Repair Manuals are Awesome, but incomplete.

I have seen a lot more movement in our industry for shops using repair information from the OE repair manuals. Downloading or logging in regularly as they complete repairs. This is so VERY AWESOME! But, I have not seen anyone comment on how there needs to be more information in them. I thought I would share my opinion and give an example of where it needs improvement.

Recently I ran across an European vehicle that had a direct impact to the Blind Spot Sensor under the rear bumper. There was no arguing that it needed to be replaced. But during the installation I was advised by my tech that both needed to be replaced per the OEM guidelines. I jumped into the aftermarket access sight to pull this documentation and found nothing, I logged into the dealer access sight and poured through the repair manual and found nothing. I reached out to friends in the field (I-CAR) and they did not have access to this information either. So I went back to my tech and after sometime he found what he had read earlier. It was NOT in the manual, it was in a TSB that is sent out to select members.

I have other examples that make a huge difference on the repair if you have access to the information. This entire industry needs to step up on ease of access to information. It is often just too hard to locate what you need to know to repair a car correctly. I think most techs want to repair a car safety, they just don't know what the guidelines are.

Thanks for letting me rant.

J