# Anyone Have an OBD-II Scan Tool? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 31, 2005, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-an-obd-ii-scan-tool/306172 "2005-05-31T02:50:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Hyperelastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Hyperelastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hyperelastic)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2005, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-an-obd-ii-scan-tool/306172/1 "2005-05-31T02:50:09Z")
The little amber light is on in my car and I just can’t stomach the idea of paying a mechanic $75 to plug in a cable to find out what’s wrong. So I poked around on the Internet and to my delight found several OBD-II scan tools priced for the “shade-tree mechanic” market. What I’d really like is one that logs data in addition to reading the fault code. A bonus would be one that reads Honda-specific data. I couldn’t find any tools that are made specifically for Hondas (maybe Hondas don’t output anything other than the generic data, I don’t know.) I’d like to keep it under $300. Does anyone have one of these things, and what has your experience been? ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2005, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-an-obd-ii-scan-tool/306172/2 "2005-05-31T05:06:13Z")
Sure I got several, they run between $9,000-20,000 **each**. how many would you like? 😃 So let me see if I have this right. Paying a pro $75. for a diagnosis chaps your hide, but paying $200 for a tool that will give you the code, but won’t fix your car is OK. 😕 I don’t get it. If you want to cheap out, trying turning off the key for several minutes, and the disconnect the battery neg lead for a minute or two. If and only if the code was intermittant this may clear the ECU memory. If the light reapears, I suggest that you consider taking it to someone that has the tools, and experience to fix your car. Yes it will cost a few bucks, but what doesn’t these days? ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2005, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-an-obd-ii-scan-tool/306172/3 "2005-05-31T07:42:02Z")
On Chryslers, you can turn the key from off to on (not start) three times within 5 seconds and the dashboard blinks a specific pattern that can be easily decoded. I don’t know if Honda’s have a similar feature but it’s worth looking into. ---
**Author:** ![wheelie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b4bc9f/32.png) [@wheelie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wheelie)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2005, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-an-obd-ii-scan-tool/306172/4 "2005-05-31T12:08:08Z")
Many auto parts stores will read out the codes for free, hoping that you will buy some parts. [Autozone](http://www.autozone.com) does it in my area. ---
**Author:** ![Hyperelastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Hyperelastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hyperelastic)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-an-obd-ii-scan-tool/306172/5 "2005-06-01T00:23:23Z")
> [@Rick](#): > > So let me see if I have this right. Paying a pro $75. for a diagnosis chaps your hide, but paying $200 for a tool that will give you the code, but won’t fix your car is OK. 😕 > I don’t get it. > If you want to cheap out, trying turning off the key for several minutes, and the disconnect the battery neg lead for a minute or two. If and only if the code was intermittant this may clear the ECU memory. If the light reapears, I suggest that you consider taking it to someone that has the tools, and experience to fix your car. Yes it will cost a few bucks, but what doesn’t these days? Already tried the disconnect-battery trick; light went out for a couple of months but is now back on. I only have to use the tool 2.67 times to recoup my investment. After that it’s all gravy. Also, I used to design Hondas for a living, so I think I can manage the repairs. I just need a way to read the codes. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-an-obd-ii-scan-tool/306172/6 "2005-06-01T01:38:06Z")
Got a laptop? Then give this guy’s site a look: [http://www.obd-2.com](http://www.obd-2.com) It’s a serial/USB interface for a laptop, and corresponding software that allows you to read the codes from any car, and clear them too. The single coolest thing is that you can connect it, create a virtual dashboard of whatever codes the car has, and drive around and watch them change. For example, you can pick things like “intake manifold temperature”, “air mass entering engine” and “O2 sensor voltage”, and watch the values change as you drive around. Really cool. ---
**Author:** ![brad\_d](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@brad\_d](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brad_d)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-an-obd-ii-scan-tool/306172/7 "2005-06-01T01:41:33Z")
> [@Rick](#): > > Sure I got several, they run between $9,000-20,000 **each**. how many would you like? 😃 An honest question: What do these things do that the $200 models don’t? Since people do in fact buy them, I’m accepting as a given that they must have some serious functionality that the cheap ones lack. However, I seem to lack the imagination to guess what it might be. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-an-obd-ii-scan-tool/306172/8 "2005-06-01T01:48:12Z")
I don’t have one, but I fantasize daily about having a scangauge. [www.scangauge.com](http://www.scangauge.com) The awesome part is it will pull the codes and give you a real-time display on 4 data points at once. ---
**Author:** ![yoyodyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a9a28c/32.png) [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-have-an-obd-ii-scan-tool/306172/9 "2005-06-01T02:26:58Z")
The [CarChip](http://www.davisnet.com/drive/products/carchip_products.asp) is pretty cool and inexpensive.