Well,,I KNEW it was gonna happen,,,,,,

 Well, since I officially quit "Shade Treeing" a few months ago, I've had to turn away several people, because most of the work involved trouble shooting the computerized systems,,,Chit,,don't people even buy them old cars, trks anymore,,??

 Problem is,,I'm just as guilty as others as all my vehicles are 2000 and newer,,not by much but still,,,,

 In the last couple of weeks my 2006 HHR has needed some attention, and so has the 2000 F150 (Shameless's fav) is now needing some better knowledge than mine,,,,,PLUS,, the friend that helped me re-shingle the house,,his 1999 Ranger also threw a shoe last week.

I had decided that since I was no longer gonna shade tree, I did not need a code reader/scanner, but Oreillys has now decided that they will no longer provide a "print-out" for their code reader service. Their 17 year old new hire will now provide his "expert opinion" on what your trk needs,,,,? CHIT!!  I'M GONNA BUY MY OWN!!

  I'm hoping all them gurus like ole Fixer that does it for a living and others can suggest a good product that is not an arm and a leg expensive, but reliable. I also want one that will talk to my PC to download the info for using a bigger screen. Any one got some suggestions,,,,,

I had one from H-F for years then it didn't survive a 'drive over' test...oopsy. It's replacement stays IN my '97 F150 now. Use it to reset the 'engine' light that comes on due to truck needing right exhaust manifold...

Basic unit, just write down the number, lookup on the internet.I have a GREAT mechanic a long walk away,so I don't turn wrenches on the truck.

 The last time Oreillys actually printed out a "scan" on the HHR, I got a 3 page report that had a graph that was titled,,, "% Probability of Cause",, (or something like that) and listed cause of problem from the HIGHEST Percent Probability to the Lowest percent. (about 6 entries) and the 17 year old "Ace Reader" only tells you the "Highest Cause",,,,but like what Fixer says,,, sometimes it is something else that is triggering that particular sensor, and if you don't have that printout with ALL the probabilities, you have no idea what to check ALONG with the highest probability. Case in point, yesterday, Jamie took the F150 to Oreillys cause it had a BAD misfire at idle and engine would die after bout 45 seconds,,but ran good at hiway speeds!!  The 17 year old told him it was BOTH O2 sensors,,WTF,,? Well, Jamie bought BOTH O2 sensors ($80 Bucks wworth!),, spent 3 hours changing em and,,,,and,,,the friggin trk still has the BAD misfire!!

 Hey Steve, is there a particular website you use to get the codes info??

Lets say you have a 308 code on a F150...... I GOOGLE   "2008 F150 Code P0308"

this is what they give you.......

I have used a BASIC code reader for 30 years and NEVER had to take a car or truck to a "mechanic" do figure out a problem... Its just a matter of looking at ALL the codes and putting 2 + 2 together before you start replacing parts.

 10-4 Fixer, The hoses all look good and not hardened up. The 3rd hose I followed out was the hose at the air intake hose and followed it back to this IAC behind the intake manifold, The 1" hose did NOT have a clamp and was kinda loose on the fitting but engine still reved up after spraying after installing a clamp on the hose end. SO, I sprayed the gasket area and only got a slight rise in RPMs, so I sprayed the mid section of the valve and got a BIG rise in RPMs! There is a small "cap" on top of the IAC and idle would also rise when spraying that part, but really think it is the "seam" where it is leaking. Parts stores did not have one so I'ma order one from Walmart.com, be here on Thurs,,,,, Still looking into gettin a reader/ scanner, tho,,,,Got any suggestions,,??

--excess fuel

--lack of fuel

--not enough air

--too much air

--bad wire connection on the 02 sensor

-- or BAD O2 sensor...

if the CODE says "02 problem" and it happens on BOTH SIDES, the possibility of BOTH 02 SENSORS being bad at the same time is ZERO..... Store Boy should have known that !

Congrats on finding the AIR LEAK... Sometimes the "old method" of looking for leaks is the best FIX... all the CODE does is tell you that AIR LEAK is a "possibility".

 Well, a bit of an update on ole Shameless's fav trk,,,,,,I got to looking at the IAC and there is a small shaft that is moved back and forth that opens and closes a seat between the two ports on the IAC body,,,well,,the frigging shaft is frozen with both ports closed to each other,,,,Also, the little electric"solenoid"? was not working for CHIT... with 12 volts across the two pins,,SO,, this may of been the culprit that started the whole Chit-A Risky,,,,