Hello,

im in need of serious advice! ive read every thread i can find on scanners and am still lost. i cant figure out which would suit my needs and be affordable (perhaps an oxymoron).

i have cars from the Big 3, so it would be nice to use whatever scanner i get on all the cars (OBD-I and II). i was lookin at the items on Fred's semi-sticky on scanners, and the AutoXray looked kinda good. it has cables for all the cars included, if i read it right. but im not sure what all it measures/checks. these scanners check codes, and i think they check the operating perameters of some sensors. do they provide performance data? other considerations i should be concerned with/looking for?

i really appreciate any help - i am an old Caveman. i can barely run a PC (i can tune a carb alright, though. LOL). i am so lost on all of this. please help with any ideas you have.
(BTW, the 94 camaro has an intermittant ignition problem, which is what spawned my wanting one of these things - bench testing components would be a waste).

thanks so much for any and all help!!!! and if i missed some threads or something, please point me in the right direction.

i think this is the right sub forum to post this in also (if not, mods please move me).

 

Auto Xray 5000 or 6000 units will handle OBDI and OBDII plus the new CAN standard. They also read the tricky '95 F bodies. Difference besides the price is the 6000 reads enhanced OBDII. Check the Auto Xray site for more details.

 

thank you for the reply!
i left out info on my post. i was actually looking at the AutoXray 2000. that is about as much as i can afford.

how do people like that unit? i cannot find out exactly what it reads (even from the AutoXray site, which i have poured over). does it read O2's and other sensor values, like the Scanmaster LT1 does (i think)?

im struggling to find thorough info on what each scanner read/does exactly. the scanmaster shows speed, rpm and stuff like that, as i recall. i think being able to use a tool on the other cars would be nice (which the 2000 allows, with all the cables included) and perhaps more important to me. but im not sure what all i would be missing out on (2000 vs the Scanmaster).

thoughts?
many thanks!

PS, the camaro is a '94 3.4L, slushbox if it matters. thanks

 

The 2000 is only a code reader. No scan functions.

 

ok, thank you. i just re-read stuff on the site, and see what you mean. so i would be getting an expensive version of a 30 dollar code puller from the parts store. that sucks.

for something that will read sensors, whatcha like? bonus would be cheap cables for other cars.....

many thanks for any input. im such a dinosaur. even when i read the info on the sites, i dont get it.

 

I have the AutoXray 10110 version which I bought from the Summit Catalogue about 1 year ago - list price I think was close to $300 U.S. for the GM only program.
This is not like a professional scanner with many readouts etc, it ownly has 2 lines, and you can only see one sensor at a time but I think for someone who does not do this for a living that this is fine. You can also order a seperate package for connecting to your computer which is problably recommendable if your have a mid-90's and newer vechicle.
The scanner doesn't just read trouble codes, it reads whatever sensors the vehicle has. I have tried it on a '84 Z28 (pre-OBD, approx. 10-15 sensers), a '90 GMC van (OBD1, approx. 22 sensers) and a '94 GMC pickup truck (OBD1 somewhere around 40 sensors), they all read fine. The '84 Z28 cannot be driven while been scanned, but that's a function of the car, not the scanner.
The scanner will also record 28 timesteps of data, you can specify the timestep depending on your problem - the computer connection package will apparently collect more longer but I don't have this.
I learned about this product when I stumbled upon a research project done somewhere in Texas, which put this product in a good light. This research dealt only with non-professional "home mechanic" scanning products (I can't find the link anymore), try looking for it.
Overall the product is easy to understand, you just plug it in and follow the instruction book. It is stand-a-lone, I don't need a computer. I simply record the data and then plug the results into a spreadsheet manually. Time intensive - but hey, the computer cable and software are $100 and how often does my car breakdown anyway?
I think it's more than paid for itself already (for all the times I haven't brought it in to a shop).

 

R.E., thank you for the detailed response. im still trying to pull my head out and decide what to do (ive probably read 100 threads and many other sources).

i just looked at the product you recommend. that looks great, and i think i would buy it were i to only have GM's. but i really need something that can atleast run on other makes, to justify the cost. im very poor.

i do really appreciate the info - im goin to keep my ear to the ground and see if i can find one used or cheap - i would grab it up if i did. and thank you - when i searched AutoXray's site, i missed that unit (at this time, i had been looking at the AutoXray 3000, but i would like OBD-II scan ability). so i continue to hunt. eventually i will find a unit that does what i need (obd-i and ii cars and all makes). ive been looking at the Actron CP9150, but i cant get a handle on whether it streams data; i dont think it does.

anyhow, i will continue to search. i do really appreciate the input from you all - im filing it all away. i will find something that is priced right or meets my needs, largely because of the education and information you have provided me with.

thanks again folks!

