By Scott ‘Gonzo’ Weaver. Since 1998, all new cars have been required to have Supplemental Restraint Systems as standard equipment. A study done in December 2001 found that a record was set with 7,585 confirmed prevented deaths by proper airbag/seatbelt usage. If that isn’t enough to make you appreciate the airbag systems in today’s cars, I don’t know what will.

By Peter Coll. HFO-1234yf, a new replacement for R-134a, is a non-environmental impact refrigerant with a decreased atmospheric lifetime. Learn what it is, why we’re changing refrigerants, what the differences are, whether or not your shop will need new equipment, and more, in this question-and-answer session with Peter Coll from Neutronics.

By Bob Cooper. Anyone who has been selling service for any length of time will agree that there are two kinds of customers. The first is the customer who has a history of making good decisions, not just with auto repair, but with most decisions. And then we have the other kind of customer: the kind of person who more often than not makes the wrong decisions. Let’s use maintenance service as an example.

By Scott ‘Gonzo’ Weaver. Leave it to the manufacturers to take a simple thing like heat and air conditioning and turn it into an electronic jungle of wiring, sensors, and computer components. HVAC units have come a long way from when I started in the business. Not that I want to dwell on the past, but it might be a good idea to make sure we understand the basics before diving into the problem of today’s systems. I always feel that if I understand a system fully before doing any repair work I’m more likely to get it right the first time.

If you build or repair A/C system hoses, power steering hoses, or any different kind of hose assemblies this tip clip may be of interest to you. There’s a lot of good information that you need to know out there, so take a look at this segment, which is going to tell you everything you ever needed to know about building and repairing hoses the right way.

By Gary Goms. Although diagnosing misfires can be a tough assignment for any driveability technician, the diagnosis can be made much simpler if he understands the basics of misfire diagnosis. For example, when the first OBD II misfire monitor was first introduced in 1996, technicians were puzzled by problems with false misfire diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs). Case in point, vehicles being driven on washboard dirt roads began recording false misfires.

In this hybrid vehicle tech tip Dave Hobbs talks about an ‘engine stop request code. If you’ve got a hybrid vehicle and you’re not sure– is it doing an idle stop or is it just stalling– because we have still have an internal combustion engine and that means we still have all other kinds of sensors that can cause drivability issues, including intermittent stalling conditions. Thats why Dave talks about the engine stop request PID and how it can keep you from chasing the boogeyman.

By Joe Glassford. Accuracy of: Plus or minus 0.1% is Best. Check the owner’s manual for your meter under DC accuracy.

By Carlton Banks. Many modern-day fuel systems offer a new look into system status definitions. It’s become very important to extend our understanding well beyond the concepts of simple “open loop” and “closed loop” status. This month, we will explore the new fuel system definitions that are present on many of today’s vehicles. We’ll begin our discussion by looking at each one on an individual basis.

In this video Bob Pattengale talks about common repair mistakes. The list of common repair mistakes that is presented in this video was compiled by the Mobile Air Conditioning Society through surveys, reviews of shops and examining the processes that our technicians are doing. These are important things that you want to think about to ensure a job well done.

In this video clip Bill Fulton presents some information on a DTC from his list of 10 DTC’s. This one is all about the P0442 small EVAP leak code. He talks about using Mode$01 to investigate EVAP parameters using your scan tool. He goes on to detail the parameters to look at, what readings to look for and what causes certain readings in the first place.

By Scott ‘Gonzo’ Weaver. Some male patrons tend to want to “talk to the mechanic” verses talking to the front-desk person. Especially if that person is female. In my case, the front desk person is my daughter. She has seen it all and is very knowledgeable, I might add. Ask her a car question, any question, and she’ll have an answer for you.

By Joe Glassford. In this excerpt from Joe Glassford’s new Vehicle Testing Reference Guide Joe details a technique on how to easily test a wire without piercing it. Don’t want to pierce or cut wires, or if you have a completely molded connector where it seems impossible to get an acupuncture probe tool in for your testing try this out.

What if you could save 30 minutes each day in the shop? Do you have some areas in the shop where you might be wasting a little bit of time? […]

In this Tip Clip Dave Hobbs talks about EVAP and FREDS, you know Frustrating Ridiculous Electronic Devices, things like PCM’s and ECM’s. He talks about the logic of how these devices control the operation of the vehicle’s evap system. He discusses how the ‘brain’ of the evap system handles things like the operational nature of the evap system such as purge. He also goes into detail regarding how the FRED also handles the regulatory side of things such as EPA guidelines and leak tests.

By Gary Goms. This real-world case study of a 2002 Chevy S-10 pickup, a 1995 Buick and a 1995 Lincoln Town Car illustrates why “chasing” trouble codes can get you lost in the Diagnostic Woods. Working as a part-time mobile diagnostic technician, I find that many techs find themselves “lost in the woods” while diagnosing engine management system failures. Although not perfect, the “lost in the woods” analogy describes the dilemma of a technician through a forest of information without a good sense of direction. Unfortunately, most of us have found ourselves in that situation more often than we would like to admit.

