Diagnosis vs code reading
SCANNING CODES VS. RUNNING A DIAGNOSTIC
The two terms are related, but different.
Scanning relates to the process of connecting a scanner to the vehicle and reading (or scanning) codes and/or data. Scanning for the code that caused your check engine light to come on may reveal a numerical code which indicates which system that a fault.
This can be done by anyone with a cheap ebay scanner and only tells a fraction of the story and can also be very misleading. Causing a massive bill for parts that were not needed.
Running a diagnostic relates to the process of finding the actual problem with the on board system through visual inspection, testing of wiring ,or function testing components. Scanning usually takes a few minutes - but running a diagnostic can take anywhere from an hour to several hours, depending on the system being tested. For the above reasons, we normally don’t charge anything to perform a basic code scan. We do however have to charge for the actual diagnosis, which sometimes irks the customer.
The reason we do have to charge is the time it takes to do test the vehicle properly and the equipment and tools we need to do so – a typical diagnostic for a mis fire fault requires the use of over £5000 worth of equipment – our scanner alone recently cost us over £1500 capable of scanning and communicating with the on board systems that get more complex every with every new car model.
Then we have the wiring diagrams from companies like hgs £700 a year
Tech4techs £300 a year
Auto data £1200 a year
Alldata £1200 a year
While we do our best to be efficient and provide value added services, diagnostics are one of the things we simply have to charge a fee to do – you don’t go to the dentist for a check up and not expect to pay for it and we aren’t any different in that respect – if you have any questions about code scanning or system diagnostics, shoot us an e-mail at [email protected]
The two terms are related, but different.
Scanning relates to the process of connecting a scanner to the vehicle and reading (or scanning) codes and/or data. Scanning for the code that caused your check engine light to come on may reveal a numerical code which indicates which system that a fault.
This can be done by anyone with a cheap ebay scanner and only tells a fraction of the story and can also be very misleading. Causing a massive bill for parts that were not needed.
Running a diagnostic relates to the process of finding the actual problem with the on board system through visual inspection, testing of wiring ,or function testing components. Scanning usually takes a few minutes - but running a diagnostic can take anywhere from an hour to several hours, depending on the system being tested. For the above reasons, we normally don’t charge anything to perform a basic code scan. We do however have to charge for the actual diagnosis, which sometimes irks the customer.
The reason we do have to charge is the time it takes to do test the vehicle properly and the equipment and tools we need to do so – a typical diagnostic for a mis fire fault requires the use of over £5000 worth of equipment – our scanner alone recently cost us over £1500 capable of scanning and communicating with the on board systems that get more complex every with every new car model.
Then we have the wiring diagrams from companies like hgs £700 a year
Tech4techs £300 a year
Auto data £1200 a year
Alldata £1200 a year
While we do our best to be efficient and provide value added services, diagnostics are one of the things we simply have to charge a fee to do – you don’t go to the dentist for a check up and not expect to pay for it and we aren’t any different in that respect – if you have any questions about code scanning or system diagnostics, shoot us an e-mail at [email protected]