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Individuals can get access to Helm etc.

https://www.helminc.com/helm/p...

BTW many schools have a wide variety of manuals available online. Community colleges offering auto repair courses usually do.

Helm has just such a service for car service manuals that I've used many times in the past. They have a 1 year ($350) , 1 month ($50) , or 3 day ($10) subscription. So if you are working on your car and want all of the up to date information for troubleshooting a problem you can get the 3 day subscription and have access to everything the dealer does including service bulletins and warranty repairs. I used to go try to find a .pdf manual for my car and download it but I'm fine paying $10 to have all of the up to date information.

http://www.helminc.com/helm/Result.asp?Style=helm&Mfg=AHM&Make=AHM&Model=ACRD&Year=2006&selected_media=ES&st=S

Chilton/Haynes seem to be the typical manuals found at autoparts stores and libraries, so there is always that around if you need it. What some dealers seem to use and what I've recently purchased was a Helm manual. I haven't had a chance to use it yet on my Integra(an occasionally-satisfying high-revver) but from looking through it, it appears that the people that wrote it actually performed the procedures before(and maybe even after! Huh!) they wrote it. There is pictures of difficult to reach/see/understand things and tips on how to do things easier. I was amazed.

One thing that Ive realized is important in automobile repair is having the right tools for the job and in this case I think you could generally consider a Helm manual to be a good tool to have. You may not use it or need it for what you're doing, but it's good to have nearby juuust in case. Mine was only $64 and will most likely be well worth it.

Not affiliated with Helm, Acura or anyone at all now that I think about it.

I agree that it shouldn't take 30 seconds. But I should be able to do it easily. It should at least say how to do it in the owners manual. As far as I can tell, instructions aren't published anywhere.

For most brands, try http://www.helminc.com/

These are original factory service manuals. The detail contained in one is amazing, and it is well worth the $90 (or thereabouts) price. These are the exact same manuals the local dealership has on file, and what the service techs use when they need to figure out a problem. Think about the next time you go to a shop, and have your car serviced, what you don't know, and what would just make your eyes glaze over as the tech is telling you the problem.

Most things on a car are EASY to fix. It just takes the knoweledge and correct tools to get the job done.

If you can understand the logistics of why serial port #0 and #2 conflict, you can figure out a modern "pointless" ignition system. And it can be done all told for under $1000 in tools.

Most people think $1000 is too much and goto a shop instead, but then they nickel&dime themselves to death with 30 different repairs costing over $200 each.

Why not go to http://www.helminc.com/helm/homepage.asp and go to the repair infomation section and purchase the factory service manual and electronic troubleshooting manual and do it yourself? you should also become a member of http://www.rsxworld.com if you are not already, so that you can learn more about your vehicle.

You can get the SAE document describing the interface for $80 or so (or you can do what I did and borrow it from a university library). Companies such as multiplex engineering and others sell interface blocks that convert the oddball OBD-II electrical interface on your car to RS-232 serial. Then you are free to write your own diagnostic software for your linux laptop. Most of the trouble codes are standardized but if you want more info get your car's service manual from HELM or some other source.

Of course I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that the automotive aftermarket industry (i.e. repair shops) fought to make sure that you could do these things. And it seems like some fraction of car dealers have always been run by crooks (or idiots).

I'm making an embedded system for my car. It'll have a HUD using bright LEDs. It will perform data aquisition on the car using analog to digital converters, counters, and other gizmos. There will be a microcontroller that runs autonomously, communicates with many ICs over a serial bus, sends data to a PC (when installed) over a serial link, and stores its code in ROM. Most of the components will have an industrial temperature range (from -40C to 125C, or -20C to 70C depending on the part). For power, a 7805 voltage regulator and some capacitors will do.

I'll have this thing attached to my car, on top of my dash. When the car is running, the system will be running (no boot period). And when the PC finally come up (a circut will prevent it when the temp is to cold or hot, then it has to boot) it can get the car's data in real time, and process it for whatever purpose.

I've started working on it. Its quite feasable. I hope to have a test system that will tell me about the pulses going to my spedometer and tachometer (there is no tachometer in my car, but the pulses do make it to the dash).

To make this project possible, I had to get documentation on my car. I connacted Helm to get the service and electrical manuals for my 1989 Honda Civic. I got nice new books that tell me everything I could ever ask about my car -- every electrical circut is fully documented, along with info on how to replace axles and engines (everything is there).

I've already wired up my dash (nothing connected to yet), and made a few test circuts. I'm having way too much fun with this!! So much, that I haven't documented any of it on my web site -- no time!

Anyone else intrested in this microcontroller approach?