Why not ell them what the code is? I always put it on the work order anyway, so they know what I fixed.My customers know that I am not autozone, and they always have me fix it in the end.

A good example of free scan that I do, yesterday I did an oil change on a lexus ES300. I call him back, and tell him that I noticed the check engine light was on, with evap leak codes. I tell him that for $xx, which is what I charge per hour, I will smoke the system for leaks, and correctly diagnose it. After I see there are no leaks, I notice that the purge solenoid doesn't open. Quote the customer $xxx.xx for a new purge solenoid installed.

From that free scan, i was able to get another 1.5 hours out of the job, and have a customer that knows I won't overlook simple stuff when doing routine maintenance.

Sean Van Horn
Owner/Technician
Red's Auto Rehab
Cornville, Arizona, USA