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Most DIYs (do it yourselfers) and even some mechanics, fall into a trap of fixing car problems by guessing and it will always cost them money all the time.

Back in the days when vehicles are made simple and uncomplicated where engine parts are always easy to find, one can easily guess and replace the defective part because the price is usually cheap. And if you go to a salvage yard, you can buy the part for almost next to nothing. With the present complicated highly advance engines; no one can do that anymore. Troubleshooting by guessing is an expensive option which does not work most of the time. Right now, if you need to properly troubleshoot your car problems, it has to be done in a step by step approach.

First thing first, identify your problem

Does it make any noise? Are you loosing power? Is the engine overheating by checking your dash gage? Does the problem occur when you accelerate? When cold? When hot?

When you get these observations or symptoms and put them in a list, you can then identify the common causes and make a simple test to verify the problem.

Get the engine fault code Always start with this procedure when you see the CHECK ENGINE LIGHT because that is how your engine electronics are designed. By getting the fault code, you are directed to the specific circuit or sensor that is causing the problem. You can get this easily by buying a cheap scanner (ATS can help you get one for under $50 or a you can see your nearest parts store and sometimes, they will do it free for you to promote their parts).

Test the suspected component

This is the part that makes your listing of the symptoms above becomes important. If for example the problem occurs when the engine warms up, you can heat the part with a hair blower and measure it’s reading with a voltmeter. If it is cold, you can put the part in a freezer and do the same measurements. Knowing also the fault code will give you the culprit sensor or components which can be tested for verification. A lot of this, after you are directed to the sensor; you have to test the wiring connection first before condemning the suspected sensor.

Replaced the defective component

After testing the suspected component, it can be brought to your local parts store where you can even compare the ohmmeter or voltmeter readings before buying the new part. Once replaced, you can reset the code before taking the vehicle for a road test. Why? To make sure the symptom or the code does not show up again.

Intermittent car problem

This is the most difficult of the entire car problems because usually when you test it, it does not come on all the time which makes verification hard to do. Unless you have a garage scope or expensive code reader that will allow you to analyze the second by second performance of the circuit, your chances of finding a solution is slim. However, thanks to the computer wiring diagram that is available to anyone who is a member of an online automotive repair advisory club, diagram like this can be had. A licensed technician can even guide you on how to measure each component or circuit of the engine computer management system which increase your possibility of fixing these types of car problems.

To conclude, this is now the golden times for the regular guys to handle most of their own car problems. As long as you have the above tools and information, there is always a great opportunity that you can fix your car problems.

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