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38 votes
14 answers
4k views

Helping our new users make the transition

mechanics.SE is not a forum It's Q&A. Not Q&Q. Nor Q&Commentary. Nor Q&Chit-Chat. The seasoned SE veterans understand the rules, but the new users don't and we ought to help them ...
9 votes
3 answers
486 views

Custom MVM&R design and logo - Information gathering

Congratulations Motor Vehicle Maintenance & Repair community! We’re going to be creating a custom site design for you that we hope will represent your subject and we want you all to really love it....
Catija's user avatar
  • 135
25 votes
3 answers
595 views

How can we increase the number of eligible voters?

Over on Meta Stack Exchange, we've announced a process we call design-independent graduation which allows us to confer all of the benefits (and drawbacks) of graduation without waiting for our ...
Jon Ericson's user avatar
19 votes
6 answers
1k views

Making a site for professionals

There are already a million places on the internet where you can type simple car maintenance questions and get a bunch of teenagers telling you some random nonsense that they have no reason to know ...
Joel Spolsky's user avatar
18 votes
5 answers
305 views

Why are we so mean to new users?

We all want the community to grow right? Then why are we mean to new users? They need guidance not snarky comments or piling on to close their questions as unclear what your asking or too broad ...
Move More Comments Link To Top's user avatar
21 votes
5 answers
688 views

Are driving questions on-topic?

Is this site specifically for maintenance and repair, or are we going to allow questions about driving practices?
Joel Spolsky's user avatar
11 votes
8 answers
178 views

Let's think about key site design ideas

We graduated last year, and are in the queue to get a new site design to get away from the bland beta style we still carry. Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2 did a bit of research on timelines which indicates we may be a ...
7 votes
0 answers
93 views

Tags are for categorization

This site is still very new but we need a bit of help with tagging. I'm seeing a lot of this sort of thing: Unnecessarily Detailed, Dependent Tags Tags should help you place the question into a ...
Robert Cartaino's user avatar
24 votes
2 answers
2k views

The Great MAF Experiment

Keep on reading if you have access to an OBD-II reader and a fuel-injected vehicle As mentioned in this meta post, I'm on a mission to collect data for mass air flow values at idle. With sufficient ...
Zaid's user avatar
  • 39.1k
19 votes
2 answers
425 views

New design launched

As you can see, the new design just went live! At this point, we are done with major revisions to the design (although you can still report CSS/styling bugs by starting a new post and tagging it with ...
Phoebe's user avatar
  • 101
16 votes
4 answers
204 views

Are small engines on topic?

Are small engines such as found in many lawn care tools on topic? Lawn Mowers (Push and Riding) Back pack blowers Weed eaters Tractors (not so small)
C. Ross's user avatar
  • 203
14 votes
2 answers
612 views

Site design and logo — Draft

My name is Phoebe, and I’m the product designer working on the site theme for the MVM&R community. After researching and reading through your ideas, I’m excited to share a draft of the new site ...
Phoebe's user avatar
  • 101
13 votes
9 answers
343 views

2016 Moderator Election Q&A - Questionnaire

In connection with the moderator elections, we are holding a Q&A thread for the candidates. Questions collected from an earlier thread have been compiled into this one, which shall now serve as ...
Grace Note's user avatar
  • 101
12 votes
2 answers
107 views

Is tractor maintenance on-topic?

There's a related meta question (Are small engines on topic?), but that's more about small engines. How about questions on maintenance of compact tractors (not lawn tractors -- I'm thinking about >20-...
bstpierre's user avatar
  • 101
11 votes
4 answers
181 views

What do we need to do to get out of Beta?

Is there anything to do besides wait? A peek at Area51 indicates the questions per days is too low, anything besides that?
Mark Johnson's user avatar
  • 3,921
9 votes
2 answers
145 views

does the ban on buying advice apply on mechanics?

I know on other *.stackexchange sites, buying advice is strongly discouraged. Installing Xenon headlights in 2004 Chrysler Sebring I looked through the faq for mechanics and did not see that same ...
Patrick's user avatar
  • 2,620
9 votes
9 answers
145 views

2016 Moderator Election Q&A - Question Collection

Motor Vehicle Maintenance & Repair Stack Exchange is scheduled for an election starting next week, October 10th. In connection with that election, we will be hosting a Q&A here for candidates. ...
Grace Note's user avatar
  • 101
9 votes
8 answers
161 views

Custom 404 page image?

