One trip to a garage will almost pay the cost of an automotive scan tool

Automotive scan tool is standard diagnostic equipment for troubleshooting your vehicle. When used properly, it retrieves check engine light codes of the engine fault as shown in your dash. The fault code might be a serious problem called hard code or it can be an intermittent problem or soft code. In the former, it has to be solved by troubleshooting the fault circuit whereas in the latter, it can be reset. If the fault code needs resetting, it can be done quickly using the automotive scan tool which saves you the trip to a garage if you have it.

Tip

If you leave your gas cap loosely installed after you filled the gasoline tank, a fault code will come up. You can tighten this cap and reset the code but if your garage is not honest, you can be charged over $100 just to do this. However, if you have an automotive scanner, you can fix this mostly in under 10 minutes. This fix applies especially to 1996 or newer model of vehicles.

The first automotive scan tool was introduced on automotive vehicles made before 1995. The main purpose was to quickly diagnose the vehicle engine to control emission. When this was started, different vehicle manufacturers produced their own scan tool and it was called OBD1 (on board diagnostic system). To the detriment of mechanics, they were forced to buy different OBD1 scan tools to be able to perform repairs on different vehicles. After 1995, a newer automotive scan tool was required by the government so all scan tools used by different vehicle manufacturer are standardized and uniformed. Called OBD2, it can be used for all models of vehicles for diagnosing both domestic and imported vehicles.

Automotive scan tool is a handy device that you can buy online all the time. Obd2 scan tool can be bought for under $50 if you have a domestic vehicle but you might pay upwards to $100-$200 if you own an imported vehicle. You can also buy this at your local parts store but the thing to remember is this: always give the type of vehicle, engine size and model year to the vendor before buying it. This way, you are guaranteed that you only have the right scanner for your particular vehicle.

When buying obd2 scanner, start with the cheap one until you get the hang of getting the codes. You can then join an online troubleshooting repair advising service like ATS so they can send you the right tests and fixes for the fault codes. If you like to do more troubleshooting, you can buy a little pricey obd2 scanner that can include several features so you can do more testing yourself. Here are some additional features that you should have:

Read diagnostic trouble codes
Reset your malfunction indicator light
Read and clear Freeze Frame data
Access inspection/maintenance system test results
View live sensors in grid
Graph test results perform unlimited data logging.

Tip

ATS will also help you when using advance obd2 scanner features

When you have the above features, it will allow you to get detailed performance analysis of your engine. This will make your diagnosing process more accurate. There is no limit on what you can do and savings you will get if you have the right automotive scan tool.


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