OEM WEBSITES. The Aftermarket s Silver Bullet?

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1 OEM WEBSITES The Aftermarket s Silver Bullet? BY PAUL WEISSLER Service information directly from the factory is widely available today. It can provide great benefit to a shop, but isn t the panacea you may have hoped for. Illustration by Harold A. Perry that s told to the dealer service department is on the factory website, and you can look at it at Everything exactly the same time. That s the promise of the agreement between the vehicle manufacturers and the Automotive Service Association (ASA), with EPA backing. Sure, it s not free (Hyundai and Kia excepted), but the prices generally meet the EPA reasonable guideline of no more than $20 a day. Often it s less. Is this the level playing field the aftermarket has asked for? Is this a dream world? Not quite. Shops will find some factory websites are very helpful for specific situations, such as information on the newest vehicles, online training, replacement vehicle emissions control labels, factory special tools and an important emerging technology generic programming of vehicle computers. MOTOR has been looking at some of these sites, and we have some good news and some cautionary notes. tion republished as soon as possible. These systems may be a little thin on the newest stuff, but that may be due to the time it takes for these companies to process the new OE information, more than anything else. Overall Issues Before we review individual websites, let s look at the overall issues regarding use of websites for service information. The primary issues are: What do you have in the way of service information on pre-obd II cars? Some factory websites go a bit Basically, you have to understand that these websites are not going to provide you with material that the factories haven t completed for one reason or another. If you ve ever dealt with paper shop manuals directly from the carmakers, you d see how much information was often missing well past a model year s worth in some cases. Aftermarket providers like MOTOR, Alldata and Mitchell don t wait to publish the latest information; when new specs and procedures are developed, these providers try to get this informaearlier than OBD II, but most do not, except for service bulletins. If periodically you see some older models in your shop, even back to the 1980s, you need coverage for them. That s likely to be an electronic information system, which provides CD/DVD coverage going back to the 82 models, or perhaps paper or CD manuals (such as MOTOR s repair and diagnostic manuals and wiring diagrams). Do you have broadband Internet service? We tried to use several of the websites with a dial-up connection and a 26,400-baud rate, which is pretty typical of what many shops are running these days. To be able to view much of the information, you need software upgrades. They re free, but with dial-up could take hours to download. If you must use dial-up, have a friend with broadband download the software and store it on a CD; you ll be able to load it faster from that. Even with the required software, you d better be patient, because many page-opening formats will be extremely slow with dial-up. Do you have a Windows computer and use Internet Explorer? Few of the websites support the Macintosh operating system, Netscape or other browsers. Nearly half of MOTOR s readers have broadband, and many are planning to get it. But if a website is busy, even September

2 OEM Websites: The Aftermarket s Silver Bullet? Screen captures: Paul Weissler This is the entry page to the GM service info system. After selecting the year, make and model of the vehicle you re working on, you re offered a choice of unit repair, service bulletins or service/diagnosis info. You can do a variety of other searches, too, but that s primarily for dealer techs. Because ACDelco features classroom training to the aftermarket, online training is not offered at this time. We had to optimize the page to specs to get the engine area to show for our selection. This is a simple but important example of why to read the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section. If you can t select Engine, you can t get service/diagnosis information, even in sections other than Engine. This is an otherwise straightforward site. broadband service may not give you the fast response you want when you re paying and a car is sitting in your bay in some stage of repair. Many smaller dealerships (and multiliners) save considerable money over printed manuals by using these websites exclusively, so don t think it s just you and a few other independent shops that ll be logging on. Is the vehicle covered by the website? Never assume this is the case. GM service manual information starts with 1998 (with a few powertrain sections since 96). Sometimes a website permits you to determine exactly the coverage provided before you offer your credit card and sign on. Be aware, however, that there will always be gaps in coverage. A 2003 wiring diagram we were looking for on one factory website wasn t added until well after the start of the 2004 model year. Refunds are available if the information you need isn t available yet, and some websites make it easier to obtain one than others. Can you rely on access to the site? That would seem obvious if you have broadband service and a credit card, but you can t always count on it. Left: The type of wiring diagram used in this older Ford site (wiring for a 2001 Crown Victoria) is typical of what you d find in a service manual. Right: Ford s new interactive wiring diagrams (2005 Escape shown here) have on-screen zoom and scroll features. Also, if you click on a connector or component, you can take a choice of seeing a picture of the location or a drawing of the connector terminals. There s a good online tutorial for this if extra help is needed. 54 September 2004

