Maggie’s What kind of auto diagnostic tool do you use?
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My neighbor has a snap on scan tool that is the best I've ever seen. Can do more than I will ever know or need
A cheap ELM327 from amazon, free Torque app, and my phone work just as well as the $300 scan tool I bought 10 years ago.
Walt
Walt
I have AutoEnginuity. It is by far the best tool I have ever bought. Works on windows based laptop. Check out their website. It is on par with the snapon midas at a much lower cost.
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Snap-on Verus, Ford IDS, AutoEnginuity, basic OBD II scanner. I use them all day every day professionally. Seriously depends on what you are trying to do. You would shit your pants on how many people I see a week that think A: they have a clue as to what they are doing, B: they can fix it themselves. C: have spent $500 trying to avoid going to a mechanic on a $100 repair.
Lets take the simple P0171 code. Most people replace the O2 sensor first cause god fucking forbid that the sensor is ACTUALLY doing its job and telling you that the engine is actually running Lean like it says, next replace MAF sensor, no joy. So next replace fuel pump again no joy. get pissed when I tell you it is running lean from a vacuum leak at a hose or gasket.
Actually had a guy tell me that the computer would tell me what gasket was bad causing his oil leak, so should take less than 5 min to test and diagnose.
look, if it is your "thing" to fix your own cars then I applaud you. But you have to take your lumps just like I have for almost 30 years. Understand that a "code" is just the first step in the repair.
Sorry If I seem rude, but no shit I see it all the time. I have seen a guy spend over $3000.00 before coming to me and I fixed it for under $200, I asked him what he was thinking and he said he was more than 100% sure he could fix it cheaper.
Now this does not included time. The most valuable asset we have. Once a moment in time is gone it can NEVER EVER be replaced. If I lose $20 I can work some over time or what have you to get it back. But I have seen people waste 3 entire weekends to fix what to me is the simplest shit.
I applaud those that give it 110% and if you are one of those PM me and I will help you anyway I can, shit I will send you copies of manuals.
the Verus is very powerful and cost $12,000 with about 1k a year in updates. Ford IDS was $3500 with about $750 a year subscription fee. once you use a factory tool you will think everything is inferior. Autoenginuity I haven't upgraded for a couple years, never really liked it's interface but that is because I work with other tools all day.
Seriously just talked to a DR the other day, A bonafide Brain surgeon who took a couple Auto class a the local university which by the way has an excellent automobile program and he dropped out after a few weeks . Here is what he told me. "I don't know how you do it, cars are changing everyday, while what I work on hasn't changed in 1000s of years".
Lets take the simple P0171 code. Most people replace the O2 sensor first cause god fucking forbid that the sensor is ACTUALLY doing its job and telling you that the engine is actually running Lean like it says, next replace MAF sensor, no joy. So next replace fuel pump again no joy. get pissed when I tell you it is running lean from a vacuum leak at a hose or gasket.
Actually had a guy tell me that the computer would tell me what gasket was bad causing his oil leak, so should take less than 5 min to test and diagnose.
look, if it is your "thing" to fix your own cars then I applaud you. But you have to take your lumps just like I have for almost 30 years. Understand that a "code" is just the first step in the repair.
Sorry If I seem rude, but no shit I see it all the time. I have seen a guy spend over $3000.00 before coming to me and I fixed it for under $200, I asked him what he was thinking and he said he was more than 100% sure he could fix it cheaper.
Now this does not included time. The most valuable asset we have. Once a moment in time is gone it can NEVER EVER be replaced. If I lose $20 I can work some over time or what have you to get it back. But I have seen people waste 3 entire weekends to fix what to me is the simplest shit.
I applaud those that give it 110% and if you are one of those PM me and I will help you anyway I can, shit I will send you copies of manuals.
the Verus is very powerful and cost $12,000 with about 1k a year in updates. Ford IDS was $3500 with about $750 a year subscription fee. once you use a factory tool you will think everything is inferior. Autoenginuity I haven't upgraded for a couple years, never really liked it's interface but that is because I work with other tools all day.
