Don’t Bogart that Diag!

The first step and most important procedure of any car repair is the diagnosis. Get the diagnosis right and any automotive problem can be solved. A well-executed diagnostic can be the best money you ever spend on the repair of your car. Never skip the diagnostic. Here at Bryan’s Automotive, we insist on completing a proper diagnostic before committing to a repair. This ultimately saves the customer time and money, sometimes a significant amount of money.

At Bryan’s, we diagnose and confirm the primary and secondary problems before we do a repair. We never throw parts at a repair. The term for throwing parts at an automotive repair is called “shot-gunning.” Some shops will make assumptions about a repair without a thorough diagnosis and then, throw parts into the repair.  They do this based on what they hope will work, not on what can be confirmed. Hence the term shot-gunning, where the multiple fixes cast a wide pattern, hoping to hit the repair, like a shotgun. Often time consuming and expensive.

The diagnostic, or the diag, is what really gets your car fixed. It allows the technician to focus on an identified problem. Much like a doctor, the diagnostic technician will test and evaluate your car electronically and physically. The Technician scans your car’s engine and transmission modules for codes, running sounds and vibrations. There are hundreds of codes, individually or in combinations, the diagnostic Tech can determine exactly what the problem or problems are. The Tech can then recommend what repair will be required to get your car running to specification.

Here at Bryan’s we put diagnostics first. The cost of the diagnostic is an essential and additional part of the repair. Some shops claim to include the cost of the diagnostic in the repair. Buyer beware, something as important as the diagnostic, should be itemized. There is great value in the diagnostic process, don’t be afraid to pay for it. The cost of a diagnostic evaluation of an automotive problem may be the best money you ever spend on a repair.