This is a reply for Rick G. who has his commenting turned off: He writes: Sorry, tired of scan tool video's! Most of us don't have access to high end tools and the term "if I can do it so can you" does not imply! Eric O. love your knowledge of automotive repair, but please keep it simple! Okay!!!! I reply: Well Rick, I can say this and by all means, I mean no offence and I am not belittling you. The fact is, the days of fixing cars with pliers and screwdrivers has long sensed passed. Shops that operate without a scope and scan tool are just guessing as you can see from the video. Yes, I could have fixed this without it. It would have taken me 5 times longer and would have been an educated guess in the end at best. This is the simplest most efficient way to fix modern engines. IMO I did keep it simple. I did not swap in injectors like he was quoted from the other shop who was clearly guessing. I fix the vehicle the first time and in under an hour. I saved the customer over $600. Just my thoughts on that subject.

@SouthMainAuto

8 жыл бұрын

Steve Warren Fact is you have to. I am not picking or making fun that is just the way it is today.

@lorrinbarth1969

8 жыл бұрын

I was driving to work one fall morning when suddenly I had a miss. So I turned around and returned to the garage at home. Within a minute or two I had identified an offending spark plug wire. Luckily I had a spare plug wire and I appeared at work before starting time. The point is I was able to diagnose and effect a repair in several minutes without any scan tools. It is interesting to use these tools to illustrate what the engine in this video was doing but we all have eyes, ears and brains.

@yurbeeinwatched

8 жыл бұрын

I will chime in here. If you don't like scan tools then get out of the road. The days of simple misfire repairs are gone. A scanner is just the introduction to an accurate diagnosis. If you want brake job videos, Kilmer can supply you with several one size fits all videos. Then you can bring it to me and I will charge the shit out of you to fix your half assed repair.

@baxrok2.

8 жыл бұрын

Well said sir. You're absolutely right Eric. People seem to forget that you run a business and that your videos are educational and not just something that you do for entertainment.

@renewedautodiagnostics6525

8 жыл бұрын

I prefer diagnostic videos over r and r videos any day

THE BEST COMMENT OF ALL TIME “ Ground Her on the ole fuel rail that will get everyone fired up”. LMAO 😂. awesome Eric

Old school secondary waveform diagnosis. You have a customer for life when you fixed it without parts especially after being quoted for injectors.

@overload3996

4 жыл бұрын

Please take a close look at the wave pattern again, It would have shown even more with a brake load applied.

I'm glad to see videos on these older vehicles :)

Eric , I don't care what Scotty Kilmer says about you, You go the extra mile and did a very good in depth video...thanks .....

@movingupautodiagnostics8645

8 жыл бұрын

Did Scotty say something about Eric?

@danekeeper1

8 жыл бұрын

Naw I was just jerking his chain....no good deed goes unpunished hahahah

@Mike.Rowphone

5 жыл бұрын

I'm 2 years late to the party here ( catching up slowly but surely on a daily basis ) ... Its like playground chatter ... My mate can batter your mate .. lol

@MrNotorius5500

4 жыл бұрын

Despite how eccentric Scotty can be, I highly doubt he would have anything to say against a well seasoned technician like Eric.

That was fantastic, Eric! And can't believe you cut the wire at the right end to fix it haha. Never used that digital kV display on the Verus before...didn't even know it was there. Learn something new every day for sure.

@burtpilon1735

5 жыл бұрын

Pine Hollow Auto Diagnostics yeah either is there any info out there that shows how to hook the leads up. I caught the parade and the no. 1 lead but how would you connect to the distributor. Any help.

@richardmitchell7836

3 жыл бұрын

Ivan you probably would have torn the cut end apart to investigate and find and see the problem, I know that's what I want to do..but I know that we would do that for our own sake ...because it wouldn't be cost effective to do in a shop.

@lavonroads2353

2 жыл бұрын

there use to be a Wells spark plug kit . with this kit you had to make your own plug wires. i use to put a small copper wire about 2 inches into the end the bend it over to make good contact to the metal ends. then use common plyers to crimp on the ends. of course i don't do it today...but the wire kits today are way too long and fit like crap.

