|
Jim Grant's Tech Tips
What
Scan Tool To Buy?
Q:
I need a little advice. My code reader is just not getting
the job done. I need a scan tool and would like to only
spend my money once. What features am I looking for and
do you have a recommendation?
- Wes
A:
Here’s
the first fact that you’ll have to face; you will
never spend your money “just once” on any scan
tool made today. There is not one scan tool made that will
do it all. If there was it would be over $20K for that scan
tool and it would still be outdated next year! Whatever
you buy plan on paying for software updates if you want
to work on next years cars. Plan on whatever scan tool you
buy being outdated by the year 2008, unless you plan on
buying the updated modules that will allow the scan tool
to work with the newer, faster communications systems that
are just around the corner. I could start a scan tool museum
with the dust collectors I have in storage that won’t
work on today’s cars, but if an ’82 Chevy Citation
comes into the shop I have at least 2 dust collectors that
will rock that vehicle’s computer. But my new scan
tool won’t pull even a “bit” of information
from that dinosaur. Here’s my recommendation, determine
what type/make of vehicles you work on most often. Identify
the company that makes the scan tool and software for the
selected vehicle manufacturer. These companies often sell
their scan tools with a lesser version of software, to someone
like you or me, that will open most of the windows when
you want to look into the vehicle’s computer. Also
budget for annual software updates. There are very few scan
tool makers that let you jump or skip a software update.
You have to lock into the annual software update thing or
they really clobber you when you do update. There is not
one fix for your question and you’ll find that the
cost of doing computer related work, diagnosis and repair
is expensive and hard. But for some wicked strange reason
I love it. Best of luck.
|
|