Your thoughts on online repair manuals

I maintain an account with alldata...It is the next best thing to having a factory service manual

I went to the sample vehicle and don't see troubleshooting or repair instructions. Do they have that as part of their package?

Chilton also has one and it is $20 per vehicle

If you mean, 'do you have to subscribe' then the answer is yes.

No I meant if you do subscribe do they have troubleshooting and repair instructions. The sample vehicle doesn't seem to have either.

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You can get access to a decent chunk of this info for free on the Autozone site. Autozone bought Alldata or something and they now provide a good chunk of the content on their site under the DIY section. It's not as complete as you'll get with the subscription, but in many cases it will be adequate if you know what you're doing.

Pete C.

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Alldata subscription has substantial troubleshooting and repair information.

I use Autozone's repair info. frequently. As Pete says, it isn't as comprehensive in some areas as say Alldata or a factory service manual, but has enough for most people to feel confident about doing their own repairs. The Autozone site doesn't go much past the year 2000, and doesn't cover too many cars in certain years, but it is useful. Sort of a combination Chilton's/Haynes and a bit of factory put together.

Best of all, it's free. Works for me, LOL.

Why don't you just get him to grab a for real factory service manual/s for the car? They'll be far cheaper in the long run than Alldata, and much more convenient.

This place has them by the ton... If your car's manuals come in multiple volumes, be sure to get them all.

Alldata is good, especially if your in a shop environment working on different stuff all the time. For your own, get the for real printed manuals... they'll save you a bundle in the life of the car, don't tie you to your computer, and they're a good selling feature if and when you ever sell the car.

Should the car end up being totaled, ripped or scrapped, manuals sell well on eBay. You can't loose.

If you ever buy a new car, get the dealer to throw them in as part of the deal. It's not a common request, and they'll hem and haw, but can get them through their parts department just like any other accessory.

Erik

I use:

By Mitchell On-line- 9.99 per car per week. At my last shop we had Mitchell-on-line, and I was pleased with it. but the dealership has Subaru tech only and doesn't see the need for the expense of the complete service, so I am allowed to charge enough to the account for diagnostics for a specific car when needed. Mostly I use it for wire schematics; and in a few cases they were easier to dig through then the OEM stuff for the Subies.