SEE CLEARLY
Often-forgotten cleaning job using £2.10 household favourite could save you writing off your car when parking
Plus what to do if the vital car part gets damaged.
AN often-forgotten cleaning job making use of a £2.10 household staple could save you from writing off your car while parking, a mechanic has revealed.
Scotty Kilmer, who has been fixing up motors for over half a century, urged Brits not to neglect a safety feature present on all new cars.
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Under road laws in both Europe and the US, all new vehicles will be required to have back-up cameras installed before sale.
The small camera, often installed behind or under the number plate, acts like a second rear-view mirror in real-time.
This allows drivers a clear view of their surroundings while reversing without having to twist around uncomfortably in their seat.
Indeed, just this year a major EV brand launched the first car ever to come without a rear windscreen, relying instead upon a number of angled cameras.
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However, many may well forget that the camera itself needs basic maintenance just like the rest of the car.
It's so easy to do
Scotty Kilmer
Discussing the issue on his YouTube channel, Scotty said: "Camera lenses can get dirty, you've got to clean them every once in a while.
"You would never ever realise that most people never ever clean them.
"It's so easy to do.
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"They're easy to find...just clean it with some Windex."
Windex is available for as little as £2.10 in major supermarkets but any reliable glass cleaner should do the job.
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This will likely leave your camera's lens clear as day and give you a much better view out the back of your motor.
It's certainly worth the couple of quid you'll spend as if you back into a bollard or ram a kerb, you could be looking at thousands of pounds in repairs and your car being written off with structural damage.
Even worse, if you don't spot a pedestrian thanks to neglecting your camera and you knock into them, you could be charged with careless driving.
This carries a potentially unlimited fine and up to nine points on your licence.
And if your camera lens is scratched rather than just dirty, Scotty still had a trick for you.
He added: "Maybe you went through a bunch of car washes and it's scratched.
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"In that case, you can get some fine scratch remover, put it on a clean cloth and polish it a little."
It comes after Wheeler Dealers star Mike Brewer launched a furious rant at a major delivery company, accusing it of "lying".
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