Seriously just talked to a DR the other day, A bonafide Brain surgeon who took a couple Auto class a the local university which by the way has an excellent automobile program and he dropped out after a few weeks . Here is what he told me. "I don't know how you do it, cars are changing everyday, while what I work on hasn't changed in 1000s of years".
2nd I hear that!!!! I work on class 8 trucks for a Peterbilt dealer and all I get is "It's just a sensor why did you charge me so much?" Well the sensor I replaced wasn't the sensor for the check eng light coming on but another that the reading was drifting causing this one to think it was wrong causing your eng to derate and you thought it would be an injector or a turbo that cost thousands more so actually saved you a butt load of money. Then you get the look of wtf, my only reply is you aneroid frequencies were misaligned and I had to install a corrector for a cold soak.
But I have no idea how to work on my wifes car. Ill be buying her a dodge with a cummins like mine next. Fuk gas
But I have no idea how to work on my wifes car. Ill be buying her a dodge with a cummins like mine next. Fuk gas
Most of this shit is perpetuated by dealers who can't diagnose shit anymore without a code or tsb.
I have a new jeep wrangler. Its been running what I would consider hot(220-242, limp is at 245). Something(I suspected water pump) is whining too. Dealer did 3 tsb's(complete system flush, new fan modual, and a reflash) which didn't fix running hot or whining. The factory, 100% plastic, water pumps are known to have the impeller crack and then they spin on the shaft and cause an rpm dependent whining(which I have) and piss poor cooling performance leading to, running hot. Now the dealer has a water pump on order(national constraint, imagine that) and will be doing a complete system flush AGAIN with another 200 bucks worth of coolant. All for something I suggested in the first place.... If the new water pump doesn't fix it they want to change the radiator and heater core.
There are no codes so they are basically throwing parts at it with no real diagnosis.
Whatever floats their boat but I'm approaching lemon law status if their 4th "fix" doesn't fix it.
I have a new jeep wrangler. Its been running what I would consider hot(220-242, limp is at 245). Something(I suspected water pump) is whining too. Dealer did 3 tsb's(complete system flush, new fan modual, and a reflash) which didn't fix running hot or whining. The factory, 100% plastic, water pumps are known to have the impeller crack and then they spin on the shaft and cause an rpm dependent whining(which I have) and piss poor cooling performance leading to, running hot. Now the dealer has a water pump on order(national constraint, imagine that) and will be doing a complete system flush AGAIN with another 200 bucks worth of coolant. All for something I suggested in the first place.... If the new water pump doesn't fix it they want to change the radiator and heater core.
There are no codes so they are basically throwing parts at it with no real diagnosis.
Whatever floats their boat but I'm approaching lemon law status if their 4th "fix" doesn't fix it.
My first post was not meant to piss anyone off. If you took it that way then you got it wrong.
Again If anyone PM's me I will do my best to help. I have helped people on this site before and have received much help in other areas from the other members on this site. It is what I can do to pay forward/back
Here are two more things I get all the time, people calling or coming in to ask how to do something themselves. This truly seems to be a phenomenon related to the car/truck repair profession. People seem to have NO problem taking up hours of your productive time. I ask would it seem ok to you to go to Home Depot or Lowes and buy all the roofing supplies for your house and then go through the phone book(internet really any more) and just call a roofer and ask him how to roof your house.
How about a water heater and a plumber. Just doesn't seem right does it. If you need to do this offer something for his/her time. At the last place I worked we had a couple regulars that would come in and ask questions. You could tell, they just like working on their own stuff which I truly do get. One would give you $20, the other would bring in a catered BBQ lunch for the whole shop (about 20 people) once a year.
Next I get all the time "I did get any warning it was going to break"
So I came up with what I call the "law of the light bulb". In your whole life when anything has broken from ice maker to shoe laces, do you ever get a warning. 99% of the time the Answer is NO, if the answer is Yes then my next question is "did you listen" that answer is always NO.
