Since day one, Haynes has been all about helping you, the home mechanic, to carry out your own repairs on your vehicles. Here, we celebrate those who use their spare time and Haynes Manuals to repair and improve their pride and joy.
Reader: Tristan Throup, Victoria, Australia
Vehicle: 2006 Holden Astra
Tristan Throup likes to do motoring on a budget. Don’t we all. So, in 2012 he started by buying a 2006 Holden Astra. This kept him mobile with minimal expense for almost 11 years, until one day earlier this year when he opened his garage to find a puddle. A big puddle. Of coolant. That evening’s trip to his favoured takeaway was immediately thrown into the bin (thank heaven for online delivery services!).
Tristan says: “Initially, I thought one of the hoses had punctured. So I replaced the hoses and clamps, which wasn’t easy!
“Then came the time to add the coolant. All was going well until I discovered coolant was pouring out from the radiator, which meant it was punctured.”
What can we say, except: “Oof!”.
Just as well there was a Haynes manual to help out, albeit one for the UK Astra, which is the same as the Holden model.
Tristan continues: “To replace the radiator, I took out the battery, airbox, front cover and the radiator fan for access to the radiator hoses. After that, I unbolted the air-conditioning condenser off the radiator, then after some fiddling I got the punctured radiator out.
“After that, it was just a case of slotting the new radiator in, then putting back all the parts I'd taken out.
“Finally, I hooked the battery back up, then did a radiator flush.
“Once the job was done and I started the car up again, I was completely stoked to get it running again.”
We can go along with that. You get such a sense of satisfaction when you’ve taken broken things apart, replaced faulty parts, and put it all back together – and it works as it should! That’s always a good feeling, and is something that underpins the entire Haynes ethos.
We’d love you to follow in Tristan's footsteps by showing us what you’re working on and how you’re using Haynes to help you out.
Just send us a few details about yourself and your vehicle to yourrepairs@haynes.co.uk
Let us know about any issues you’ve encountered or any problems you foresee, plus a few pictures, and we’ll feature you on our website and social channels.
