How To Improve Caro-Kann

HOW???

This way :

This way also works :

Reading a book sounds like a good start to me.

I have a couple books.  Andy Soltis' A Black Defensive System for the Rest of Your Chess Career is based on the Caro-Kann vs 1 e4 and it's cousin the Slav vs 1 d4.  I often answer 1 d4 with 1...c6 hoping for 2 e4 d5 - transposing to the Caro-Kann.  It covers most of the common variations.

Cyrus Lakdawala's Caro-Kann Move By Move is a fairly complete 454 pages and gets into the ideas that generate the moves.

Also, I use the freebie Lucas Chess (http://www-lucaschess.rhcloud.com/index.html) which can be set so you play against various first several opening moves and various engines with various personalities (reckless, solid, etc.) and you can set it choose among all the high rated moves the chess engine determines so you don't get the same variations against you every game.  It's helping me get comfortable with the opening.  The books are helping me see what kind of pawn structures, etc. to aim for.

Here are two not-awful but not-perfect Caro-Kann's I played yesterday, specifying only that White had to play 1 e4.

In the first game, White really threw me. White's 4th and 5th moves keep me from developing my QB to f5 or g4 - which is a key reason ...e6 isn't played early by Black, who wants to get that Bad Bishop outside the pawn chain.  I was able to put him on a6 and exchange him with White's good bishop that way!  I was lucky to win and need to explore this more:

It certainly helps to understand what black is trying to accomplish in this opening:

1. Black seeks to challenge the center and take control of the D5 square or to take control of the D-file.

2. The endgame usually favors black. Thus you need to be on the lookout for tactical tricks from white and avoid taking risks (this a "solid" defense, after all). Make a fortress, and don't go pushing pawns unless you have to.

3. Remember to get your light-squared bishop out before pushing the e-pawn forward. The Caro-Kann is famous for its "V" shaped pawn structure. So moving the bishop out, without blocking the d-file is rather critical. Usually you want to trade your bishop for theirs.

4. Knights are cramped in this opening. If you can trade off knights, it's a win for black.

5. Black can usually castle King or Queen side. Don't think that the queen side is unsafe because the pawns have been pushed a little bit. Castling queen side sticks the rook squarely on the D-file, which is usually your point of attack.

6. Study the games of other grandmasters who have used this opening and what went well, and all also, what went poorly.

http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1543528

http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1044100

http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1008420

Get a good book opening repertoire on Caro Kann and you play this defense correctly, means winning more games.  

Yes a good book on Caro is what you need. Carokann is deeper than 2 moves.

Play Qd6 Scandi. It is an improved caro.

It looks like the first one hangs a pawn and the secon hangs a piece.

Both of those books suggest 4...Nd7 after 1 e4 c6 2 d4 d5 3 Nc3 dxe4 4 Nxe4.

IM Cyrus Lakdawala explained: "... IM Houska and GM Schandorff both advocate the more popular 4...Bf5 line. ... I prefer playing out of fashion lines because my opponents are less likely to be booked up on such lines. ..."

https://web.archive.org/web/20140627015516/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/hansen163.pdf
I understand that Opening Repertoire: ...c6 by Cyrus Lakdawala and Keaton Kiewra has recently been published. Apparently, it suggests 4...Bf5.

https://www.everymanchess.com/downloadable/download/sample/sample_id/131/

Practice makes perfect - I am also someone learning the Caro-Kann, and I usually analyze those games after playing them.

Also, studying endgames is a good idea is well - the thing about the Caro-Kann is that if White tries to be extremely aggressive via pawn-storming Black, Black will "bounce back" in the endgame and start dominating White there, provided that he survives the attack.

The first is usually much worse for black who should play Ke7, but players tend to play Nc6 securing an advantage for White as it wins a knight or trades a bishop for a pawn , a rook and castling rights

Personally, I play 4...Bf5 because the whole reason I play the Caro instead of the French is that I can get that Bad Bishop outside my pawn chain before ...e6 blocks it in and in so many cases White plays Bd3 and lets me exchange my Bad Bishop for his good one!  4...Nd7 just blocks my QB in.

A lot of positions are reached where White has an isolated pawn on d4 - or can't conveniently move his c-pawn to c4, and, with his e-pawn exchanged off the board, that makes d5 a great N-outpost for Black.  The f6 N is the one that goes to d5 and the N on d7 may to f6, to reinforce d5, or it may be better off staying on d7 to help block White from establishing N-outposts on e5 and c5.

Consequently, if I play ...Nbd7 before playing ...Bf5 that means I can only activate my QB by ...Bb7 - where he's likely to be blocked by a Black N on d5, or by ...Ba6, which is dangerous because the B is unprotected since the QN has already moved to d7!

Originally, my interest in the Caro began when I switched, as Black, from Q's Gambit Declined to the Slav - again in order to get the QB outside the pawn chain.  But if I answered 1 d4 with 1...c6, a typical reply was 2 e4.  Now, with 2 d5 I've transposed into the Caro-Kann!  So I had to know the Caro if I wanted to play the Slav!

Usually, 4...Nd7 is played to prepare for Nf6, so that Black can preserve his pawn structure if White takes. Black also always has the option of playing it to g6.

The drawback to ...Bf5 is that if White knows how to play correctly, White can gain some time on attacking the bishop and advance his h-pawn in the process:

True, but the whole point of Bf5 is to trade it off for their light-squared bishop (bad bishop for a good one). Plus the pawn of h6 denies the knights any good outpost near the king. All in all, still a strong setup for black.