do it yourself auto repair

When a service engine soon light is turned on, and you take your vehicle to the dealership. The first thing they do is connect the auto scan tool to retrieve the code. They take this code and look it up in their auto repair manual. In most cases, the first step in diagnosing any code is to clear the code and see if the code returns as a hard failure.

If the auto repair center clears the code, and it does not return, the problem is considered intermittent. In this situation, you have just been charged at least an hour diagnosis for little or no auto repair help.

If you had your own auto scan tool, you would be able to retrieve and record the code and then clear the code to see if it was an intermittent problem. If the service engine soon light does not come back on. You have just repaired your vehicle in a span of about 10 minutes. You have also just avoided a trip to the auto repair center, which is priceless.

The actron 9410 pocket scan tool not only reads and erases codes but it also tells you how urgent the code is. Some codes are very important to fix right away. Like a p0300 range code for engine misfires. In this case raw fuel could be pouring into your catalytic converter. This would be expensive and possibly dangerous if not addressed right away,

On the other hand a p0400 range code is for the evaporation emission system. This code will never do any mechanical harm to your engine. So knowing how urgent the code is very important. See my full review of the Actron scan tool.

Yes I use All-Data almost every day but I wanted you to know about the recent improvements to the web based program designed for DIY auto mechanics. All-Data is well respected in the car repair business and has produced some of the best digital auto repair manuals known to man.

They now offer an online subscription that provides wiring diagrams, technical service reports, and repair procedures for as low as 29.95 a year with no auto renewal. This is the lowest price point I have ever seen for a product of this magnitude. Now you have no excuse to fix it right the first time.
Get diagnostic and repair information on over 22,000 automobile makes and models! Access All Data Diy Auto repair Manuals.

Diy auto repair has a lot of rewards and also some risks. Work smart and you can minimize the danger and reap the rewards. Example have you ever started prying on something with your screw driver and a little voice inside your head says this doesn't seem like the thing to do.

Then you justify continuing and silence the voice of reason? Next thing you look down at the bloody screw driver handle and the blood outlines the warning on the handle " do not use as a pry-bar or chisel". Take a minute to review my auto repair safety tips. And please put your safety glasses back on.

I worked for an auto repair service center in New Jersey that bought a piece of equipment called an engine vac. This machine says it will clean fuel injectors plus remove carbon deposits from cylinders and valves.

The machine claims to restore power and fuel economy to your engine. The engine vac machine connected to the fuel system and pressurized cleaning solution was fed into the engine while it was running. The auto repair service sold for $110.00. The shop spent $2000.00 on the machine and the service was not selling well. They put a poster up on the wall from engine vac that explained to the customer all the wonderful things the machine did.

The auto repair service adviser would take the customer over to the poster and use the poster to help sell the service. Still the sales were low. The dealership implemented a bonus plan to the mechanic and service adviser. For every engine vac service sold the mechanic and service adviser would split a $20.00 under the table cash bonus. The dealer would take money out of petty cash and hand over the ten-dollar bills to the mechanic and adviser.

The effect this had on the auto repair service department personnel was nothing short of amazing.Suddenly every car that came in needed a engine vac service. The evil part of this story is that the machine was very hard to hook up to the vehicle so the mechanics put a twist tie on the connection hose and would fake the whole service. For the rest of this story and plenty more true auto repair service stories visit our main site.

Did you ever wonder how the car auction system works or if it is just another car buying scam. I worked for one of the largest auction car company's in the U.S. Read one story about my experience there!

Shrinking budgets and improved vehicle performance or two reasons, law enforcement agencies drive fleet vehicles farther and longer than ever before. Today's law enforcement fleet managers are forced to keep vehicles to the hundred thousand mile level and beyond, a figure many industry experts agree is an appropriate replacement mileage level. This replacement mileage level was unheard of a decade ago.

Most fleets prefer to keep the fleet vehicle replacement mileage level in the 75,000-mile range. The perception is that the older a vehicle the more expensive it is to maintain, particularly given the nature of the law enforcement profession and the job itself and the stress on the vehicle. Police cars often find themselves in high-speed police chases and driven across varying terrains and unusually hard-driving practices.

Because of better engine design and higher quality parts inherent with today's vehicles, you should expect to drive today's cars longer. Cars with the police package are extremely well equipped and built for heavy-duty usage. Simply put cars or much better engineered today, and with proper maintenance, last longer than even five years ago. At one time a police car with 100,000 miles was pretty much unheard of, but better parts quality, technician quality, and manufacturing improvements have all played a part in increasing the vehicle's life span.

Some law enforcement agencies would like to replace the vehicle more frequently. One reason for this is that the police officer prefers to drive a newer patrol car. Police officers are hard to come by, and in some cases, local law enforcement agencies must go the extra mile to secure a new employee. Setting the replacement mileage at a low mark allows the local law enforcement agency to replace the car sooner, but also have a higher employee retention rate. To view the full story and how this effects you visit my replacement mileage article.

Demand for gas worldwide is increasing. U.S. drivers aren't the only consumers to satisfy. India and China are rapidly becoming major gas consumers. These new gas users compete for OPEC's "black gold" which makes the market more challenging for buyers and more lucrative for suppliers.

Even if gas prices pull back for a little while you can be sure this will be temporary and short lived. So far in the new year we have seen an upward trend in prices per gallon. On the cable news shows industry experts are claiming that this time around the prices will not pull back. I put some facts together on this subject and show you how to save every day with safe fuel saving hyper miling techniques.