 

Summit sells a package with all the programs in it (even imports from the looks of things).

Summit page with AXY-35000 on it

sellect AXY-35000 then look under the sub folders, it gives some detailed info on the product and warrenty etc.

I really wish I could find that study back, I too had a file but I threw it out when I bought scanner figuring I wouldn't nee it anymore.

One of those names did not work well, and I think it may have been Actron. That brand is sold here by Canadian Tire and I'am glad I read that research first. The scanner generated false codes and wouldn't read some cars.

If your thinking of this product:

Canadian Tire Actron $250 paperclip

don't even bother - its a $250 paperclip, all it does is give you the code, you don't see any streaming info and you have to look the code up on the internet. A fellow employee at work has one - complete waste of money.

 

R.E., thank you very much for all the info. you are one step ahead of me in what i am lookin for.
the AutoXray 35000 looks like a nice unit. however, i dont know that i can justify the expense - i had thoughts that if i got up to that range in price, i would perhaps try to get a used laptop and some software. i think that allows more tuning ability, though i plan on doing none. it's just frustrating to have to pay so much to retrieve codes (i use paperclips on most of the cars) - retrieving codes is all i want to do. but im a real computer moron, so were i to go the laptop route, i would have to do some serious homework.

the Canadian tire link was not working for me. the Actron unit i was looking at is here:
http://www.actron.com/product_detail.php?pid=16143

the CP9150 is a CP9145 with cables for other makes (nice for me). is that the unit that is a glorified paperclip? in reading the specs, i had a feeling it did not stream (or else that would he hyped, i would think). but i dont know what PID (live engine parameters) is, in layman's terms (or stupid terms, for me). LOL. so i had not written it off completely.
if that is the one you are talking about, i am very glad you warned me about it - i will shy away from it, or certainly research it very thoroughly.

i really thank you for all of the input. hhmmm, seems like ive been looking at this stuff for a bit, and i am back to the drawing board.

thank you very much, again.

 

I really can't tell from the other photo whether it is the same or not. It looks similiar.
I spent some time in indesision as well, untill I found that research report.
When I have time I will have to re-find it. It was very well done by an independant body.

Here is a report I just found (its not the one I read, but seems like it)

Kett Engineering Report

Here is another report (also found, as above on www.autoxray.com)

Government Agency Report

I am sure that that other report was there too, but it must be too old by now.

 

R.E., thank you very much for the info! i was too stupid to have gone outside the forum to look for studies. ill try and find some stuff on my own.

i am very glad you found/provided those links. the unit(s) i was lookin at did not seem to do so hot. it seems that you really get what you pay for, with these things.

off to search i am. thank you very much for the info and getting me goin on the right track!

 

It would be nice if you could post your findings/conclusions. I realized just looking quickly again how quickly these things can change. How does the software compare?

 

i will post what i find. im biased in what im lookin for, so i dont know that i could give wide range info, like Fred has.
i honestly got busy and have not continued to look. the car has been running well, so ive become lax.

ive got some stuff saved, and ill look some more. the more i looked into the laptop ideas, the more i was scared away. im very low tech and dont understand that stuff at all. i just wanted something that could stream and work on several cars, for cheap (read no hugely expensive cables). ill put together what i can.

 

You might want to check on the Ease scanner products.
They are a GM tier 2 supplier so there scanners were designed from GM specs to support GM enhanced PIDs.

What is good is you can buy let's say GM functions and later add others as an option such as OBD-I, Ford, etc

It scans, records, has bi directional and uses GM's VPW or CAN protocal so you configure it to scan at 4 rimes faster then OBD-II 10 f/ps

Also can get body/chassis functions and this way you can see all modules in the car or light truck.

Its well designed and will work on all MSwindows OS.
They have software options to make the PC/laptop into a engine scope, add their hardware for tailpipe testing ( they are a EPA approved smog tool) and even can go wireless.

JR - Custom performance F & Y body EC/PCM tuning

 

Team ZR1, thank you very much for the info. it was all over my head (i was having enough trouble figuring out which scanners would do what, let alone the laptop set ups). LOL.

i will do some searching into that - right now im trying to figure out what is a decent used laptop that is cheap. so ill be figuring that out for weeks. LOL.

sometimes i think i should just get an intake and carb. LOL.

thanks so much for the info though - it will all be useful to me!