You walked yourself into an obvious answer there: yes, to a limited extent you do. That includes understanding a bare minimum about tires, the engine (what noises are normal, what noises aren't normal), oil changing (why, when), windshield washer fluid, basic indications of electric problems, basics about the need to change brakes (indications of brakes going bad, why they need changed), the basics of the parking brake (and not to drive with it engaged and why), the usefulness of different types of tires (for example snow tires), why you shouldn't needlessly over-rev an engine frequently (or do stupid things like over-rev it for an hour while parked), how turn signals work and the need to make sure the lights on your vehicle are functioning, how high beams work (or at least how to use them), how gear shifting works and why it's important not to thrash your transmission (what abnormal shifting sounds like, why that matters), this list keeps going and I've really only covered primitive things that most or all drivers should know within the first year or so of driving.