Now is the Perfect Time to Get Out to Your Garage and Teach the Kids about Basic Car Care and Maintenance



Because Ford-based car clubs have a direct link to both Ford Motor Company and each other via FordPerformanceClubConnect.com, we’re able to keep up with what’s happening in the Ford enthusiast community much better than ever before. All the tips, news, views and comments about the Ford collector car hobby that you send to ClubHub@Ford.com are both read and valued, because it’s only when you talk and we listen that there is real enthusiast communications taking place.

That’s exactly how we came across a great idea for a family activity that you can plan and do right now. Original ‘65 Mustang owner Lyn Adams of Fairfax, Virginia, (see: https://performance.ford.com/enthusi...spotlight.html) sent us a note recently in support of a suggestion she spotted online. It was for parents being “sheltered in place” with their out-of-school children during the global pandemic, noting that one worthy activity they could do together would be to take them out to the garage and begin training them about the care and maintenance of the family’s automobiles. Lyn received an email newsletter from Carlisle Events which she forwarded to us. In it, Carlisle sponsor RockAuto.com posted the following, entitled “Kids & Cars:”

“Toilet paper may be in short supply, but there are now plenty of children wandering around aimlessly after their schools shut down and booted them out the door. Now is a great opportunity to get kids interested in cars. A little tinkering on cars can help teach them how to use their minds and hands to prevent and solve problems. Increased confidence and competence will make them better able to handle and enjoy life's challenges.

“If they have replaced heater hoses on a car, then they probably will have the confidence to replace a leaky bathroom faucet in their own homes someday. Instead of feeling helpless and panicky when the toilet paper shelves are empty, they will stay calm, trusting in their ability to come up with their own solutions if necessary . . .

“Car ‘tinkering’ does not have to start big. A child's first car project could be as simple as learning how to properly wash a car. It is easy to forget that a younger child may not even yet know how to connect a garden hose to a spigot. He/she will beam with pride once he/she has that knowledge and sees how nice the family vehicle looks after winter grime is washed away. The adults involved in all this mentoring will have memories of good times spent with the kids that drown out insignificant memories of empty toilet paper shelves.”

Truly, this could be a rare opportunity for enthusiast parents to share some car culture with the next generation of Ford lovers! And the idea seems to be taking hold: The NAPA auto parts online blog now has lots of great tips on teaching kids about car repair, and Car and Driver magazine recently ran a story about how this would be a great time to spend a few hours in the garage with kids of all ages to begin teaching some auto repair basics.

Of course for some of you, working on a Mustang in the garage with your kids is second nature, For proof, consider the garage time shared by Keith Brunson of Frisco, Texas, and his father, who had taught Keith about working on cars after getting him a 1968 Mustang to wrench on back in 1988. These days, Keith works on his late-model Mustang GT with his own son, Sam, who he says, “schools other kids on various models