3 OEM Websites: The Aftermarket s Silver Bullet? Websites do crash and can be out of service for unpredictable lengths of time. And there are other possible issues. What it boils down to is this: There can be snags that will slow or limit the availability of information at any given time. Can you justify the cost? We suspect that more shops will be adding technical information charges to customers bills, as the need increases and those costs become a greater percentage of shop expenses. If you have five different makes in your shop and have to pay $100 for service information, you probably can t afford to absorb that expense. The carmakers have longer-term rates, but laying out $300 for information from a single maker for a month s access can be justified only if you get a lot of its cars in that month. Yes, some are much less (Honda and Toyota each are $50 per month, and Toyota includes Lexus), and both Ford and Volvo have individual model/year subscriptions. Also, GM, Ford and the Chrysler Group each covers many nameplates. If you have broadband only at home, adding it to the shop is not an inconsequential matter. The typical monthly rate is $45 to $50, or roughly $550 to $600 a year, vs. the cost of your present dial-up service ($11 to $16 a month, or about $130 to $190 a year). So you have to add about $400 to the annual cost of obtaining service information to have broadband in the shop. All these factors mean that many independent repair shops will find an electronic information system their most cost-effective option. These aftermarket systems will often provide information beyond what s in the CDs, DVDs or factory website if you call and ask for it and have a fax machine ready to receive it. Furthermore, information on all makes is presented in the same familiar format, so you save considerable search time. That s not true with the different makers websites. If you use the CDs and DVDs from an electronic information system, you have the information at hand all the Windows PC Generic Programming Asking independent shops to buy subscriptions to factory-specific programming systems (often requiring a factory scan tool) was an interim approach to giving the aftermarket access to the capability. But it was obviously unrealistic to expect the typical shop to buy a stack of factory scan tools. So the EPA led a move to generic programming a single device for all makes which is covered by SAE document J2534. The idea is this: You download an operating program to your Windows PC a separate program for each vehicle maker. That s as specific as it gets. The generic device is called a Pass-Thru ; it s an electronic black box that passes the new program through to the vehicle via the underdash diagnostic plug same as with the factory programming systems now in use. That one Pass-Thru works with all makes, so you don t have to buy a lot of tools. It even works with on-board computers other than the PCM. In a typical scenario, the specific program checks the software level in the car computer and compares it with what s available at the factory website. If there s something newer on the website, the technician can download and install it through the Pass- Thru and generic cables. On a few cars, particularly older BMWs, a special cable also may be necessary. J2534 programming requires high-speed Internet access; dial-up isn t an option, even if you don t mind being patient. With other on-board computers. you might have to check the calibration and compare it with an on-website chart of the latest numbers to determine if there s an upgrade to install. When It Starts Programming is available now at some websites (Ford, Mazda, Chrysler and BMW), with charges starting at $25 a day. There have been technical issues identified in the J2534 document, which is going through a final revision, at which time it should enable the Japanese companies to offer it. General Motors people, who have been heavily involved in the development of the SAE document, also should offer their website version at the same time. Likely availability for that is sometime next year. The EPA regulation specifies that all 2004 programmable computers meet J2534, and all makers have agreed to make it available as far back as possible, in most cases to the start of OBD II with 1996 vehicles. So except for perhaps a handful of special cases, you will be able to do generic reprogramming. However, there are few Pass-Thrus available at this time. They re not inexpensive ($900 to $1600) because they re being made in low volume by companies who specialize in development engineering. It seems likely we ll see Pass-Thru devices that meet