Most mechanics that know as much as you take advantage of the customer. You are a true and trustworthy individual. You have fan for life in me for that reason. God bless.

You are gaining a reputation as one of the best drivability mechanics around. You're also a honest family man that isn't out to screw customers every chance you get. That combination is hard to find these days.

@SouthMainAuto

8 жыл бұрын

No where near the best let me tell ya.

@rharris5811

8 жыл бұрын

+South Main Auto Repair You're too humble. The way you can relate to your veiwers and try to explain whatever youre working on makes for a good teacher. I think you would have a hell of a career as a teacher when you decide to retire from turning wrenches.

Thanks Eric. I can always count on you for a great video.

Have a great day SMA, found your channel last night and now I'm hooked on it.

I had a 78 mustang 2 with a 5.0 and bad plug wires and turned lights off and it lit up like a christmas tree. Ran like crap, replaced wires and ran like a dream. lol had 20 people tell me its flat cam lobes, clogged jets, and burned valves. They were all reputable shops. Supposedly. It took an oldschool shadetree, 12 pack Natural light and $20 for new set of wires to fix it. It was my first car.

@Tedybear315

8 жыл бұрын

Most shops will go full boar "Worst Case" and ignore the simple basics. The old 'Shade Tree' mechanic probably has seen more and repaired more then most of the new 'techs' that relay far to much on flowcharts and such. Always ALWAYS start with the basics and go forward from there. Often the simplest, is the issue...And if it turns out to be 'complex'? Then make and keep notes for reference in case you see it again.

I love the afternoon blast!

Other Shop= "Oh, yea- we put the new injectors in, and that fixed it- just like we said" (with old plug wire in trash can) Thank goodness for DIY & SMA. Great detective work, Eric! Thank you too, Hanna!

@yourlocalalexis4578

3 жыл бұрын

you are so wrong, lol

good video as always Eric 👍glad to see still good mechanics remain in this world.

I missed this video, it just came up in my suggested. really good stuff Eric.

Good morning Eric !! breakfast with South Main Auto... I love it ... best way to start my day with Eric O!!! you are the man!!!

This is amazing. The most inexperienced technician should still have been able to find this one. No wonder most people consider mechanics to be crooks. People like that kill the reputations of responsible technicians. Such a shame.

@SouthMainAuto

8 жыл бұрын

I know right!? Makes me shake my head but then again it also keeps the lights on in my shop...

There are few things more satisfying than having the skill to demonstrate the problem, fix it with minimal parts, and move forward. You can spot the guys who are in it for the right reason. Anything less is lazy parts changing. The latter might fly when you have a stock room full of new parts, where there is no cost to swapping in a new part as a brief trial. But you know most shops would have sold the customer plugs, wires, and a new cap and rotor. I'm so impressed you were able to fix the wire.

Nice diagnosis Eric, another happy customer!!! He will tell his friends and family for sure.

thanks O for the old school flashback,fixin a spark plug end,oh ya!!!

Friggin awesome! I pulled the same laziness, now I know I need to go back and look again! Thanks Mr O!!!

Eric O, you make this look too easy lol. Thank you for taking us along for the diagnostics ride brother. This channel should be mandated for new students headed to school. Very well done.

eric o i think your amazing your knowledge is second to none from an old envious uk mechanic

Yes!!! I have a 95 150 with the 4.9 and this helps a ton!

We still have a lot of older model trucks on the road here in the south. Good job on the fix Eric.

I am no mechanic at all but I am a technician and I am sure all techs, no matter what their trade can appreciate and acknowledge the logical approach you take in diagnosis. I like watching the tools you use to get there. I can even chime in myself at times in what next step I would logically take. Happy to have found your channel.

I really enjoy watching your videos. Step by step diagnosis. Methodical!

Another new customer! Thanks Eric it was a great video!

Back in the day we would first hook up the old sunscope to check what you did on the handheld, I supose that sunscope might be located in the smithsonian as a antique, but its a good video and it did bring back some memories.