It looks like the 404 images for SE sites can be community generated. MVM&R currently uses the default 404 image. Of the ones I've looked at, my personal favorite is the Server Fault 404 image, so ...
Paul's user avatar
  • 1,193
9 votes
4 answers
157 views

Is the beta only for professionals?

There's something I'd like to get cleared up nice an dearly. The advise that pops up the first time we ask a questions states, in part, If the private beta doesn't produce enough high quality ...
John Gardeniers's user avatar
8 votes
2 answers
85 views

Tagging for Make/Model/Year specific questions?

I have started to see a trend emerge that folks are asking questions and tagging them with Make, model and year as separate tags. Should this practice be continued, or should we combine tags like "...
trip0d199's user avatar
  • 714
7 votes
2 answers
111 views

Pre-Moderator Election - Mod Interview

I saw this thread over on Physics.SE and thought it might bring some light into the world of being a Mod on this (and for the most part any) SE site. We will soon be going through an election process (...
Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
182 views

Are vehicle modifications within scope?

Clearly the title says "Maintenance and Repair". Would it be reasonable to include in this scope 'modifications', which are technically neither 'maintaining' or 'repairing' a vehicle?
Samuel Harmer's user avatar
6 votes
3 answers
91 views

Are body repair questions on-topic for this site?

This is brought up by a couple recently closed questions. Scratches - both light and deep How to remove a small dent in the front door of the car? Although these are closed for reasons under ...
Iszi's user avatar
  • 2,591
31 votes
5 answers
368 views

Congratulations, Motor Vehicle Maintenance & Repair is graduated!

It's a big day, Motor Vehicle Maintenance & Repair met our threshold for graduation-worthy sites and after a review, the Community Team determined that you're good to go. Reaching 'mature ...
Grace Note's user avatar
  • 101
20 votes
2 answers
331 views

Earn the Electorate Badge in January 2016 and get

This may be a little bit different, but I'm willing to put up a bounty to any user on here to earn the Electorate Badge in the month of January of 2016. The rules are simple and there are only two: ...
Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2's user avatar
12 votes
2 answers
86 views

What is going on here?

Motorcycle randomly loses power https://mechanics.stackexchange.com/review/close/19357 I am completely baffled. This question is in the close cue. The cited reason is, too broad. I could go on a ...
DucatiKiller's user avatar
  • 32.9k
12 votes
8 answers
131 views

OBD Code Only Questions

Recently we've had a couple of users who have asked questions where the only bit of information they give is the OBD code and the make/model of the vehicle, followed by "how can I fix it" or some such....
Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2's user avatar
11 votes
4 answers
63 views

Should we still provide answers to questions where an answer has been accepted?

What I mean is, say we come across a post that's fairly old and already has an answer that's been accepted. If we have something to say other than what's been already said in the accepted answer or if ...
Dalton D's user avatar
  • 1,958
10 votes
2 answers
144 views

April Challenges

Alright, since today is April 2nd, I'm past due for the monthly challenges. This month isn't going to be too much different. We're still looking for voting improvements, so voting is where the main ...
Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2's user avatar
10 votes
1 answer
73 views

Up-vote questions

One thing we can do to make the site more inviting for new questioners is to up-vote their questions. I try to make a point of up-voting any question that's well-posed, in-line with our FAQ and ...
Bob Cross's user avatar
  • 24.4k
10 votes
1 answer
106 views

Frustrating site, why can't I vote or do anything?

I read the tour and all that but I have to say, it's frustrating that I can't do anything here except ask a question. I can't vote, I can't even comment. I feel like I'm wasting my time. It seems ...
Ppoggio's user avatar
  • 1,487
9 votes
0 answers
74 views

Announcing the Close Vote Café

Backdrop We get a lot of questions where the OP leaves much to be desired in terms of further information or clarification. In the hope that the OP gets back with further information the question ...
Zaid's user avatar
  • 39.1k
9 votes
3 answers
94 views

Are boat trailers on-topic for this site?

For example, how to wire a boat trailer so it will tolerate salt water, or replacing hub bearings. There's no motor but this is closely related to what you find in a car.
Jay Bazuzi's user avatar
  • 2,437
8 votes
0 answers
144 views

Moderator Pro Tem Announcement

Throughout the beta, we need members from the site whose focus is to engage the community, both in community-building issues and site management. That's why we select a few members from each community ...
Rebecca Chernoff's user avatar
8 votes
3 answers
89 views

I want to crowd-source data on MAF readings at idle. Should I make the request on the main site, meta or in chat?

