How to get started?

[Rubyoptics]

Hey all. I guess this is somewhat of a random thing, for which I'm sorry! As you probably know, this is my first car. One of the reasons I chose the CC was the fact that it was based on the incredibly successful 206 which meant that there are plenty of parts and mods available. I'll pre-face what's next by saying that I'm not a boy racer who wants fart cans and neons and all that crap, but i DO want to make a few changes, both styling and performance wise. I would also like to be able to work on my car to do basic and maybe in the future intermediate maintenance.

Here's my problem.....I'm terrified of messing up and damaging the car. I was a Royal Navy engineer for 12 years, so it's not as if i'm incompetent when it comes to mechanical work, i'm just really worried about doing something that will either damage the car or leave me with a huge repair bill.

So far, I've given the car a thorough detailing inside and out, deep cleaned the engine bay and replaced the phase 1 rear lights with something a bit more modern. I read about projects such as puddle lights and footwell lighting both on here and on 206info and really want the...courage i guess, to take on something like it.

So, my question is how can i build up to these types of thing? Are there any 'stepping stones' that you would recommend to help me gain confidence in working on my own car?

Sorry that this isn't your standard 'how do i...' question, but you all have been so helpful both pre and post purchase that I thought I would come to you with this!

Thanks as always!

[IanL]

I don't have much of the experience you're after, but I can point you to an important issue. Peugeot electronics are very sensitive to low voltage or loss of voltage. It is essential, if disconnecting or reconnecting the battery, that the correct drill is followed:

http://www.peugeot206cc.co.uk/viewtopic ... 23&t=13473

[George 206cc]

If I understand correctly, you're looking for small jobs you can do on the car which are forgiving if go wrong, but if go right, will give you the confidence to proceed to harder jobs?

How about replacing the airfilter? It's just 4 little screws and a small clip, take old one out, new one it, not a lot can go wrong there.

I recently installed boot and footwell lighting. The stock boot lighting in a small dim light that shines across the boot. As soon as there's a bag in the boot, it blocks the light. So instead, I ran a wire up into the boot lid and I now have a white led strip that shines downwards and is much brighter. Still draws the same current as the old light. As for the footwells, I got 4 small blue led strips. 2 in each footwell (only did front, didn't both with back). Wired them up to the cigarette lighter circuit. Again, they draw hardly any current at all. The re-wired the cigarette lighter so it's now beneath my chair and has my phone charger permananelty plugged in, and I have a switch for the blue leds where the cigarette socket was. I can send photos if it's hard to imagine what I mean, just let me know. Also, I installed an additional cigarette lighter in the glove box so my satnav is permanently plugged in there. Also, my car has bluetooth thanks to one of those eBay Bluetooth FM transmitters. This kind of electrical work is quite straightforward.

For something not electrical, go for the air filter first. Then, perhaps try following a YouTube tutorial on oil and spark plugs.

Hope it goes well!

[Rubyoptics]

Thanks for the reply. You have indeed got the right idea of starting small and working up! Here's what I've tackled so far... I've replaced both the cabin and engine air filters and I've replaced the NGK spark plugs with Bosch ones. Some photos of the work you described would be great if it's not too much trouble?