most of the J2534 specifications at very low prices, perhaps just an upgrade of some sort to your aftermarket scan tool. Some of the carmakers use programming voltages very high voltages (up to 20 volts) that are part of the process. So if a tool manufacturer has to provide a voltage generator, that adds to complexity and cost. Furthermore, Chrysler Group products require that a Pass-Thru recognize SCI (Standard Corporate Interface), a non-obd II computer protocol, and that also adds to cost. In addition, some tool manufacturers are looking at wireless Pass-Thrus as high-end offerings. In any case, you ll see a wide selection and you ll be able to pick something that meets your needs. If you intend to program only one or two vehicle makes, you might be more happy with a basic Pass-Thru than a shop looking to cover all. If you want to get a website explanation of J2534 programming, go to Ford s and click on Programming Modules. The explanation is exactly the same as at the Mazda website. For Chrysler, click on the FLASH button at the top of the page following login. For BMW, click on Additional System Requirements, near the bottom of the home page. 56 September 2004

4 time no need to log on. For the discbased systems, there s a three-month lag in update materials, and that could be important occasionally. But remember those 800 numbers and the customer service people at the other end. You can also subscribe to MOTOR, Alldata or Mitchell websites instead of waiting for the discs. Our tests indicate they seem to work a little faster than the factory sites, probably because of simpler formatting. That said, many shops specialize in just a few makes, and want to have at the ready everything the dealer shops have. If they limit themselves to latemodels or to makes that have more extensive coverage on the websites (such OEM Websites Acura & Honda: Audi: BMW: Chrysler Group (including Dodge, Eagle, Jeep, Plymouth): Ford (including Lincoln & Mercury): General Motors: Hyundai: Infiniti: Jaguar: Kia: Land Rover: Lexus: Mazda: Mercedes-Benz: MINI: Mitsubishi: Nissan: Porsche: Saab: Toyota: Volkswagen: Volvo: Additional information on OEM website capabilities and access charges is available at

5 OEM Websites: The Aftermarket s Silver Bullet? Before you sign up and log in to check Nissan service bulletins, you can check what s available for free. First, view the one-line title/description, then click on it to see a more detailed summary that tells you what the bulletin is talking about. This screen shows the bulletin summary. Toyota s selection page is nicely laid out. All you have to do is pick the model and year (all the way back to 1990). It s a straightforward three-step process: select vehicle, then type of information (bulletins, repair manual, wiring diagrams, etc.) and hit Search and it comes up, with a table of contents. At the lower right is a description of all the OBD II monitors and the associated trouble codes material that will be going into the repair manuals. as Toyota and Mercedes), they may be able to rely on the web, and save money (vs. the daily rate) with an annual subscription. Reprogramming On-Board Computers In the long term, you ll have to use the factory websites for certain things, even if only occasionally. The factory websites are the places where you ll be getting the programs for the antitheft systems (so a car will start with a new computer), as well as software updates. Happily, this new availability, which replaces annual programming subscriptions and factory scan tools, will enable you to install the software with one generic ( all makes ) device. It s a one-at-a-time, pay-as-you-go deal based on SAE document J2534, the result of industry work with the EPA and the California Air Resources Board (CARB). The programming fee is separate from the one imposed for service information. Many shops don t even realize this generic programming exists, so refer to the section Windows PC Generic Programming on page 56 of this report. The same websites that provide service information also offer programming updates. We re talking about doing the job with your shop PC, a cable and a generic Pass-Thru device that works on all makes, all years. Service Info on the OEM Websites Most technicians are familiar with the simple search format used by MOTOR, Alldata and Mitchell: You select the year, make, model and perhaps powertrain, and you get a choice of service areas (engine, cooling, ignition, fuel, emissions, HVAC, suspension, brakes, etc.). Pick the one you want, then specify TSBs, diagnosis/repair, wiring diagrams, parts and labor times, etc. Most of the OEM websites work in a generally similar way, although they have so many scanned-in manuals (in the form of PDF pages and other document storage systems), they may operate slowly. You can get the general idea without investing a dime by checking out the Hyundai and Kia websites, which are free (you have to fill out a registration form at Kia). They re very easy to navigate, and the available training courses may have sufficient all makes applications to be useful for your technicians. If all you need is information about special tools, that s free at every website. You may be more hesitant to access those that require a fee, until the need arises, so