I was an auto shop teacher for 30 years. This reminds me of teaching the old "Bear" scope primary & secondary patterns. A lot of old scopes on Craigs List but my shop is full of other deals. Good Job Eric

Thats probably, no that was the best and most thural diagnosis that i have ever seen. I wish more people would take the time. Thanks for the video.

"Just because it's new doesn't mean it's good" is such a true statement. I worked at a Cadillac dealership for several years doing PDIs. And on a few occasions, I would get a vehicle that only had 2 to 3 miles on the odometer with something not working, like a tail light, window or door lock. All of the problems were electrical. I never had a PDI with a mechanical problem. And I tend to take that saying more serious with after market parts.

Reminds me of my early days at Sears watching the old school guys with a Sun Machine. Most guys were done after you said OBD I and no CEL. Good old fashioned diagnostics. Good job!!!

Thanks for the video. Love the "old school" EECIV

I once put a set of my old mazda wires on a friend's nissan, she wanted to sell the car. I also glued the headlights back together, great nostalgia Eric, thanks.

Excellent! Thanks Eric. Watching this helped me verify that I need those leads for my Vantage Pro. My son's 04 Mazda still has the old school ignition.

@SouthMainAuto

8 жыл бұрын

u can use these leads on new school too :)

Great demonstration on using snapon scope.

Many times I have used intuition , and experience , working on familiar vehicles , then a new comes your way. And out comes the high tec instruments, Nice diagnosis Eric'O . Working on the old school 5 litre..

lol, loved the customer explanation. "runs turable". I have a customer that says it just like that also. reminded me of him. as always another great video.

Great video! I think one of the key lessons from this video is not the expensive scope you used but your diagnostic approach. I started working on cars way back in the 70's and I would just go through all the steps of checking everything piece by piece because I had no alternative.. I used to check plug wires with an ohm meter as SOP.

Well done Eric I am old school certified 1966 Ohm's test the wire would have been my first check after viewing scope kv . I continue to learn from you young bucks. Thanks

Hey Eric got a tip for you if you don't know about this. When you are looking at the ignition waveform and you see the spark line higher at idle or when you load the engine, this is indicating excessive resistance outside the combustion chamber. Then anything on the waveform that is happening after the middle part of the spark line is a problem inside the combustion chamber. I was taught this by Jim Morton, a diagnostic Tech from Pennsylvania. So when you saw the spark line higher than the others, that showed resistance outside the combustion chamber, as you proved with the bad plug wire connection. Good job.

@baxrok2.

8 жыл бұрын

Yup. Fantastic seminar, even if you only watch it online.

@deepsquat600

8 жыл бұрын

cool..awesome tip ....:)

@paulkirkland1535

7 жыл бұрын

Baxrok2: Where can I see that seminar? I'd be interested to have a look at it and learn more. I guess you're never too old to learn.

@trainer2018

7 жыл бұрын

Paul Kirkland Go to the TST KZread channel and look for the Jim Morton Ignition diagnostic seminar.

@dannylinc6247

Жыл бұрын

Great comment, I was seeing that too for #6 sparkline. Higher required voltage and actual.

good video eric..reminding us once again always check the basics first.

Thanks for your honest humble and professional teaching it has helped me a lot thanks again

I can appreciate your work. My 97 F-350 7.3 DIT died an! The local shop just threw part after part to it and never actually did any troubleshooting.

It makes me wonder what the customer's gonna decide. But you did fix the problem and you do have the broken piece that you can Slice open and show him very good eric very good thank you

Nice find. Wish all garages took the time. That's why I do a lot of my own work. A lot of garages just replace. Ohh it's this...Ohh it's that! Ohh look at that Bill.

Can't believe other shops could not find a bad plug wire, I see why you get so much work.

This is what puts you above the rest. Kudos to you for not guessing and throwing parts at it in hopes of fixing it, All at the expense of the customer!

The other shop didn't do a thing. No new cap or wires. I would be pissed. Great video again Eric.

Hey Eric! I LOVE those old Fords, I have a 1996 F150 with a 5.0 in it as well!

