i was just messing around on my truck the abs light came on i knew it was nothing but i checked it any way and i thought i would look at my balance rates because i had my injectors replaced about three months ago and really i did not think i could do it on my tool but looks like i can and this is what it said

balance rate cyl 1 -0.1

#2 1.5
#3 -0.2
#4 -0.6
#5 -0.0
#6 -1.0
#7 0.1
#8 0.7

so my question is does this look right it looks odd to me just looking for a little info so i dont go to the dealer looking like an idiot thanks

or is this thing not reading them rite ? i thought that balance rates were higher than this ? my scan tool is a mac mentor

Those look good, they should be between -4 to +4 in park, idling.

cool thanks i am just a rookie at this stuff

Hey Rodeo, where did you get the tool to read the balance rates and more importantly where can I get one? Just bought an 02 with 56k miles and would like to see where she stands. Unfortunately I didn't read about the injector issues until after I put down the $$$.

i think there are programer that you can get that you can aheck them with my scaner that we use here at the shop cost about 3,000 bucks

I use a program called OBD-II on my laptop. The software is free but to use it , you need to buy the interface cable. It will read and clear codes, balance rates, rail pressure, oil pressure, engine temp, and almost anything else you want to see. Also has the ability to turn off individual injectors for troubleshooting rough idle and also control and monitor rail pressures for testing. I've had it for a couple of years but as I remember, I paid about $135 for it to check both my truck and my wife's car. There are different "personality" packages available for the various vehicle manufacturers. Do a google search for Alex C. Peper and you will find it and can read all about it.

those numbers are perfect

I use a program called OBD-II on my laptop. The software is free but to use it , you need to buy the interface cable. It will read and clear codes, balance rates, rail pressure, oil pressure, engine temp, and almost anything else you want to see. Also has the ability to turn off individual injectors for troubleshooting rough idle and also control and monitor rail pressures for testing. I've had it for a couple of years but as I remember, I paid about $135 for it to check both my truck and my wife's car. There are different "personality" packages available for the various vehicle manufacturers. Do a google search for Alex C. Peper and you will find it and can read all about it.

Very interesting read on "Alex C. Peper". I was looking at changing programmers to a Predator to read the balance rates (yes, I know that high balance rates alone mean bad injectors) but his program is much cheaper. Anyone else use this program?...feedback?...pics?

Very interesting read on "Alex C. Peper". I was looking at changing programmers to a Predator to read the balance rates (yes, I know that high balance rates alone mean bad injectors) but his program is much cheaper. Anyone else use this program?...feedback?...pics?

If you look on is web page. He includes screen shots. I'd post a link, I'm not to sure if it would sit to well with the site mods.

Very interesting read on "Alex C. Peper". I was looking at changing programmers to a Predator to read the balance rates (yes, I know that high balance rates alone mean bad injectors) but his program is much cheaper. Anyone else use this program?...feedback?...pics?

Don't get this confused with a "Programmer"! IT IS NOT ! It is a MONITORING and TESTING SYSTEM ONLY ! ! Even when using the control for ramping rail pressure, it will only keep the rail pressure up for a short time, then returns control to the ECM. The parameters you change while testing are removed when you remove the unit and restart the truck.

It's not a programmer but a very useful diagnostic tool.

Another nice feature that I failed to mention is that you can record a run and play it back later for closer inspection.

Don't get this confused with a "Programmer"! IT IS NOT ! It is a MONITORING and TESTING SYSTEM ONLY ! ! Even when using the control for ramping rail pressure, it will only keep the rail pressure up for a short time, then returns control to the ECM. The parameters you change while testing are removed when you remove the unit and restart the truck.

No confusion. Ideal that I could keep my programmer and use this for testing.

I use a program called OBD-II on my laptop... has the ability to turn off individual injectors for troubleshooting rough idle and also control and monitor rail pressures for testing...

Have you used these features with your truck?

Have you used these features with your truck?
Yes, I have. When using the injector disable function, you select which injector to turn off, and, if you are checking for rough idle problems, when you get to the bad one, there won't be a big change in idle. A good injector will make a noticeable change in idle. For the rail pressure check, there is a little software display of a control knob that you rotate with your mouse to set the "desired" pressure, hit another software button on the display to activate the command then watch the actual. If it can't make it, you have some problems. Of course there are specs that you need to pull from your Helms for things to be really meaningful. From what I've determined, this thing does a lot of the things a Tech-II will do as far as diagnostics. I don't think it can be used for things like changing the ID code for the radio, etc. I could be wrong but I haven't found it yet.

Yes, I have. When using the injector disable function, you select which injector to turn off, and, if you are checking for rough idle problems, when you get to the bad one, there won't be a big change in idle. A good injector will make a noticeable change in idle. For the rail pressure check, there is a little software display of a control knob that you rotate with your mouse to set the "desired" pressure, hit another software button on the display to activate the command then watch the actual. If it can't make it, you have some problems. Of course there are specs that you need to pull from your Helms for things to be really meaningful. From what I've determined, this thing does a lot of the things a Tech-II will do as far as diagnostics. I don't think it can be used for things like changing the ID code for the radio, etc. I could be wrong but I haven't found it yet.

Wow, sounds like you could get in trouble real quick if you don't know what your doing. Turn the wrong knob and boom she's over!:eek:

That is exactly why I got the Helms set FIRST!:D

Yes, I have...Thanks .. sounds like a nice tool for the money ...

One of the other things I have done with it, with the aid of info from Helms, was to record a run to check the turbo. First off, my truck is stock except for the Astrostart and rear view camera. Helms told me that during a WOT (wide open throttle) run, the boost should be at a particular value at the 2nd gear to 3rd gear shift point. I set the system up to record MAP (manifold absolute pressure) and RPM. By watching the rpm drops at the shift points, I could also see the MAP, subtract atmospheric from that and see the boost value. I could have set the system up to do the calculation itself by also monitoring atmospheric, but figured just subtracting 15psi from MAP was close enough. All the actual evaluation was done by playing back the recording. That way I could keep my eye on the road during the WOT run.