Many of us don’t realize the role that our engine’s on-board computer plays in the working of our cars. In fact, every gasoline car engine produced since 1996 has come equipped with an on-board computer capable of being accessed by a diagnostic tool. When you take your car to the auto repair shop to have it looked at, the mechanic will almost always, especially if the check engine light is on, plug a diagnostic tool into a port under the dashboard of the car and use information collected that way to find what the problem is, and also if the car is otherwise running correctly.
These tools will give the mechanic at the auto shop a warning if something is wrong: for example, the O2 sensor isn’t working correctly, or the spark plugs have been consistently misfiring. The computer diagnostics tool has become an invaluable asset to auto repair, especially as our cars have become increasingly complicated and intricate machines.