G'day Eric good how you investigated the source of the problem. While I was watching you with the Verus scanner I remembered back when the scanners were big chest like devices on castors with a whole lot of leads, now you can pick it up with your hands certainly come a long way regards John

Funny how when cars come to SMA ...They get fixed... Makes me really glad I wasn't the guys that worked on it before. SHEESH!!! A freakin' plug wire? You showed the other shops what rookies they were in 15:15 min.. Way to go Eric!

Eric, I love what you do. If I had to hire a mechanic I'd be thrilled to hire you. I do my own work..... Your equipment is absolutely appropriate for a working shop. Let the haters hate! I'm a tad bit jealous. LOL. Having said that, I do a lot of diagnostic work for friends and family without the equipment. My electrical tools consist of a Fluke 83 DVOM and an Oscope from the 70s. Takes a bit more work, but I rarely fire the parts cannon. That Oscope (bought at an estate sale for $20) has saved thousands of bucks over the years. It gets down to one thing...... knowledge. You, sir, know what a schematic means and how to interpret it. I don't care if you read the information on a Verus or my old antique...... It ain't the pipes. It's the plumber. Thanks for the continuing outstanding videos! (And yes, you'd be jealous of my rust free 08 pickup)

Another great video. Thanks Eric. Craig Dreisbach

Good find NY

sweat, great demonstration! and true words of wisdom. just took a hit this week, nothing worse than a solid repair only to have the replacement part fail a few month later. sounds like others joined the parade @ 14:52 what timing. joking aside hope all was well or just lunch time. I felt safe though was watching dr. O

@coollasice4175

8 жыл бұрын

In Eric's state (NY), it's a state law that when the 12:00 siren blows everybody has to stop work and eat lunch.

almost 40K! way to go SMA

That is a beautiful 95 Flare Side F150 Great Video Eric O as Always Brother @SouthMainAutoRepairLLC

It's been a long time since working on a old EECIV OR EECV SYSTEM. Like you, I kept old wires for testing until a Supervisor threw them out along with all the wiring harness plastic (connector) ends I had! No problem, I collected more ign wires, along with wiring harness plastic connector ends and HID THEM! Life is GOOD when you win! Hope that battery/starter/ cables made it!

I retired from the US Air Force 17 days after this video posted. I worked on ground support equipment for the aircraft for 20 years. Seen a lot of parts cannon troubleshooting. Drives me up the wall every time I see it happen. Glad to see real troubleshooting in action.

@jima3129

Жыл бұрын

It's a 95. I would not consider a new coil cap rotor and plug wires to be firing the cannon, just logical preventive maintenance. Sometimes it just makes sense to spend your money on parts instead of diagnostics, IMHO. The guy that owned this truck cares more about the outside than the inside. That's obvious from the filth under the hood.

I just had a rocker arm come loose and fall off the spring and push rod on the #5 cylinder on a 4.2L. Put it back on and re-torqued it and now it runs nice and smooth again!

As you said, just because it's new doesn't mean it good. Had that happen with plugs. Thanks for the video.

Thanks for the video on single cylinder misfire. I came across your video while trying to troubleshoot my "P0303 cylinder 3 misfire- Generic" error code. I have a newer F-150, a 2004 heritage with a 4.2L V6. The lack of information online regarding WHAT COMPONENT might be the culprit, especially for my model/year vehicle was hair pulling to say the least. Long story short(er), my V6 has a single Ignition Coil and I was getting a 2nd DTC error code as well. DTC code "P0316 Misfire in the First 1000 Revolutions". Note: As soon as the SERVICE ENGINE LIGHT came on I hooked up my innova 3100 scan tool and drove with it. I hooked scan tool up later to my PC to review/dump data and look for a resolution. The 4 choices of items I found to try replacing was: 1. plugs 2. plug wires 3. ignition coil 4. fuel injectors The easiest and most logical possibility (to me, in my particular case) was the ignition coil. So I went online to search for local sources that had one IN STOCK. I found the local O'reillys had a lifetime warranty Masterpro ignition coil. In stock and the reviews were 5 star. I diagramed and labeled all cables before disassembling old ignition coil. Then installed the new ignition coil. Replaced cables according to labels/diagram. Everything was normal'd back up to how it was initially, (but with new ignition coil). I reconnected scan tool and went for a test drive. Both on hwy and around town. Without any intervention by me, the SERVICE ENGINE LIGHT had gone out (I didn't have to manually reset it via the scan tool). - No more DTC codes came up. - Scanner reported no new codes. - no skipping, no misfiring and no jerking at any speed. Just wanted to pass along WHAT COMPONENT exactly I replaced, in order to fix my F-150 heritage. I just hope it helps others that have a similar P0303 DTC code problem and who come across this particular video (though my F-150 is a different year/model/engine size than the one in your video). Whether it is a "single cylinder misfire" or a "P030x cylinder misfire - Generic", videos such as this are a great help to affected vehicle owners. Thanks again to the video producer.

