scan tool

well, I will be in the minority here...as always

It is not a scan tool unless it can record data over a time period. One cannot seriously tune a car unless he can examine a recorded run and check all the parameters against one another in order to understand what happened on the run as opposed to what should have happened.

And one cannot diagnose faults with the car without being able to record data.

And....when you come in here and say your car has a problem, no one can do much more than random guess unless you can say what the various sensors were doing.

Therefore, you have your choice of TurboLink or Direct Scan for lap tops. OTC 4000, AutoXray, and various other hardware scantools.

If you have a lap top, TurboLink is the best, I think, until you are into the 11s. It also works on some other GM cars and is being expanded. Once into the 11's, then Direct SCan offers more data but is a little more complex and can be a bit more screwy at times.

If you don't have a lap top, and can find a good deal on a hardware tool...that is fine too.

The Scanmaster is a very neat tool but it does not record data and one can not step thru a run to see what happened. I find it very useful to monitor parameters after setting the car up to see if something changes and to keep an eye on retard.

Not retards, Zap, no one is watching you.

I have TurboLink, Direct Scan, and two ScanMasters...I use them all.