Again If anyone PM's me I will do my best to help. I have helped people on this site before and have received much help in other areas from the other members on this site. It is what I can do to pay forward/back
Here are two more things I get all the time, people calling or coming in to ask how to do something themselves. This truly seems to be a phenomenon related to the car/truck repair profession. People seem to have NO problem taking up hours of your productive time. I ask would it seem ok to you to go to Home Depot or Lowes and buy all the roofing supplies for your house and then go through the phone book(internet really any more) and just call a roofer and ask him how to roof your house.
How about a water heater and a plumber. Just doesn't seem right does it. If you need to do this offer something for his/her time. At the last place I worked we had a couple regulars that would come in and ask questions. You could tell, they just like working on their own stuff which I truly do get. One would give you $20, the other would bring in a catered BBQ lunch for the whole shop (about 20 people) once a year.
Next I get all the time "I did get any warning it was going to break"
So I came up with what I call the "law of the light bulb". In your whole life when anything has broken from ice maker to shoe laces, do you ever get a warning. 99% of the time the Answer is NO, if the answer is Yes then my next question is "did you listen" that answer is always NO.
You are 100% correct. The dealers do it to themselves. Last place I worked hired 4 new techs 18-20 years old. Started the out at the same wage I was making and gave them jobs I wasn't allowed to do until I had 10 years under my belt. After watching two of them drop trucks off a hoist with one standing straight up on it's nose and another one leave two rags inside an engine I left. Went out on my own. 2 years later I am so busy I can't see the light of day. Getting ready to expand and hire someone. I have worked with close to a 100 mechanics and there is one and only one I would hire. If in the future I need to hire another one I have no idea what I will do.
OP-with the vehicles you list, I'd say any mid-grade scanner such as Auto X-Ray would serve your purposes as long as you got it with the US and Asian software and any adapter cables you may need. I got mine at Northern Tool. I now have OTC Genisys but it's far more expensive. As long as you just use it for your own vehicles you'll be OK but if you try to stay up to date with these things you'll have to take out a 2nd mortgage.
2ndamendfan has it correct. I did this for 20 years (still do part time) before I went to the oilfield for more money/time off. I didn't make a lot of money but the education I got is priceless. The car dealership I worked for sent me to innumerable schools and I wound up as the lead driveability tech, also in charge of getting the other techs trained up. The dealerships get the latest stuff and all the good manuals, TSB's, etc that mere mortals don't have access to. BUT you still have to have sufficient knowledge/skill to use it. Like 2ndamendfan, I see the vast majority of "techs" very lacking in basic troubleshooting skills and depending fully on their hi-tech gadgets to do their troubleshooting for them. In the end, the customer pays for a helluva lot of parts etc that didn't fix anything. I know of a lot of techs around here, but only 1 or 2 that I would ever consider if I needed to hire someone.
If you don't work for a dealership, then the proper troubleshooting information is much harder (and expensive) to come by. Contrary to what many people seem to believe, just having a scanner will not fix anything, and it will not "tell you exactly what's wrong" unless you have the knowledge to decipher the info it gives you. A trouble code for the O2 sensor is more likely a symptom than a cause, but it will lead to the vast majority of owners (and many techs) to replacing the O2 sensor unnecessarily just because "it had an O2 code."
If you have good common sense, basic knowledge of how the system works, a voltmeter and a few other tools along with that scanner--you can do a fair job of troubleshooting yourself. You can save a lot of money by not throwing parts at the problem, and also you can make a more educated decision about whether or not to take it to a pro by eliminating the simple things.
2ndamendfan has it correct. I did this for 20 years (still do part time) before I went to the oilfield for more money/time off. I didn't make a lot of money but the education I got is priceless. The car dealership I worked for sent me to innumerable schools and I wound up as the lead driveability tech, also in charge of getting the other techs trained up. The dealerships get the latest stuff and all the good manuals, TSB's, etc that mere mortals don't have access to. BUT you still have to have sufficient knowledge/skill to use it. Like 2ndamendfan, I see the vast majority of "techs" very lacking in basic troubleshooting skills and depending fully on their hi-tech gadgets to do their troubleshooting for them. In the end, the customer pays for a helluva lot of parts etc that didn't fix anything. I know of a lot of techs around here, but only 1 or 2 that I would ever consider if I needed to hire someone.