I think it would be possible to answer a question like this if sufficient data was collected about various vehicles: Is there a rule of thumb for estimating volumetric efficiency? I am quite ...
Zaid's user avatar
  • 39.1k
8 votes
3 answers
105 views

Would you like to hang out with fellow members at some car related event?

Sorry for the open ended question. Its kinda weird to fit it into the format. Basically this is the whole idea: Bunch of us agree to attend some car related event. Hang out. Tell stories. Show off ...
race fever's user avatar
  • 3,353
8 votes
3 answers
84 views

Tags for specific models of cars?

Currently you would tag a question about 2003 Honda Civics by using the honda and civic tags. Would it make sense to make more specific tags like 2003-honda-civic and 2005-honda-civic which are both ...
endolith's user avatar
  • 1,351
8 votes
1 answer
61 views

When is a day in SE over?

I had a 200 rep day and I'm wondering when the clock get's reset in here. Based upon my observations regarding resetting the voting clock it doesn't seem to happen from the last vote. That the clock ...
DucatiKiller's user avatar
  • 32.9k
7 votes
1 answer
147 views

Should Radio/Audio questions be off-topic?

Rory had said he would mark this question as off-topic: Radio stops playing when I change volume There have been questions answered about audio in the past ... I'm not seeing as why this is off ...
Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
57 views

URL change from garage.SE to mechanics.SE?

I noticed today that garage.SE now redirects to mechanics.SE. On a particular post on the Area 51 Discussion site, we discussed this and Garage.SE is the most upvoted answer at 16, where Mechanics.SE ...
trip0d199's user avatar
  • 714
7 votes
1 answer
74 views

Editing questions / answers only for better readability?

My main concern is what should I do if I find post hard to read because of poor formatting? Should we accept or reject edits only intended to make question / answers easier to read without adding to, ...
Sampo Sarrala's user avatar
7 votes
3 answers
134 views

Should this site be broadened to "Mechanical Maintenance and Repair"?

One of the choices made in the design of stackoverflow was to unite all programming languages in one Q&A site. The reasons, as I understood them, were the following: programmers often have ...
alx9r's user avatar
  • 183
7 votes
5 answers
155 views

2017 Moderator Election Q&A - Questionnaire

In connection with the moderator elections, we are holding a Q&A thread for the candidates. Questions collected from an earlier thread have been compiled into this one, which shall now serve as ...
Grace Note's user avatar
  • 101
7 votes
2 answers
58 views

Are Non-Vehicle Questions Off-Topic? Suggestion for Similar Communities?

Looking around it seems you allow non-("cars, trucks, and motorcycles") motor vehicle questions. But what about other mechanic problems that are related to non-vehicles? For example lawn mowers, weed ...
Jonathon's user avatar
  • 217
6 votes
5 answers
152 views

Updates concerning Site Design

It's been a while since we've talked about the Site Design and where Mechanics is at in the process. I think I've found some interesting information which you may or may not be interested in. This ...
Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2's user avatar
6 votes
2 answers
68 views

Delay between close vote and review queue appearance

So to support the goal of waiting a bit to close questions, and under the assumption that once questions end up in the review queue they get closed quickly, I had made this feature request on MSE. As ...
Jason C's user avatar
  • 4,890
6 votes
0 answers
30 views

2020: a year in moderation

As we say goodbye to the old year and welcome the new one, we have a tradition of sharing moderation stats for the past 12 months. As most of you here are aware, sites on the Stack Exchange network ...
JNat's user avatar
  • 101
5 votes
0 answers
35 views

2018: a year in moderation

It's New Year's Day in Stack Exchange land... A distinguishing characteristic of these sites is how they are moderated: We designed the Stack Exchange network engine to be mostly self-regulating, in ...
Shog9's user avatar
  • 101
5 votes
2 answers
56 views

Thoughts on platform tags?

I had previously tagged all the Ford Contour/Mercury Mystique questions with 'CDW27', I just did the same thing for some Ford Escape questions (CD2). Is this a possible partial solution to the make/...
Mark Johnson's user avatar
  • 3,921
5 votes
3 answers
85 views

Chat room name suggestions for general discussion

When I have the main site open in one tab and the general discussion chat open in another. I can't tell them apart from the browser tab title. As you can see in the screenshot, I can't tell the ...
Move More Comments Link To Top's user avatar