Jules wrote:

Urgh, that's sad to hear; I've always found web-based forums extremely
inconvenient compared to usenet groups. Mailing lists aren't quite so
bad, but they still have the disadvantage of needing yet another
account and introducing yet another service to manage (particularly
annoying when it's a one-off question!)

Also these days vehicles are quite complex with all the electronics.
You pretty much need a factory service manual set, a computer code
reader, and a multimeter for many repairs/troubleshooting. You can
order factory service manuals from your dealer.

Yeah, I've stated before that I aim to never own a vehicle that's
newer than I am, so I tend to avoid a lot of those issues :-)

This is for the wife's car though (a baby at '97 vintage), so what you
mention does become a factor for certain types of problems.
"thankfully" the issue with hers is a vibration-related fault, so I
can hopefully avoid a lot of the (diagnostic) expense.

There are some very well run automobile repair forums, with vast amounts of
resources and experience behind them, that make repairing certain makes of
newer vehicles a piece of cake.

Unfortunately though, you have decided to keep the make and model of the
vehicle a secret from us, so I can't suggest one of them for you.

Jon