There’s a certain machismo that overcomes some of us when we are working on a project. While there are times when we come out ahead as all-knowing and able-bodied, there are also times when we come out looking like a fool who doesn’t have a clue – even when we really did have a clue – but were too careless. Some things that come to mind are working on electrical, building furniture and working on cars.

The latter is where many a nights have been spent bandaging up injuries because we didn’t take the proper precautions; we adopted the lazy approach thinking we could work our way through it. If we’re lucky, we scathe by without a scratch. If not, we have some fixing to do on top of our initial repair.

Our friends at Prestolite Performance, parent company to Accel, Mallory, Lakewood and Mr. Gasket, have put together a list of the Ten Mistakes People Make Working on Cars.

Checking out the list, we’re sure many of you can relate to overlooking some of the items, and we are wondering how many of you fail to disconnect the battery, the first on the list. Disconnecting the battery is probably one of the easiest things to do, yet one of the most overlooked safety procedures.

If you’re doing any welding, you should know that leaving the battery connected can cause major damage to your car’s electrical system. So it’s not just about accidentally touching a hot wire to ground when you’re installing that alternator. There’s more to it.

When it comes to leftover parts, most of us have probably been there – even when we think we’re taking every step necessary to put things back together properly. One way to overcome this mistake is to get yourself a box of plastic sandwich bags and a permanent marker and put all hardware, clips, retainers and small brackets for one component into the bag, seal it and mark it. Another way is to use that fancy-shmancy camera you have, you know, the one that you use to call people with, and take a picture of the parts before you disassemble them so you’ll know how it goes back together.

How many people don’t remove all of the old gasket before assembling your parts? When you don’t remove the remnants of the old gasket you’ve rendered your new gasket unusable. Removing the old material allows the new gasket to lay flat, allowing for a good mating surface for the component.

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Spark Plug Wire Markers and high quality gaskets are just a couple of the many parts available from Prestolite Performance.

Using anti-seize on steel bolts, especially with aluminum parts, keeps the threads from galling and keeps corrosion at a minimum. And of course, one face full of fuel will remind you that you forgot to relieve the pressure on your fuel lines, something you probably won’t forget again.

All of these safety procedures are a good base for working on any car, like using jack stands for support when using a hydraulic jack. Sometimes it’s the little things that matter most, so check out Prestolite’s list and see if you’ve skipped any of them. If you have some great tips to add, feel free to share them with us here.