Good Fix Eric, I bet Customer was Happy..

It was good to see you working on a pre OBDII vehicle. I had a Snap-On ignition scope , I think model MT6500. It wasn't a 'live' scope it was digital so the pattern would be delayed probably by a few miliseconds . Sometimes that would be enough to make diagnosing difficult. I still own my Snap-On 'brick' scanner for old times sake. lol

Eric, In the 70's I put a new set of wires into my 1967 mustang, yellow special set. Was not to long when they began to fail. I research I found they failed where they flexed. I figured out that there was carbon in fiberglass strands, and where they flexed the carbon migrated away. Since then I have used the wire wound resistance plug wires. Thanks for the great video, I enjoy your type of logic diagnostic.

One of my first vehicles was a '93 F150 5.0, used of course a few years after high school. Funny how every 4-cyl on earth has more horsepower nowadays but it was a cool truck back then. Like you said, most of them around here in southern Ohio are long gone rusted out or driving around with gaping rust holes now. Nice fix BTW.

I know I'm watching older videos. But would love to see customers reactions at each end

Great seeing a pre obd repair. I have an '89 Silverado, '76 F250 and a '64 Merc. I can't find an old school mechanic to figure things out. If it can't be plugged in then they have to actually think. Great videos. Big fan!

Hard to believe you only got 434K subscribers, deserve way more. Wish you worked near me, you would be my first choice for everything from lubing the ash tray to complete engine replacement. My buddies boat was missing when we were out on Lake Erie, turned out to be a broken spark plug wire, right in the middle, we connected the break in the wire with a paper clip, taped it up and it ran good the rest of the week. 3 years later the cheap b*stard still was using our paper clip fix.

That is a clean looking OBS Ford for being up in NY. Those things are always rusty. Guys that own them in my area (NJ) are buying rust free beds and cabs from the south and putting them on their truck, especially the diesels that you can get 800k miles out of them.

Very nice diag finding the open on the wiring and chopping it off Eric O @SouthMainAutoRepairLLC

Awesome job!

That’s awesome no scan tool required technically speaking just a scope to figure out which cylinder and then plain and simple logic and some used parts to figure that one out 🤘🏿👌🏾

Those injectors on the 5.0's of that era are built like a Sherman tank. The ones I removed from my '86 Grand Marquis (only because I tried to clean carbon off one and broke the plastic end off - probably would've still worked but I'm a perfectionist) with 229k miles, 30 years old, all tested within OEM specs except for 1 that was slightly out. The guy who bought them from me on eBay let me know - guess he had some fancy injector testing equipment. He installed them in a 30's hotrod he was building. So, anytime someone says "it's the injectors" on those '86 and up 302's, I say BS! As a side note, we're still running on the OEM 30 year old fuel pump at 232k miles on that same car!! Doubt my '07 Silverado will come close to half that ... Good find there. I wonder if my 35 year old Craftsman inductive timing light (there's a relic for ya, lol - it's CHROME too! ) would've picked up on that problem. Since I don't have a scope, that would've been the first thing I would've done in that situation - hook the inductive clamp on #6, fire it up, and see if I have strobe. Since it tested open, I think that test would've confirmed it for me - no strobe = no sparky. In defense of the other shop, I've been there a time or 2 with Ford plug wires. Seems the aftermarket is loaded with garbage! Can't tell you how many times I did cap, rotor, plugs & wires, only to have a dead miss afterward. After hours of denial, it finally comes to my realization that the plug wire (or wires) are garbage, right out of the box! In the last year I've been getting alot of Ford starter solenoids that either weld themselves closed (That's a fun one! Ghost cranker!), or break right in half while tightening the lugs. Right now, I'm trying to install a set of E-code glass lens headlamp assemblies on our '93 Volvo 940. Things came straight from china - entire lens inside the housing is just floating around in there. Good thing I found that before I installed it! Bought them off eBay - there's my first problem. Now I have to wait around a week or so until a good one gets here. Man, I'll tell ya!!! Junk is killing us ...

