Talk:Automobile Repair
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[edit] Hello! Anybody out there?
This is a good topic for a wikibook, I think. I was considering writing on paining an automobile, I don't know if this would be the right place. Regardless, I'd like to contribute, but I think the information here should be a little more general; when I work an a car, I don't follow a step by step recipe. First I use what I know about how the thing works to try and diagnose the problem, and if the solution is replacing a part, I use common sense and a general knowledge of what a part looks like to find the old one and get it out, then I put the new part in using the reverse process, or if it's a complicated process, I use the same knowledge of how an auto operates to figure out what goes where. This approach is much more useful I think, it allows for differences in automobiles and it's much more flexible as far as different problems go. It does, however, require a more intimate knowledge about the mechanics of autos, which may be a disadvantage for people who just want to replace the alternator in their 1979 mercury cougar for cheaper than a mechanic will do it. I, for one, feel that an empirical approach to automobile repair is somehow the Wrong Thing though. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 65.126.46.104 (talk • contribs) .
- Sounds like a good topic, with basic repairs and maintenance such as doing an oil change. Kmf164 16:46, 14 March 2006 (UTC)
- I agree, and there is already some good material that just needs organizing into a book. http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Automobile_repair_99_mercury_cougar_alternator_replacement and http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Automobile_repair It needs a Wiki Pro to merge this material.
- I think this is a great forum for auto repair material. I started adding some "recipe" stuff because I think that's ultimately what I'm going to want when I look to doing a repair that I might only do once in a few years (I'm a diy guy). I want to know beforehand about what bizarre tool or procedure I'm going to need so I don't waste my saturday. But, I agree with having general "how it works content". I thought about organizing this book to have general sections on automobile modes of failure, diagnosis, and repair as well as sections on specifics for each vehicle. It seems that this is the right place for this sort of thing. Wikipedia on the other hand does a fine job of discussing each vehicle generally and very general automotive concepts. References to wikipedia should be made when appropriate.
[edit] Merge candidate
merging would be a great idea. I have built some cars and other vehicles both as an ameture and a professional. The more people that share their experience the better the forum could be. Even the blind squirrel finds the occasional nut! I learned a long time ago to use the divide & conquer technique to find and repair a problem in the least amount of time. It has proven to be the most effective way (time & money)to repair a vehicle. I can share this technique with anyone who is interested. phill.brosseau@gmail.com
[edit] Organizing information with templates
Hello all!
I've been working on the Volvo section and have run into a situation that I'd like to get some opinions on. I'm taking a look at the bigger picture and see that auto-repair templates could be a great help for this book.
Basically lots of information can be applied to various models, engines or bodies of a vehicle. If you write an article on any given procedure for a certain model+year+engine, it is likely applicable to a variety of other models, years or engines.
Because of this, it seems ideal to break up procedures and information into small chunks that could be assembled based on what the user selects for the Model, Year and Engine. Being able to pull up the information dynamically already makes this book less of a 'book' but otherwise we will eventually be replicating procedures and information. Possibly even creating inconsistencies across the book. I'm beginning to think this would be beyond the scope of a template, however, I would like to hear what other people think about this problem and possible solutions.
Right now I'm trying to build templates that would let the user choose the model, then year, then engine. But I can already see that this will create a huge number of permutations when you consider all model, year and engine combinations. If anyone has ideas or could help with the design of templates that could be used across different auto manufacturers, I'm sure everyone would be greatly appreciative. EVolvo (talk) 01:33, 23 January 2008 (UTC)
