I'm a noob at car maintenance/repair. It's actually been an interest, but never had the chance to dive in. Now that money is tight, I'm making the excuse to learn how to fix myself. I suppose one thing I will definitely need to invest in is a code reader.

Hence the question ... What code readers are good, but not too expensive? I know some just read out the code, but no further information, whereas some provide at least a little information, and also allow you to control the computer to some degree.

Any help is appreciated.

 

I'm kind of homing in on the Actron CP9575, priced between $100-$130. Obviously I need to be able to scan and clear codes, and turn off the light. But I'm not sure if the other data is valuable or not. Any thoughts?

 

I dont have much experince except with the honda HDS but I would think any cheap code reader would be good enough for you so you could pull the code and research online. I dont think there is anything out there that will show you sensor values or screens shots for cheap.

 

Buy a cheapie code puller. Anything more will be a waste of money for your level of experience. You may want to spend a little extra and buy a code puller that pulls ALL codes and not just PCM codes.

 

If you are money tight, why not spend $0 dollars on a code reader and pull the code from the ecu with a paperclip?

https://honda-tech.com/forums/acura-integra-6/ecu-abs-codes-here-978933/

Come back and tell us what code you're getting.

Maybe telling us your car make model and year will help?

 

Yeah, I got my code reader for free from my wife's office supplies drawer.

It's important to be able to read codes occassionally, but there are way more important tools to invest in first, esp. as a paperclip can do the job 99% of the time.

 

It's a 98 Civic EX. This is some very interesting info! Thanks!


What other tools are you referring to? I have SAE and metric wrenches, breaker bar, small jacks and ramps, multimeter, etc. Things I don't have are engine hoists, pneumatic tools, etc. Oh, and knowledge in the way of automobiles. In case my post is read wrong, I'm actually interested in what you mean, and not being facetious.