Memoscan U480

If you are on Amazon looking to purchase a ~$20 code scanner, chances are you are not a mechanic. Many reviews here talk about how there are better scanners, and I suspect that they are right. I am not a mechanic, I am just a person with a check engine light that comes on regularly. Every time I take my truck into the shop, they say it is a historic code and not to worry about it. This scanner works well for me to check the code,and see if it is the same problem that always comes up. Most importantly, it lets me erase that code so that if a different issue makes my check engine light turn on I will know. I don't like the risk of driving with the check engine light always on, and this scanner lets me check what code is up without going to a mechanic of auto-zone, and allows me to erase it if it is a problem I recognize. I read a review before that mentioned that the scanner only gave a basic number, and did not tell you if that it was a P number. I have no idea what the difference is, but I can confirm that my scanner gave me a P number. Easy to use, and does what it claims.

I purchased this scanner despite the bad review stating it didn't give full codes. I'm really not a car guy but this thing will save me money. I ran a scan and received the code. I looked up the code and it was my egr flow code. I shut off the CEL and waited to see if it would come back on. It did. I googled the problem and found multiple posts on how to address the problem. This light came on a month ago and the dealer said they could get rid of it but it would require a thorough tune up and fuel injector cleaning. That cost $1100.00. What they didn't tell me was that the light might come back on. Then they wanted more money to look into the problem. I have a 96 G20 and I love the car but it's not worth putting 2 grand into it to shut off a light. It seems all the dealers end up trying to replace the egr sensor valve and that doesn't solve the problem. You have to clear carbon from some egr port at the throttle. I'll be going to a local mechanic to have that done. So this scanner saved me money. A lot of money. And I get to keep this car until it actually dies. Hopefully in a few more years.

Sure, many auto parts stores will read your codes for free, but you have to drive there during their hours and wait for someone to become available. It's like making prints of digital photos. Sure, Wal-Mart will do it for pennies, but it's not that expensive to own your own photo printer. When I saw how affordable this reader was, I couldn't think of a good reason not to own one. I only have one car and I'm not the type who is likely to do any repairs myself other than changing bulbs, fuses, filters, wiper blades, etc. Therefore, I wasn't interested in spending more to get a code reader with fancier display, more buttons, or wider compatibility. I just wanted to be able to see the error codes and look them up so I would have some idea of what was going on BEFORE I started dealing with mechanics. At first, I was completely ignorant about where to find my OBD II socket. The instructions give you some guidelines on where to look, but the exact location can vary by make, model, and year. It took me about 15 minutes with a flashlight to find it, not for any particular reason except my ignorance. It wasn't really hidden nor difficult to see; I had just never seen one before in my life. Once located, it was a piece of cake to follow the instructions for connecting the reader and scrolling thru the codes. Although the instructions give you a brief description of common codes, it only took a few minutes with Google for me to seem like an expert about my problem. When I called the dealership to schedule a service appointment, I was able to tell them enough information that they were able to confirm coverage under my extended warranty, verify that all the relevant parts were in stock, and have me bring it in at a time when they would well-staffed for the type of repair. (In larger service departments, some mechanics are stronger in certain areas, so if you have a transmission problem, it's best not to show up on the day when the transmission specialist is off.) If you're worried this thing might be hard for a non-mechanic to use, you can stop worrying. If I could figure it out, anyone can. This product has worked so well, I almost regret that my car has been working so well that I rarely get to use my code reader.

I bought the U380 OBDII AUTO SCANNER from Amazon and it performed exactly as the manual said it would. The Check Engine light came on in my 1994 Ford Mustang shortly after I got home from a trip to the Grand Canyon, so I purchased this scanner and: 1. Plugged the scanner cable into the Data Link Connector under the driver side dashboard and turned the ignition to the "on" position (no need to start the engine). 2. The scanner's LCD came on immediately, ran through a few scanning displays, and within seconds displayed that my vehicle had experienced two faults. 3. I pressed the ENTER button on the scanner and the LCD displayed the codes for the two faults: P0171 and P0174. 4. I flipped to the section of the included manual which contains a list of all the OBDII Generic DTC Defintions and I quickly found my two codes: P0171 - System Too Lean (Bank 1) and P0174 - System Too Lean (Bank 2). 5. I pressed the SCROLL button on the scanner to navigate to the ERASE menu and then pressed ENTER to erase the codes. 6. I then turned the ignition off and removed the device. 7. I started my car and the CHECK ENGINE light was no longer on. This little gem saved me an expensive, and probably unecessary trip to the mechanic. My guess is the climate and/or elevation change of the Grand Canyon had perhaps temporarily changed the air/fuel mixture and triggered the faults. Thank you to the manufacturers and to Amazon for selling this device.