I have many clients that use my services because I am accurate and honest about my findings. To be accurate when diagnosing any vehicle, you must look at the problem and run tests.

Testing helps find what is working normal.

Just like going to a doctor, I ask questions about what your vehicle is doing. A no start condition is different from a check engine light flashing at you.

Every issue will have it’s own starting point.

Once and awhile I will get a vehicle in that the owner has diagnosed it with Google or one of the Ai sites available on the web. >> My first response, let me take a look at it.

You can get great information from the web.

I use ChatGPT to find parts for old cars and other vehicle related info. The Ai web sites are only as good as the keywords you use.

So far I have only had 2 clients in 2026 that got a close answer to what the real issue was on there car.

Thats not bad, but it’s not a repair.

I have the advantage over Ai. I interact with the vehicle to gather information. From the testing I do, I can go to my service information systems and check specs and run follow up tests for the problem area.

Ai can not do that.

Ai can be a sounding board for the data I have gathered. Ai will look for related issues from the keywords I use to guide it’s search. I have found many TSB bulletins for know issues on vehicles for all makes and models.

Ai has yet to fix a problem I was looking for, but findings from Ai helped to narrow down my diagnosis. Now, I car write an accurate estimate for the correct repairs for the problem the vehicle came in for.

I use Google and Ai services less than 15% of the time to fix a vehicle. I have a work station that has lot’s of repair information, but sometimes it’s ok to use Ai as a cross check for findings.

Ai does not repair vehicles, I do.

Sebring; No Crank and No Check Engine Light:

The #8 fuse supports many devices. The starter, fuel pump, body control, engine control, ignition switch and 10 more devices. Knowing the product, I first look at the fuel pump, starter motor and starter solenoid. A bad starter solenoid or a faulty starter motor will cause a large amp load on the #8 fuse via the starter relay. The #8 fuse is only a 20 amp fuse. The starter and fuel pump relays are the highest loads placed on the #8 fuse.

The starter relay will normally draw 11 amps under normal conditions. When the starter relay first engages the amp spike can reach 22 amps, after the initial spike. It will take about 11 amps to hold the starter solenoid on. The amp spike is normal and the 20 amp fuse can handle a quick amp spike, just not a sustained load of 22 amps or more. If the starter solenoid is faulty, it causes more amps to flow through the relay. It’s a domino effect, One fault, will cause a failure in a secondary component.

Looking at how power flows through the circuits will shorten the time it takes to find out what device caused the fuse to fail. I start with devices that draw high amps.

The fuel pump relay will normally draw 2.5 to 3.8 amps under normal operation. When the pump first spins up. The amp spike is around 8 amps, then it drops under 4 amps to keep it running. The normal amp current for a fuel pump in good condition is 2.8 to 3.5 amps.

All load devices will have an amp spike when they first start up. That is normal for all devices that use electricity. Your home, car or any type of equipment that uses electricity to make devices, like lights, relays or motors work, will draw amps of current when switched on.

When a working load doubles or triples due to an electrical fault, the fuse will do it’s job and fail.

The fuse is a protection device: A fuse fails for a reason.

A fuse keeps the wiring from being over loaded, getting hot and causing a fire. I have seen some nasty wire fires from car owners doing a repair or lazy repair tech’s that try to MacGyver a failure to get them by.

The tin foil trick, to jump around a bad fuse has caused many car fires. In many cases, a short cut repair will fail quickly or cause more damage. It’s a risk you take when you do a MacGyver repair.

Replacing the starter solved the clients issue.