Showerthought: I spent $150 on a cheap scan tool and it actually saved my bacon
I was working on a 2015 Duramax that had a weird intermittent power loss. The owner said it felt like it was being held back, but no check engine light. My old scanner couldn't see anything, so I was about to start throwing parts at it. On a whim, I grabbed a $150 Autel scanner from the parts store, figuring it was a gamble. Hooked it up and found a stored code for a turbocharger vane position sensor that wasn't triggering the light. The data stream showed it was sticking. I mean, idk, maybe it's just me but I would have spent way more than that on a turbo or an EGR valve trying to guess. That little tool paid for itself in one afternoon. Has anyone else had a surprisingly good experience with a budget diagnostic tool?