?scanning ?

[DierDesire824]

everyone is always talking about scanning and so forth ses light
im new to this whole automotive electronic world i understand how engines work and most everything in them but im not that smart in teh electronic field

scanning your car are you guys talking about a lap top hooked up to your engine with a program if so what program do you use and how do u hook the lap top up ?

[Joe 1320]

here is a great site......

http://www.autotap.com/

You can use smaller, hand held scanners like Snap On or similar. It's all in the preferance. You can also go with a custom program like LT-1 edit to modify your computer yourself along with all the other diagnostic stuff.

[Rob B (shoebox)]

Scanning/programming options depend on the year of your car.

[Fastbird93]

As was said by Shoebox, what year is your car??? If it's a 93, you're pretty much stuck with Datamaster for logging capabilities. I know there's a couple more options for the 94-97 cars, such as Freescan, Datamaster, Scanmaster, and I believe one or two more.

[Joe 1320]

I have to admit, I assumed that because it says Green 97 Z28 under his username, that's what I thought he had.

[Fastbird93]

Oops.....didn't see that there.

[Injuneer]

Here's a link to a writeup I did a while back. Explains some of the hardware and software available for the LT1 F-Bodys. The main problem is the links are sort of out of date, but it might help you understand what is available:

http://members.aol.com/FWForsythePE/HowTo/Scanner.htm

And here's another writeup that shows some of the data you can view with a scanner, and how to interpret it:

http://members.aol.com/InjuneerZZ/ScanMast.htm

Since it appears you have a 97, you need OBD-II compatible systems. As a helpful hint, its a good idea to include a "signature" in your posts that includes the year of your car, trans type and any major modifications. That will help people respond with the correct information.