I bought a scanner so I would be able to see what, if anything, was wrong with my 2011 F-250 FX 6.2 gasser, automatic.
I did have a light come on once, or twice before and I hooked it up as directed, but I could not find my truck in the menu, if that a must?
I did use the erase code, or reset code function, and that worked, and light went off and has never returned over 1000's of miles since.
I guess my question is, do these have to be specific readers that match the vehicle, or is it a generic thing?
I recall buying this unit, it wasn't the cheapest, and I used my truck in the search, to match.
Maybe I just need to get it out and try to figure it out, I just can't seem to find a answer to my question......????

Thanks.

 

Here's what I use:

Download FORScan

 

Easy to use? I am not that tech savvy, but at that price I can afford not to be

Thank you.

 

b
If you r a little computer savay, not bad to use. If you have any questions just post back, I'm subscribed.

 

WOW....that is so nice of you to offer, doubly so in this strange world we live in today.
I am going to take out the scanner I do have and see if I can figure it out, it seems to be a good one, and the codes for the most part seem universal, so I can't see any reason mine wouldn't work, so I think I shall start there, but again, thank you Sir for your generosity

 

For something more portable and quicker download the Torque app. for your phone. Also, this adapter will work with Bluetooth and your phone: This is easier to use than Forscan if you just need to read and clear codes then it will work fine for you.

 

Forscan is one of the better DTC readers. I recently started playing around with Torque Pro with my wifi obii reader and so far, IMHO, I think Forscan is easier. With Forscan I could just play with it and learn. Not so with Torque. I have to watch youtube tutdurials. Data management seems better in Forscan. Maybe it is just me, but It took me a day to learn Forscan where Torque will take days.

 

I'll admit that whenever I've had an SES light on, a standard 'cheap' scanner has always let me pull the codes. However, 'soft' codes almost always require something better since they don't set an SES light and don't tend to get picked up by the cheap scanners.

 

Thanks all, I have yet to tackle mine, but I sure appreciate all the good replies.
One thought comes to mind in this age of technology, I would think this type of programming would be a snap.
A piece of equipment reads the code and imbedded in the software would be all the possible issue that could cause it.....???
Maybe its the old argument that "they" have a carburetor that can get 100 MPG but the oil industry bought the rights to it, to keep it out of the public use

 

if i understand yur question, you can run a search on any code and get possible issues associated with it. IIRC Forscan gives some explanation of the code also.

 

I have and use Forscan. It is a very useful tool, but it is not that user friendly for someone just starting out compared to to an app like torque or others. Also torque will give you code explanations and tell you which monitors have run very quickly from your ceii phone. I have never tried Forscan from my phone, i always use a laptop. My rule of thumb is if you want to change programming use the laptop and a cable connection adapter from the computer to the OBD port. If you want to pull and erase codes or check monitors use the phone torque app and Bluetooth adapter to the OBD port. The second is more convenient and portable.

 

Some readers/programmers do give you 'suggested' things that could be causing the code, but not that many. Most just give you a basic description of the code itself, and a few cheap options literally only give you the code. That said, your friend Google can bring up a LOT of suggested solutions with just the code and what vehicle you have. That said, you still need to jump down the rabbit holes, because I have often found that a lot of codes are set, but the issue is actually something you might think is unrelated.

For instance, I kept getting a random misfire code on a vehicle years ago (99 s-series Jimmy). Didn't have my tools with me, so I took it to a shop, they diagnosed it as bad injectors. Replaced them but the issue was still there. As a college kid I didn't have time to screw around anymore, so I took it to a shop my dad has dealt with for decades. They kept it overnight, discovered the distributor cap was partially melted. Did some more investigation and figured out that when I replaced the catalytic converter with a 'stock replacement aftermarket' from Autozone, turns out that 'replacement' was undersized and was causing excessive heat. They replaced the cap, rotor, and catalytic converter, and I didn't have another issue until THAT cat started to go bad...at which point I dummied out the the rear O2 sensor and straight-piped it. Never had another problem after that.

 

Well I had some time today to grab my scanner to see if it made any more sense.....
Its a iCarsoft i920, if that helps.
It seems to be a good one, sorta expensive compared to what is listed above.
Going to their website it says its compatible for my truck, but I still can't get it to recognize it on the screen before I run scans...
And reading the user manual is just not working in my head.....arg.
I think I'll go hook it up again and see if I can get it to acknowledge my truck....???

Thanks all to have tried to help

 

OK...well that was fun....I got it to work and now I know the problem, its way too much for me.
It read the temperature of the coolant even, and all sorts of other stuff as it scanned, and it was all 100% and no codes.
I could if touch the gas pedal and watch the graph change