By Joe Glassford. To test the condition of the contacts (excessive resistance from pitting that causes an excessive voltage drop) this voltage drop test should be done: Here we have a fuse located on the “ground” side of the relay switch. This is a common circuit arrangement you will see.

By Joe Glassford. Check out this information on starter solenoid testing from Joe Glassford’s new book on vehicle testing procedures. This article gives you some much needed real world information on stater solenoid functionality that will help you better understand how to troubleshoot and diagnose problems later.

By Andrew Markel. GM TPMS systems on Buick, Pontiac, Chevy (Chevrolet), GMC Cadillac and Hummer models are some of the easiest to service if you have the right tools and knowledge. Starting in 2007, most vehicles use a Schrader- or VDO-manufactured system that shares the same relearn procedures and behaviors. There are exceptions, like the Pontiac Vibe.

By Tom Ham. Are new car dealers eating your lunch? Can you just take a quick look at it? You send oil change reminders to who? Check out the latest Auto Shop Monthly Management Tips from the Automotive Management Network to get inside secrets on managing your shop and increasing your bottom line.

Bill Fulton presents a tip clip examining an intermittent no-start that also does not display any scan data on a 2003 Grand Cherokee. Bill talks about doing a test to check the bus circuits state of health by walking us through the systems data bus schematic and finding clues about what components to check next.

In this tech tip clip video, Bob discusses the primary component to Toyotas key off evaporative emission system, the pump module. This clip helps you understand the basic modes of operation to the various components found with in the pump module.

By Matt Fanslow. If you’ve been looking at purchasing a DSO (Digital Storage Oscilloscope) in the last few years, undoubtedly you’ve seen much attention paid to Vertical Resolution. To the scope savvy, it is the new “Sample Rate Rage”. For years, Sample Rate was advertised as the most important of scope specifications. The higher the sample rate, the better the scope. Thanks to Pico Technology, and those few individuals that embraced its use in the auto repair industry, we have been re-educated. Sample Rate, it turns out, while important; hinges on other factors. Vertical Resolution, you will find, is also one of many factors that determine the true “power” of a DSO.

In this Tech Tip Clip video Bob works on a vehicle with a code 0400, a gross evaporative emissions leak also with a gas cap light illuminated on the dash. Bob uses the Tech 2 to verify the leak walking us through the process of using the EVAP Service Bay Test mode allowing us to test the system as though the vehicle were driving down the road.

By Bob Dowie. One of the common check engine light problems you’ll encounter on Hondas is a misfire code with no apparent misfire. Many times, this problem will be traced back to tight valve lash. Obviously, a tight valve will pass the audible test every time. But, it’s the tight valves that will set the check engine light in the best case, and if it’s ignored long enough you’ll be looking at a low-compression situation caused by a burnt valve.

In this hybrid tech tip clip instructor Dave Hobbs talks about the hybrid battery disconnects and how important it it for you as a technician to know how to know the procedures to deactivate and shut down hybrid voltage systems in order to safely and efficiently even be able to service other non hybrid systems on a vehicle.

By Tom Ham. Is there any rhyme or reason to your parking lot? No time for inspections with customers waiting? Are you utilizing the factory maintenance schedules? Check out the latest Auto Shop Monthly Management Tips from the Automotive Management Network to get inside secrets on managing your shop and increasing your bottom line.

In this tech tip clip excerpt from the AVI class ‘Top 10 OBD 2 Codes: Fix Them Fast’ training program instructor Dave Scaler talks about slow response codes. Current generation o2 sensor heaters are controlled by the computer, and cars today go into closed loop faster than ever on todays cars. Dave talks about the two downsides of this situation and how they effect your diagnostic process. He goes on to further detail the diagnostic processes involved in solving O2 sensor slow codes.

In this clip from the ASE A2 Transmission Diagnostics test prep program, Wayne Colonna talks about transmission performance codes. He talks about how on some computer controlled transmissions if there is a code stored or shift adapt issues the computers strategy is to overcome this slip by increasing line pressure. He talks about the problems this can cause during the diagnostic process and how to overcome these issues.

By Carlton Banks. This is the first in a series of investigations covering many states’ top emissions-related codes. Our goal in this report is to discuss the characteristics of the P0446 code as it applies to many GM systems.

In this series of short tip clips from management and service writing instructor George Witt you will learn several quick tips that will help to to better market your shop. George talks about things such as friendliness, cleanliness, reminders, humor, training, and equipment.

In this tip clip instructor John Thornton will present some ‘need-to-know’ info about some common function found on your PicoScope. John covers things such as vertical scale (number of volts per division), horizontal scale (the base time of the sweep speed), and trigger.

A DTC is made up of 5 digits. Knowing the composition of the code makes it is easier to trouble shoot a DTC without knowing the description of the code.

This DTC search page contains standard diagnostic trouble codes (DTC’s) that are used by vehicle manufacturers to identify vehicle problems. The codes provide below are generic codes that may not […]