Basic handheld scope for Automotive use (suggestions please) - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / testgear

author: nephets0
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: December 03, 2015, 04:25:16 am
content: Hello all. New guy here with an odd question(may have been answered, but couldn't find much{recent, less than 4 yrs old} information).I'm on the hunt for a scope for use diagnosing car problems (injectors, maf, various hall effect sensors etc). I was going to purchase a uScope from aeswave, but I get the feeling a cellphone sized scope isn't going to be the best bang for my money. I have received suggestions of Owon (HDS3102M-N) and Hantek (1060) specifically.I guess my biggest question is, are these overkill? I know the 1060 is a 60mhz scope, and the HDS3102M-N is 100mhz. Will I ever need that much bandwidth in an automotive environment?My requirements are simple, handheld (battery powered), needs to handle 150vdc (injector "dump voltage"?), ~500$ USD and that's pretty much it.Apologies if this has been covered before, but as I said previously, the only info I could find was 4 years old and was pretty generic.Thanks,Stephen.

author: dolphin42
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: December 03, 2015, 04:42:01 am
content: Well honestly, just about ANY scope with 5MHz and triggered sweep (that means basically everything made today) will meet your needs, (with the exception of some of the little toy scopes that you can buy really cheap, but with low bandwidth and limited voltage scale). I'd suggest that you go for a scope with at least a 100V max input (20V/division) and then use a 10:1 probe with a 600V rating at a minimum. The inductive "back" kick from a ignition coil or the like can be pretty big even on the low voltage side esp. with some kinds of malfunctions.If you are just going to use it once in a while, frankly a garage sale or ebay scope you can get for $50 will do, cords aren't that big of a deal for occasional use.OTOH if you are gonna use it all day then yeah a battery operated portable scope with a big enough screen (lets say 4" diagonal or larger) would be a good idea.There /are/ some scopes specifically made for automotive use, these may even have probes you can place in line with a spark plug wire. (generally a "clamp-over" probe).This looks interesting and seems to comes with clamp over ignition and starter wire probes.http://www.ebay.com/itm/UEI-ADL-7100-Automotive-Oscilloscope-Scope-Analyzer-Case-Card-Sun-Snap-On-LS2000-/131584930283?hash=item1ea312b1eb:g:3aMAAOSwyQtV1lET

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 03, 2015, 09:01:29 am
content: Quote from: nephets0 on December 03, 2015, 04:25:16 amWelcome to the forum.I've used these for Auto use including diagnosing faulty CDI's:http://www.siglentamerica.com/pdxx.aspx?id=94&T=2&tid=2

author: xwarp
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 03, 2015, 09:29:38 am
content: My opinion:For most sensors, a typical scanner that has live logging will fit your needs.For example, for OBD2 systems, OBDWiz can be had, (usb cable/dongle and software), for less than 50 bucks.Your primary/secondary spark lines can be done with a 10mhz scope and capacitive clamp.I was lucky enough a few years back to find a Snap-On MT-1665 for $40 from a garage sale. Nice thing about that, is that if I adapted the capacitive clamp to use with one of my portable scopes, I'd have a waveform reference from the MT-1665.Here are a couple videos of the MT-1665:

author: nephets0
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: December 04, 2015, 02:02:36 am
content: Quote from: dolphin42 on December 03, 2015, 04:42:01 amThanks for the information dolphin. I do appreciate that a cheap ebay scope (even analog) would work for in the garage use (how long are the probe leads again lol). I am however, trying to keep things portable, IE friend calls and needs help, pack it up and go type of situations. I am also trying to keep kits as small as possible, hence the wish for hand held set ups.In light of the suggestion that anything over 5mhz with a trigger will work, I've opted to look at the 20mhz handhelds. So far I've found the Owon HDS1021M/-N, and those seem to be the only ones I can find, at least with names I can somewhat recognize. I know someone did a review of the Owon HDS3102M-N, and gave it a favorable review.Are there any I'm missing here? And another odd question, WHY do they have to put a DMM in an oscilloscope? That's what my Fluke is for!

author: HighVoltage
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 04, 2015, 10:50:28 am
content: Take a look at the Tektronix THS720P and similar scopes.They are great to work inside a car to take measurements on the road.You can find them used in good condition on ebay all the time for a relative low investment.Here is a picture of the types I am using