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Wiring Diagram Question


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mick77
New User

Jul 2, 2012, 11:53 PM

Post #1 of 3 (2905 views)
post icon Wiring Diagram Question Sign In

Hi All,

I am doing research into the current state of wiring diagrams and what can be done to improve their quality and usabilty and I was hoping you all can help by answering a few questions. In general, my question are geared toward the OEM manual but they could also apply to the aftermarket manuals too.

1) How often do you use a wiring diagram to help you repair a vehicle?
2) What is your level of auto expertise – Beginner, Advanced, Expert?
3) Which auto manufacturer(s) do you believe has the most accurate wiring diagrams in their service manual?
4) Which auto manufacture(s) do you believe has the most errors their service manual?
5) Which auto manufacturer(s) do you believe has the best formatted wiring diagrams? Why?
6) Which auto manufacture(s) do you believe has the worst formatted wiring diagrams? Why?
7) Which do you prefer – printed manuals or online manuals?
8) What details or features can be added to the wiring diagrams to help you do your job better or fix a car faster?


Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky / Moderator
Tom Greenleaf profile image

Jul 3, 2012, 3:16 AM

Post #2 of 3 (2881 views)
Re: Wiring Diagram Question Sign In


In Reply To
8) What details or features can be added to the wiring diagrams to help you do your job better or fix a car faster?


IMO - If a person can read standardized diagrams then the problem should be sent out to techs that can not re-write everything for every level custom for inadequate know how,

T



Discretesignals
Ultimate Carjunky / Moderator
Discretesignals profile image

Jul 3, 2012, 8:14 AM

Post #3 of 3 (2859 views)
Re: Wiring Diagram Question Sign In


Quote
1) How often do you use a wiring diagram to help you repair a vehicle?


They are essential. It is almost impossible to repair an electrical problem without a wiring schematic or connector pin outs. They also give you somewhat an idea how the system operates that your working on. Without them you are pretty much left in the dark.



Quote
2) What is your level of auto expertise – Beginner, Advanced, Expert?


I would say between advanced and expert. There are many types of schematic formats and they are constantly changing.


Quote
3) Which auto manufacturer(s) do you believe has the most accurate wiring diagrams in their service manual?

That is a tough question. They are all fairly accurate. Whole lot better than something you would find in Haynes or Chiltons.




Quote
5) Which auto manufacturer(s) do you believe has the best formatted wiring diagrams? Why?

GM/Ford. Easy to follow. Symbol and cell format is easy to understand. Ford has gone as far as to using cloud descriptions of what is going on in a particular circuit.


Quote
6) Which auto manufacture(s) do you believe has the worst formatted wiring diagrams? Why?

Audi/VW, BMW, Mercedes, Jaguar, Volvo. Track schematic format is horrible to intepret and components are given numbers that you have to cross to figure out what components they actually are. Power and ground circuits are difficult to follow due to funky digits that have some sort of mysterious meaning. Diagram reference to another diagram can lead you crawling through a maze of diagrams until you locate the correct one.


Quote
7) Which do you prefer – printed manuals or online manuals?

Prefer online OEM manuals to paper. The online manuals can be updated or revised much easier. Books aren't taking up space and you don't have to worry about pages missing from people ripping them out.


Quote
8) What details or features can be added to the wiring diagrams to help you do your job better or fix a car faster?

The most important thing for a diagram to do besides showing you what wires are what is to show the technician how the system operates or system design and to do it as simple as possible. Most diagrams don't show you what is inside a control module. For example it is important to know if the module is using a pull up or pull down circuit when controlling a device. It is also important to know what kind of voltages you should be seeing on circuits. I do like how the Asian diagrams include connector pin outs at the bottom of their diagrams.





Since we volunteer our time and knowledge, we ask for you to please follow up when a problem is resolved.

(This post was edited by Discretesignals on Jul 3, 2012, 8:30 AM)






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