Quote:
Originally Posted by fredjacksonsan
I don't think that those sites reduce demand much; for example, I am not going to ask someone on fb for advice on how to repair something on my car.
IMO what HAS reduced demand here and in other forums is time. Time for more sites to come into existence(1). Time for the vehicles to change. (2). Time for people to change(3).
(1) Specific communities (I've joined several) where there are experts in that vehicle for a specific problem. And so MANY sites available. When AF came into existence, internet forums were pretty sparse compared to today. Forums were new and fun.
(2) Take a carbureted early 80s vehicle. All maintenance items were pretty much the same from manufacturer to manufacturer. Transmissions were hydraulically activated and almost all 4wd systems were rwd based with an actual lever to operate them. If you knew how to rebuild a chevy automatic transmission you could probably do the same with a Ford or Chrysler product. Imports were a smaller share of the market. Fast forward to today, where the "big three" are fighting a host of imports and Toyota's sales match domestics in volume. Add to that, most vehicles aren't domestic any more, with parts made globally and assembly plants all over the place. Electrically controlled everything and all kinds of designs make working on a vehicle a specialized skill rather than a general knowledge one. Youtube started in February 2005 and you can find plenty of repair videos there...
3) A 20-year-old today is different than the same age group in 2005. Same as those two are way different than that demographic in 1985. The need to know immediately what their friends had for breakfast or what show they watched or or or has grown (for ill IMO) with the internet. Not to mention the drama of the various platforms that have come about. FB, twitter snapchat and all the others suck up so much of youths' time that they don't need or want the hobby of working on a car so they just put gas in it. Oh, and now in a lot of places kids get a lightly used Range Rover instead of a beat to shit Chevy Lumina to drive; perish the thought of buying their own. (Obviously not true for all)
*stops complaining and steps down from soapbox*
It's not AF. It's certainly not the software used at AF.
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I postulated my theory only because I have waited on here for days, if not, weeks, for responses to various auto repair & maintenance queations I've had. Basic questions mostly, nothing too brand specific