figure out why his automatic transmissions were wearing out prematurely.”
Unfortunately this isn’t true. Coasting can be dangerous and there’s no evidence that it helps save fuel.
Suggested by: Chris Marsh (Facebook)
“It’s overheating? Remove the thermostat. That’s just for emissions anyway.”
It’s not broken if the thermostat doesn’t tell you it’s broke, right?
Suggested by: Devin Sykes (Facebook)
“When changing oil – with drain plug and filter out start the car and let it run for a minute you can get a little more of the old oil out.”
This isn’t a good idea, please don’t do it.
Suggested by: Chris Mattern (Facebook)
“An old lady said to practice clutch work by parking facing up a hill and trying to balance the gas and clutch so you can stay perfectly still on the hill. If you can hold it there all day then you are a master at driving stick. I was 12-13 years old at the time and couldn’t wait to get home to tell my mechanic older brother.”
While this might be fine for a quick hill start, don’t risk the integrity of your clutch by holding your car on an incline all day.
Suggested by: stevoh
“In the late 90s, I overheard an old man in an independent parts store try to talk a fellow customer out of buying Armor All for his dash because, ‘mayonnaise does the same thing for cheaper’.”
It’s safe to say that mayonnaise should be kept on sandwiches and shouldn’t be used to polish your car.
Suggested by: Clay Weiland (Facebook)
“A friend thought that if their car was overheating, then they should blast the A/C to get cool air into the engine.”
Close but not quite. Turning the heating on, rather than the AC, can pull hot air away from your struggling engine.
Suggested by: emf15q
“People who put their flashers on during heavy rain. Makes me want to commit murder. It has been scientifically proven that all your flashers do is make it impossible for people behind you to properly gauge following distance because it messes up your depth perception.”
Regardless of the weather conditions, it’s best not to drive with your blinkers on unless there’s an emergency as this will confuse the drivers around you.
Suggested by: brohio216
“When driving at night, turn the lights off when you approach a corner so you can better see if a car is coming the other way.”
Dip your headlights so you don’t blind any oncoming traffic, but whatever you do don’t turn them off at night!
Suggested by: Graham Jones (Facebook)
“Changing your oil, but only change the filter every other time. Like hell I’ll leave dirty oil in the motor. Considering how cheap even top-of-the-line oil filters are versus how expensive motors are, I will gladly pop for a new one for each change.”
Your car will thank you for the extra few dollars you spent on a new oil filter.
Suggested by: the1969dodgechargerguy