Need Some Advice From Some Actual Experts In The Automotive World

jdnet · September 30, 2010

Ok guys first of all please keep this thread on topic and avoid arguments. I just need some opinions from people with hands-on eperience in the automotive field.

As some of you may know I am a reporter but mostly deal with court reporting. In an effort to make my life less boring I decided I should move on to something I love like cars and auto technology. As it is the paper I write for does not offer many articles pertaining to the auto industry so I thought it would be nice to have a few articles each week.

Here's what I need your help with:

1. I need to know what type of automotive article you would like reading. Basically, would it be an article on new garages, specials, technology?

2. Would like to know if you have some interesting people you would like to read about.

3. Do you think this topic would be space well spent on a newspaper?

4. If you have a topic you think that must really be on the paper please PM me. I would appreciate it if you could give me some leads.

Not trying to make you guys do my job, I just want to write something that I think my readers would find interesting.

Any other tips and advice pertaining to the topic would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Skyline R33 · September 30, 2010

Great. I used to love those Auto pages when I was back home.

Personally I would love to read something more local regarding the industry than overseas stuff. All the foreign stuff are covered by many medias and less people write based on the local industry. I have listed a couple of things I would like to read.

1) An analysis of a popular local model (eg. FB15) each week with the pros and cons and some figures such as fuel consumption as you would have seen the amount of fuel related questions we have come across. I'm sure there will be many people wanting to see facts on black and white but again I'm not sure is this easy since you need to get a lot of data.

2) Give some coverage to local industry related events such as races, rallies, meets etc.

3) You could also get some contacts from popular garages regarding the stuff they have mastered and provide readers with info (eg. Best joint for pannel beating/painting)

Will add more if I come across anything I think might be suitable. Well, the space spent well depends on the content of the space but I'm sure since there are not many papers carrying these kinda pages it will draw the attention. Specially these days where every one wants to own a car. It also depends on the language of the paper and if it's a daily or a weekend one. Weekend columns draw more attention but it might take time to get a solid reader base for your column. Me don't know much in the media industry, just my two cents. All the best with your writing and when you start writing some thing let us know.

jdnet · September 30, 2010

Thanks for your input. I agree with your point that I should be covering local stories, if someone wanted to know about international stuff they would probably use the internet. As for the language used, I work for a enlgish language paper and I do have a choice of using the daily edition or the weekly edition. As for your tip on covering popular car models such as the FB15 I must say that it could be a bit of a hard task considering that used cars vary in condition thus it would be a bit risky to use a single car as test subject for the whole model. Although I think it would be far easier covering brand new cars in the market. Maybe I should look specifically at brand new cars in the lower budget range?

kaushama · September 30, 2010

I think review articles of popular models of cars would be very helpful. You can get user and expert input and cover the areas of popular interest like maintenance, comfort, performance and FC kind of stuff. The experts here would be very helpful to do it. And head to head comparison of popular models too will be helpful. Like the Whatcar magazine but for local models,

http://www.whatcar.com/car-reviews

You may have a poll or ranking of the models in each section for people to have an idea.

What about some facts about popular and useful mods and where to get them?

A current market price guide would be very helpful. Like lowest and highest ranges for second-hand and unregistered. if you could gather price information, it would give a better guide for people, who hunt for a car.

Edited September 30, 2010 by kaushama

Pericles · September 30, 2010

On 9/30/2010 at 1:57 PM, jdnet said:

2. Would like to know if you have some interesting people you would like to read about.

Start with Dilantha Malagamuwa.

Then there are a few interesting people that you can contact thru the forum too

jdnet · September 30, 2010

On 9/30/2010 at 4:27 PM, Pericles said:

Start with Dilantha Malagamuwa.

Then there are a few interesting people that you can contact thru the forum too

Cool. Will find a way to get in touch with him. What type of article would you prefer a Q&A or a story type?

MasterDon · September 30, 2010

On 9/30/2010 at 4:43 PM, jdnet said:

Cool. Will find a way to get in touch with him. What type of article would you prefer a Q&A or a story type?

I for one am fed up with the lankan newspapers' Q&A's & stories,all are filled with the same repititive and politically correct stuff,Would love more insightful articles minus the BS.The question is that if the publication companies would give you such liberties.

Pericles · September 30, 2010

On 9/30/2010 at 4:43 PM, jdnet said:

Cool. Will find a way to get in touch with him. What type of article would you prefer a Q&A or a story type?