If you don't work for a dealership, then the proper troubleshooting information is much harder (and expensive) to come by. Contrary to what many people seem to believe, just having a scanner will not fix anything, and it will not "tell you exactly what's wrong" unless you have the knowledge to decipher the info it gives you. A trouble code for the O2 sensor is more likely a symptom than a cause, but it will lead to the vast majority of owners (and many techs) to replacing the O2 sensor unnecessarily just because "it had an O2 code."
If you have good common sense, basic knowledge of how the system works, a voltmeter and a few other tools along with that scanner--you can do a fair job of troubleshooting yourself. You can save a lot of money by not throwing parts at the problem, and also you can make a more educated decision about whether or not to take it to a pro by eliminating the simple things.
I have the AE domestic enhanced bundle. It does all Dodge/chrysler,GM and Ford with support for all the Diesels.
Sent from my IPhone 5S.
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The brand specific scan tools are the best, unless you work at those dealers or know someone who works there, good luck getting the much needed software updates. When I left Nissan, I believe the Consult III was over $6k.
For something simple, look at the Launch Creader 129.
As mentioned, the tool is the first part, after that you may need further help from a dealer or local mechanic.
For something simple, look at the Launch Creader 129.
As mentioned, the tool is the first part, after that you may need further help from a dealer or local mechanic.
I use a OBD2 that I got from NAPA several years ago, it has a screen that will display the code, then you will need to go to their website Home and find out what that code means by plugging in the year,make,model of your vehicle. I think I paid about 70.00 for it. It has saved me from paying 60.00 diagnostic charges just to find out I could fix it for myself.
Although I really do appreciate a good mechanic!
Although I really do appreciate a good mechanic!
My personal tool was a SnapOn Modis. The cost of updating was pretty expensive. I always used the factory tool at what ever store I was at to reprogram. I'm retiring from the Fire Service in January and going to go back to the car business for a few years , and will probably get an Autel.
I did it professionally for years at various dealers.
Personally I have the AE package at my part time job and it works wonders but does not work on pre-1996 OBD1 vehicles. Since I am a GM guy I also have a factory Tech2 clone that works great. If I was using it more I would not have a cloned one. Also since I used to own a BMW I have a laptop that runs as a virtual machine with the factory diagnostic software.
I also had a snap-on mt2500 (brick) that worked well that I bought new. Wish I had never got rid of it. I have also used the Verus and an OTC Genisys. While all good machines they lacked the speed of data transfer that a factory tool can provide when finding elusive intermittent problems and are expensive to update.
Personally I would go with the AE with the enhanced import asian package ($800) and budget the $50 a year for the updates. I have found with the AE system it is worth it to get the updates as they come out.
Personally I have the AE package at my part time job and it works wonders but does not work on pre-1996 OBD1 vehicles. Since I am a GM guy I also have a factory Tech2 clone that works great. If I was using it more I would not have a cloned one. Also since I used to own a BMW I have a laptop that runs as a virtual machine with the factory diagnostic software.
I also had a snap-on mt2500 (brick) that worked well that I bought new. Wish I had never got rid of it. I have also used the Verus and an OTC Genisys. While all good machines they lacked the speed of data transfer that a factory tool can provide when finding elusive intermittent problems and are expensive to update.
Personally I would go with the AE with the enhanced import asian package ($800) and budget the $50 a year for the updates. I have found with the AE system it is worth it to get the updates as they come out.
One advantage some techs have is a drawer full of parts they know work and can be used for diagnostics.
I run an Insight Edge on my powerstroke. It will pull codes, but it's good to have a bud that knows where to go from there.
I run an Insight Edge on my powerstroke. It will pull codes, but it's good to have a bud that knows where to go from there.
