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Crew Chief – OBD2 diagnostics via cheap Bluetooth scanner

Crew Chief – OBD2 diagnostics via cheap Bluetooth scanner

by meandave·Mar 18, 2026·2 points·3 comments

AI Analysis

●●SolidSolve My ProblemSlick

LLM diagnostics ranked by probability with DIY vs shop cost estimates.

Strengths
  • OBD2 code pipeline pulls TSBs and failure patterns for specific make/model/year
  • Project boards convert finished tasks directly into permanent service history
  • State-specific selling wizard generates bill of sale and marketplace listings
Weaknesses
  • Vehicle maintenance apps like CARFAX and AutoZone already cover this space
  • LLM diagnostic accuracy depends on prompt tuning and context window limits
Category
Target Audience

Car enthusiasts and multi-vehicle owners managing repairs

Similar To

CARFAX · AutoZone · Torque Pro

Post Description

I have too many vehicles. Cars, motorcycles, tractors -- they pile up when you can't say no to a project. Keeping track of everything across all of them was the problem: which parts I ordered for which thing, what codes I pulled last month, when I last changed the oil on the tractor.

It started because I got tired of typing my year/make/model into RockAuto and AutoZone every time I needed a part. So I built a browser extension that auto-fills vehicle info from a saved garage. That lasted about a week before I started bolting on more features.

The diagnostic pipeline is where I've spent the most time. The mobile app pulls OBD2 codes from those $15 Bluetooth ELM327 scanners, then sends them to an LLM with vehicle specs, known TSBs, and common failure patterns for that specific make/model/year. ranked probable causes, DIY vs shop cost estimates, severity rating, and linked a ChrisFix video for the repair. I've been tweaking the prompts and context window for months. The whole point is closing the loop: check engine light comes on, pull codes from your phone, get a report telling you what's wrong, how bad it is, and how to fix it.

Other stuff:

- 50 state selling wizard - generates the correct bill of sale, title transfer docs, and disclosure forms for any US state. - 16 vehicle types with type-specific fields (PTO type for tractors, hull material for boats, engine CC for motorcycles, etc.) - Task boards per vehicle - kanban for garage projects with parts-ordered/received/installed tracking.

TypeScript throughout. The extension, web app, and mobile app share a backend.

Free tier is 1 vehicle with full features, no credit card.

Been heads-down for a while and just now coming up for air.

Happy to answer questions about the OBD2 integration, the LLM diagnostic stuff, or the 50-state document generation.

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