here s what to expect: General Motors. Click on Service Information located at the bottom of the acdelcotechconnect.com home page, then on Electronic Service Information on the next page to reach the sign-in. Actual access to service information is an obvious year/make/model procedure, leading to a choice of information (bulletins, preliminary information, campaigns and repair/diagnosis subjects). You can also click on TechLink, a free monthly online magazine loaded with GM service tips. Ford. This is a straightforward website, with a wide selection of technical training courses. You can download many for self-study when you re logged in, or spend extra to take an interactive course online. Click on Service Publications or Diagnostics for the manuals, TSBs or Ford Module Programming (J2534 generic programming). Chrysler Group. Like GM and Ford, it has a straightforward path to service information, and offers a long list of training course workbooks covering engines, fuel injection, computer 58 September 2004

6 OBD Connector Pass-Thru When you re looking for diagnostic information by symptom on the Honda site, rather than in specific documents, you get answers from all possible published Honda information, such as in this case, where the top offerings are bulletins, followed by tips from Honda Service News, then by service manual sections and finally by a technical information piece on getting the monitors to run. This photo shows a complete PCM reprogramming layout. A laptop is connected by a cable to a generic Pass-Thru, which has a cable that would connect to the underdash diagnostic plug. Shown are programming software CDs for GM, which are used now with Tech 2, but which also are in J2534 format and may be used initially with a generic Pass-Thru. However, look for most future software updates to be downloadable from factory websites. systems, the Cummins diesel, OBD and OBD II, and automatic transmissions. The top bar of the page after login gives you a choice of TSBs and service/diagnostic information, training materials, Flash (J2534 programming) and OBD II (monitors and how to get them to run). Toyota. $10 a day gets you Toyota (1990 models and later) or Lexus, and a home page choice of bulletins, repair/diagnostic manuals, wiring diagrams, campaigns and new-car features books (illustrated explanations of all systems, electronic and mechanical, design considerations, how-it-works, etc.). Training courses cover how to get the OBD II monitors to run. A Technician s Reference section has an assortment of specifications charts and a handy customer interview sheet for noise-vibration-harshness complaints. Honda. There s a separate charge for Honda and Acura, but $20 gets you three days of either one. Searching by keyword rather than by TSB or service manual is risky because you may pick the wrong words. But if you do it right, you get all sources in a list, including tips from Honda Service News, a technician s magazine. The Fuel & Emissions service information automatically includes the magazine tips, if any apply. Nissan. $20 a day provides access to the Infiniti site as well; however, a TSB survey is free. Click on Inside Publications, then select TSBs. After that, choose the model and year for a list of vehicle systems. Select the system, then click on the bulletin title for a description of the problem and what the bulletin covers. If you subscribe, click on Search for Publications until you get a search page that enables you to select any or all models, choice of bulletins, service manuals, videos (if available), new model training (if available), interactive online training and owner s manuals. The service manuals are in print format, and you can read them as you would a book, then download and save. VW/Audi. There s no general access fee to this site. You must buy documents and then download them from the site. If you need information from several sections, it can be expensive, and is a bit of a gamble. However, by clicking on the search function, you get to a page with a price and a content button. Clicking on that gets you a table of contents to help you decide where to go. Mercedes-Benz. When the EPA told the carmakers to put everything they give the dealer shops on their websites, Mercedes took the directive literally. Yes, dealer techs know how to use WIS, the Workshop Information System (called WIS-NET at the website), plus all the Mercedes numeric designations, but the independent technician probably doesn t. If he has been using MOTOR, Alldata or Mitchell, he doesn t have to understand WIS, because its information has been translated into their standard formats. Aftermarket information systems provide Mercedes baumuster (build model number) and engine code two six-digit numbers but most techs probably ignore them because they aren t needed to get to the specific service information. You can t ignore them when you try to search the Mercedes site, however. Mercedes tech training is only for dealers in classrooms, but there s a long list of free training documents at They cover many electronic, emissions and climate control systems. However, once you open the files, you may need to identify the baumuster to see to which vehicle each refers. Visit to download a free copy of this article. September