blueridge

Which one do you guys prefer? I just tried Alldata but was not impressed with the detail and canceled for a refund.

habeeb89

iTrader: (3)

I had the Haynes manual for my Honda and it was great.

thomas1

the Haynes manual are OK and will help most do it yourselfers. Sometimes they are missing torque specs for some items, but generally I have found over the years they are great..

Lexmex

I also have the Haynes manual and it is pretty good, but it misses a few things here and there that we have found out over the years, but still very handy for the cost (about $20 USD).

code58

Blueridge- Haynes bought Chilton a few years back (I don't know exactly when but I have one for a 99 F-150 truck that I bought new and it says that right in the front of the book). So I don't know why they would make 2 different manuals when they are published by the same company now, but maybe they do. I personally thought the Haynes was written by some high school kids out to play a trick on us all. Chilton has been around for a LONG TIME and was a respected shop manual but I think now it's a piece of garbage like the Haynes was. When I buy a shop manual I expect it to be accurate and complete and I think the Haynes is neither. I prefer to stick now to factory DVD's.

thomas1

Just a note, I buy the Haynes and use my pen to add details from sites like this and others. The manual becomes very useful with my additions. Chilton was always more comprehensive in the past, but I havent bought any in years. Code 58 is correct the factory manuals are best, but sometimes the expense is not worth it for the layman, saturday mechanic. I have had factory manuals on cars, and when troubleshooting difficult problems they have a wealth of info, sometimes more than the normal diy can comprehend. Code58 is in the trades and therefore with his skills reads them with no difficulty. Good morning code58, just infering that the new mechanic with a Haynes will probably complete most tasks without difficulty...and of course the additional info that is available from sites like this....

code58

Good morning Thomas- even if it is rather early. It grieves me that Haynes bought Chilton. Seems like the inferior always buys the superior and then destroys them. I can name more times than I would ever like to remember. I don't personally know of any other manuals that you can buy, and now that Haynes bought Chilton I don't think it makes much difference. Haynes is an English company and they used to be like they were writing a manual on a car that they had never seen. I don't think the British were particularly good at building cars were they? Maybe the same people wrote the manuals. I will admit, they are not as bad as they used to be. You are right though Thomas, for the average DYI they are probably adequate. Interestingly, in the shop we had both paper and factory DVD's. Even as large as the manuals are (sometimes as many as 4 volumes), they still don't cover every single step that is necessary for a lot of the operations. That's why all the manufacturers have ongoing schools. I was delving into a particular non-standard operation (most of my work was non-standard LOL) on a new Tahoe so I went to get the paper manual. Covering Tahoe and Suburban as well as Silverado, because they are built on pretty much the same platform, there were 200 pages of wiring diagrams! With that I will shut up now.

trhs75

I bought both the Haynes and Chilton manuals. I began to wonder if they were by the same company as mentioned above, because they share several pictures. I had an Alldata subscription for a year, also. I got some help from all of those, but the most help came from a copy of the factory service manual I bought on CD on eBay.

blueridge

Thanks all for the comments! The Alldata was good for the service bulletins, and part numbers. That is about it, I will shoot for a Haynes manual or maybe a used factory manual.

Lexmex

Nothing beats the factory manual, but the Haynes isn't bad at all. Though I'd still confirm a few things in this forum as it didn't hit on everything.

trhs75

I think that pdf version of the factory manual was about $15 on eBay somewhere. If Lexmex were in Des Moines, I think I'd pay him by the hour for advice!!

Lexmex

LOL, I have been to Iowa a few times when I was younger and most recently to Keokuk, as I have relatives who live not too far outside of Macomb, Illinois and we'd travel over to the Mississippi.

These are the front covers of the service manuals. The Lexus ones are two volumes. Volume 1 contains all related to what to do when you get an OBD2 code (highly important) and Volume 2 relates to making repairs on all areas of the vehicle. Then there is the Haynes Manual that is a combination Highlander/RX300/RX330 manual.

Lexmex

A composite of a sample page from each one. The service manual is exquisite in detail and came in handy when I was down in Mexico. Excellent diagrams and details. The Haynes manual also does a good job with photos and some good instructions. Both are not perfect as I have found out from doing many repairs, but they are great to have.

JERKRICE

how much does the repair man. from the dealer cost?