Vehicle Diagnostic Software: How to Detect Car Trouble Before It Costs You

Technological advancement has made the world a better place through easy and faster means in various aspects of life. In the medical sector, we do regular check-ups one way or the other with our physicians or doctors to maintain good health, right? We undergo different tests through several machines and equipment, in the process of living a better and healthier life.

Now, when it comes to automobile the same wear and tear happens to the vehicles, such that regular diagnostic tests provides great help in detecting problems or malfunctions before they require costly repairs, or at the worst instance, breaking down at the wrong time. 

Though, the majority of vehicle owners have diagnostic tests, it has become a norm whereby vehicle owners only take their vehicle to the automobile shop when it has broken down or when it can no longer function properly.

But there are many benefits in taking a foresight maintenance approach to your vehicle using standardized software and most importantly car diagnostic tools which include the advantage of detecting issues— practically revealing problems within a vehicle’s engine function, exhaust properties, and other major parts, long before they prompt a breakdown.

Presently, there have been several codes or programs that have been enacted in the system software that is used for diagnosis which tells the mechanics or technicians exactly what is not in place more like a hint of the cause. 

Afterwards, they use their expertise to deduce the fundamental problem and probable solutions.

Most standardized system software requires codes and programming to give the exact function it is expected to provide. The DTC codes produce five long characters such that each of them gives different pieces of information about the vehicle's situation.

The first character, which is always a letter, suggests the particular control system that has an issue and gives logical meanings for it.

The second character is often a digit, commonly 0 (it applies to all models of vehicles) or 1(it's unique to a specific vehicle model), and it indicates if the code is standardized or not. 

The third character is also mostly a digit, that ranges from 1 to 8. This particular character, discloses the subsystem that is at fault.

Both the fourth and fifth characters are examined together as a two-digit number that are between 0 and 99, also known as the specific fault index.  All these DTC characters recognize the specific issue of the vehicle.

Here are some system software that can assist in vehicle diagnosis:

PROSCAN

Source

ProScan allows users to generate diagnostics reports for a vehicle using codes. It's in this system software that diagnostic trouble codes (DTC) come into the effect when paired with a scanner that plugs directly into the vehicle's port.

Furthermore, when a car's check engine light comes off, a vehicle will save a code that recognizes the problem detected by the (DTC) that conforms to a specific vehicle faulty functioning.

Also, the tool will provide a list of such diagnostic trouble codes saved with its explanation, so the user can detect the difficulty and where the issue is. Diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs) are also called engine vehicle fault codes and can be read.

EOBD FACILE

Source 

This software application displays vehicle sensors in real-time and saves them in a file.

But just as vehicle configuration differs the way you see the car speed, engine speed and temperature, inlet air quantity, torque.

The users of the software can bring about diagnostics of a vehicle using the faults of codes and discover their meaning, through which they can also check the engine pointer light and monitor specific manufacturer error codes.

OBD2 AUTO DOCTOR

Source

This is a developed OBD2 car diagnostics tool. It is one of the best OBD software for the OS X platform. The Auto Doctor, being one of the advanced software, allows the user to communicate with their vehicles' onboard diagnostic system. Through this, the device whether a desktop computer, laptop, or mobile phone becomes a competent automotive scanner.

All these software and DTC can be used on any automobile, even giving the ease of transferring from one vehicle to the other.

Nonetheless, through the OBD port located in the vehicle dashboard or steering wheel, depending on the manufacturer or model of the vehicle, the user would be able to get informed when an action is performed on the vehicle.

It would only seem right to mention WWH-OBD, which stands for Worldwide Harmonized On-board diagnostics. 

It is a standardized international version of the Onboard vehicle diagnostics system, and it is based on the ISO standard- ISO 27145, which was implemented by the United Nations as an aspect of Global Technical Regulations (GTR).

This version is used to monitor vehicles data also as a means of communication between the vehicle's onboard diagnostic system software and superficial test equipment.

Worldwide Harmonized In-board diagnostics grants access to additional data types, accordingly, OBD-II uses a two-byte diagnostic trouble code (DTC) to reveal when a fault came about which gives it the skill to give more detailed fault.

In overview, WWH-OBD enhances the existing OBD II framework to provide even more diagnostic information to the user.

PCMSCAN

Source

The PCMSCAN is a diagnostic tool that operates through an OBD2 hardware interconnection with its software system that is based on codes and programs.

Being a general automobile diagnostic scanner and tool that maintains a broad diversity and also enables playback, viewing, creating charts, based on the diagnostics data in the vehicle's OBD2 diagnostic data position. 

When using this system software to diagnose a vehicle, there are basic steps that should be followed. Which includes;

Locating your vehicle's PCM: You should know that as vehicle models vary to one another, so does the PCM location in most vehicles differs. Thus, to know the exact location of the PCM, you should check out your vehicle's manual. But in most cases, the PCM is found behind the engine compartment or beneath the dashboard on the passenger's side.

Gaze intently at the wiring harness which is located underneath the driver's dashboard alongside the diagnostic port should be able to relate with the sensors of the system software throughout the vehicle. 

 Connect your OBD-II scanner to the diagnostic data port. The port which might be visible in some vehicles is possible to be hidden in some.

You insert your key into the vehicle's ignition column. Turn on the key and watch as the codes appear through the OBD2 (an improved On-board Diagnosis) device. Look at each code and note the ones that show the signs you're looking for.

It is now left for you to determine whether the PCM problems can be addressed without a mechanic, such that all it needs is a restart and reconnect.

In Conclusion 

People have made it a usual style of bringing their vehicles to the mechanic after a total breakdown or severe malfunction.

But because diagnostic tests have been computerized on vehicles, it makes it easier and faster to detect problems in them and provide the necessary solutions to them.

However possible, the diagnosis system software is capable of performing GPS tracking and resetting DTC when a fault code has been noticed.