I HIGHLY recomend that anyone with a car (not just a maxima) get at least a basic OBDII scanner. 4th gen's are gunna get CEL's... It's inevitable. I know Auto Zone scans for free, but think of the hassle always driving there to check and clear codes, then going back to recheck, and yada. What I have is basic and reads/clears fault codes. It pays for itself after while, and is comforting to keep in the car just in case. Of course you can screw (pun) with the ECU to get the CEL to flash a certain sequence that you must decode, but that is sort of a PITA imo. Do yourselves a favor, invest in one of these:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Car-S...mZ220260267705

AND ALSO one of THESE!


These 2 things will save you so much time and money in diagnosing problems. They are up there in my must have tools, along with things like a hammer and screw driver, etc.
Please don't cry "SPAM"... I'm just giving an example of what I use.

Of course this is for 96+ cars. Most 95's arent OBD II, but I have heard that some are. Not sure about the max, but you can get the scanners for OBD I cars too.

If you get those 2 things and the FSM, you will be pretty much all set. Shouldnt have to ever take your car anywhere to get dianosed properly. I know this is old news for most people, but this should be good stuff for the n00bs.

 

all 95 maxes are obd II aswell

 

i use a actron and pretty happy with it but what u have there is not a bad deal at all.... these things are a must especially all n00bs

 

I got tired of running to autozone on my last car i did, so I bought an OBD-II scanner and deleter for about $75 at autozone

 

If you're really good, you might be able to find the consult software and a cable to plug in. That's even better.

S

 

Meh, I am pretty content with just doing the screwdriver deal on my ECU and getting it to flash the codes.

 

I can get a good look at a T bone by sticking my head up a bulls ***, but....

 

Most screws break after a while, and it's a pain in the *** to get in there comfrotably.

+1 for the reader. I have one myself.

 

I gotta say, I don't see the screw on the ECU breaking unless you are using power/air tools to adjust it. Are they known to break?

 

You need to use the power torque 5000 + to turn that screw! Just kidding ... good idea on the reader, but Autozone is FREE. FTMFW!!!!

 

Unless auto zone is your next door neighbor, I don't see how multiple trips to auto zone to check codes is more appealing than throwing down $30 for a code reader. I mean, you could litteraly read codes while sitting naked in your car in the privacy of your own garage if you wanted to (of course you do, who doesn't?) It will eventually pay for itself in saved ga$ money too.

 

You kidding me? The head gets striped very easily. I know for a fact there is a bunch of us on here who have POS screws. That was the reason why I got a reader...I could sit there all day long turning the screw either way and it wouldn't do ****...once in a while it would...but 90% of the time it wouldn't.

 

I have a 150 dollar OBDII/monitor plugged in at all times.......

 

Nice. I use carputer with ross-tech OBD II software in the A4. You'd think I was navigating the star ship enterprise.
This is the LCD screen/face plate I rigged up for it.

 

Yea OBDII was WELL worth the money spent. I could guarantee it has paid for itself in just gas saved driving to Autozone. Nice Audi Jamaha80.

 

my early production 95 hardly ever sets any CEL, I had to reset may be 5 times in 7 years. 95 emissions FTW

 

meh,
this:

works for me.

 

I saw one for $400 recently.
I offered the guy $100

 

This is the same one that my mechanic uses, do you know the model number or anything?

 

MT-2500
it has since been obsoleted by the Solus.
I have seen the MT-2500 for sale on my local craigslist for $700.

 

Red brick FTW. Just hate the keys, personally.

 

I actually need to pull it out again to use on my caravan (OBD1)

 

We have a really expensive snap-on computer that has data display, OBD-II code reader, 5-gas analyzer, scope, multimeter, etc...its kick ***. Its all in a cool GUI setup, not text based like internetautomar has

 

anyone in favor of using this scanguage ii-i was actually looking to invest in it

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ScanG...ehicleQ5fParts

 

I'm definitely getting one here soon. I haven't heard much talk of them here on the .org though...

 

Yeah...my mechanic has one of these as well. Told me what each sensor was reading the last time.