@mark98070

5 жыл бұрын

Good to know about those injectors. I almost paid a mechanic lots of $ to change out a good old set (1995) for probably some garbage from China!

Similar to my old '95. Thanks for the vid.

GOOD DIAGNOSTICS great job well done

Classic Eric!!!!!!

Very thorough and good job!! 😆

Great info Eric . I have a '95 F150 with that same engine. After 180,000 miles still runs great. I really enjoy the OBD1 jobs. Keep up the good work. Excellent video!!

@SouthMainAuto

8 жыл бұрын

Yep OBD1 makes us think a bit :)

Great video nice scope work. Thanks Eric o

Woah....learn so much....refreshing memories.....

ToolTopia sells those wire crimper Eric O. Lol. Great video for the novice and Scanner Dandies. Thanks. Y

Your amazing man !! Wish u we’re here in Cali !!

I think the other shop tried to set the guy up. I had a manager and a guy who writes you up when my son went to a car dealer to get his car fixed. The car was under warranty. When I questioned the manager he got very belligerent and said there was no one else to talk to about the problem. He forgot the owner. I was able to prove how they tried to deceive my son. Been a mechanic for 56 yrs. Even though you used a scan tool you also showed how to check a spark plug wire with an ohm meter which I have used to find the same problem. I enjoy your videos and one thing about being a mechanic is there's always something to learn.

Good job

Nice. We see OBD 1 cars In Fl all the time. I still have the snap on red brick. The other shops in my area wont work on them. Good for us.

Sweet fix .

Excellent vid.

Man, I want one of those Verus Pro.

Good Video Erci!!!!....Tthank you for let us know the waveform of old firing single coil cars!!!!....My guess was a broken distributor cap or distributor rotor in position 6!!!!.....the old ford cars always nedeed to change spark plug wire set from time to time!!!!!.....awesome and deep diagnostics, I´ve never seen the waveform of old firing and the changes with higher RPM!!!!...thank you Eric!!!...good video for all the 5.0 or 302 ford fans like me!!! hahahahaha

another excellent video, I've learned allot from watching you. Thanks for what you do.

Hey there Mr.Eric O. Great vids and thank you for everything! Keep up the great work. Sure wish you was in Oklahoma instead of New York lol

You stuck with it to the end. That is very good. The next time you get one like this after verifying the dead cylinder, pull off the plug wire at both ends and measure it's resistance. then remove the open wire from the engine measure it's length and get another one from the part's store. After replacing it, start the engine and soak all the wires and the cap and coil with a water spray bottle, and test for a short under load, to avoid a comeback the first time it rains. If need be you can then replace all the wires. This whole mess was very seemed very odd, because it seems most shop's have been wasting peoples money by always replacing the wires when the do the plugs. You finished the job. Keep going.

Good job Eric thanks for the video

Bro great video, awesome diagnosis 👍

Cool fix!!!!

Why are you're video's so entertaining?

I know this is an older video so my comment won't be seen by many people, but I agree with the way you went about this diagnosis. I owned a large independent garage back in the 70's and 80's and if a customer brought in a vehicle with an apparent misfire like this, we would do a visual inspection for something out of whack. If that showed nothing, the first thing we would do is roll the Sun scope over and do the exact same thing as you did here.