That should depend on the style of the journalist If it were me, I would write story coz it will allow me to run descriptions and commentary in addition to quotes, whereas Q&A would restrict me to questions and answers. Easier to do, but not flexible enough for me. You'll have to choose whats right for you

Depends on what you can get too. If its only a phone or email interview, you might have to stick with a Q&A type thing. You meet and spend some time, maybe can generate a story from it to go with the Q&A

jdnet · September 30, 2010

On 9/30/2010 at 6:12 PM, Pericles said:

That should depend on the style of the journalist If it were me, I would write story coz it will allow me to run descriptions and commentary in addition to quotes, whereas Q&A would restrict me to questions and answers. Easier to do, but not flexible enough for me. You'll have to choose whats right for you

Depends on what you can get too. If its only a phone or email interview, you might have to stick with a Q&A type thing. You meet and spend some time, maybe can generate a story from it to go with the Q&A

True, but, I think it depends on the reader too. Some people like reading Q&A type articles while others hate it. I for one hate reading Q&A pieces as it does not showcase the true capabilities of the writer and is a risky move if you want a story that has to be really interesting as it depends solely on the inverviewee's communication skills. However, there are people who live Q&A pieces as it brings them closer to the interviewee. I guess in the end an article such as this one would depend on what information I would end up collecting.

lokulamaya · October 1, 2010

well jd....most of the local television automobile shows are full of body kit advertisements,personality promotions and car-setup promos..and not to mention repetitive broadcasting of the same program until they find a new topic..so most viewers are not interested in those.

since you are related to an English news paper i would suggest you to publish more general items related to the automobile industry..

1.you can start up with an article such as high demand vehicals in sri lanka (by their make ,model &year) and have a in depth analysis regarding the pros and cons of each vehicle and their current market value.(of course a discussion regarding general problems related to each model will be a nice add up )

2.general procedure on buying a vehicle,procedures to transfer a vehicle to another district,pros and cons of buying shared ownership vehicles,Tax schemes related to different vehicle categories,common problems related to vehicle registration,common fraudulent activities done by specially car sales to sell cheap quality vehicles,common myths regarding unpopular yet good quality vehicles are some of the topics you could elaborate on..

3. If u need to catch up our young guns, surely you need to focus on motorbikes(not just daily commuters type,but also vintage , racing & trailer type bikes )as far as i remember daily m****r had something similar to this and they had a huge fan base for this section(even my dad used to like it)..

cheers.........

Sifaan · October 1, 2010

Hi!

Few ideas...

1. If you do write about popular models (whether new or used) please do include a section on Safety Review - educating the public on that aspect of cars would be a public service. It would be nice to see a "Also consider" section (other cars for the same price range and/or of similar features) like is common in most car review sites on the net.

2. Also on the public education angle, some topics like why it's important to have the correct tyre pressure in the car, etc.? maybe you could even slip in a piece about how to use those blinking orange lights and how not to use the big button in the middle of the steering wheel

3. While I personally may find it more convenient to read up on int'l stuff and new developments on the internet, I think it is worthwhile to write about those (e.g. when a few new models are launched @ a motor show) because I'm guessing not all of your (potential) readership would go to the net for such kind of things. (However, I hope your piece would also be available online )

4. I'm interested in new technologies (e.g. PSA/BMW engine with water pump that only activates once engine reaches operating temp; so engine reaches ideal temp faster) but I fear that that market may be too narrow for a newspaper

Cheers

jdnet · October 6, 2010

ok so I gotta come up with an automotive related article by 3 p.m. tomorrow. I'm lost. Anyone got any ideas on topics for a quick article?

madmax · October 6, 2010

On 10/6/2010 at 3:09 PM, jdnet said:

ok so I gotta come up with an automotive related article by 3 p.m. tomorrow. I'm lost. Anyone got any ideas on topics for a quick article?

Do one about the Shelby Mustang to hit the streets of Colombo

Edited October 6, 2010 by madmax

MasterDon · October 6, 2010

On 10/6/2010 at 3:29 PM, madmax said:

Do one about the Shelby Mustang to hit the streets of Colombo

and wait for the white van to arrive.

jdnet · October 6, 2010

On 10/6/2010 at 4:01 PM, MasterDon said:

and wait for the white van to arrive.

^^^^^^ what he said. lol!

madmax · October 6, 2010

On 10/6/2010 at 4:01 PM, MasterDon said:

and wait for the white van to arrive.

On 10/6/2010 at 4:04 PM, jdnet said:

^^^^^^ what he said. lol!

And then you can write about both the Mustang & the White Van!

Sifaan · October 6, 2010

On 10/6/2010 at 3:09 PM, jdnet said:

ok so I gotta come up with an automotive related article by 3 p.m. tomorrow. I'm lost. Anyone got any ideas on topics for a quick article?

let's see... impact of tax reduction on 2nd hand vehicle market? how to decide between Axio and Axela? Choosing a good windscreen wiper? You've even got the articles already in Q&A format, just need to censor the violent stuff