I need to buy a multimeter to set some things (throttle position sensor) on my car. I can’t make my mind up on which one to buy. All the ones from the big boxes range from twenty bucks to around a hundred dollars. I imagine I will use it around the home too. Do any of you guys have a multimeter and what do you think of it? Is there another feature that you wish your multimeter also had too? I wanted to get an Ideal PlatinumPro but they are all sold out of them at Home Depot, it was on clearance for a hundred dollars.
Handyman, painter, wood floor refinisher, property maintenance in Tulsa, OK
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It's nice when it has a built-in continuity tester, with buzzer. Make sure it has enough scale ranges for the signal strengths you are expecting. Cheap ones often have displays that don't last.
Fluke makes the good stuff.
Sears and home cheapo carry some of the Fluke line
Greenlee is another good one.
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If you don't expect to use this meter on a constant basis, you don't need to spend a lot of money on it. I did 12V work (car audio, security, marine mechanic) for years, have never owned a meter that cost over $100 and used them just about every day during that time. I just bought one at Sears for $20 that works fine. The only complaint I have with most meters(cheap and some expensive ones) is the quality of the test leads. Fortunately, replacements are fairly cheap.
Is the car that needs the TPS adjusted a mid-80's GM with a carb or is it a Trans Am? Did it throw a code(21 or 22) or did you see something about this on a TV show?
It is a 89' Lincoln Mark VII. The idle is surging a little in park; also, I cleaned the throttle body, air bypass valve (IAC), EGR, throttle blade and when I did all this removed the TPS. I made sure to know where it was set at before removing it but the surging idle was there before I did this work. I am a member of Lincolnsonline.com and they have a tech section with articles on replacing the air bags, setting TPS, etc. I have a code reader and will break it out when I work on the car. I like Fluke. I like what I see in the Greenlee multimeters. I have looked at Sears and it seems they have a lot of bang for the buck.Handyman, painter, wood floor refinisher, property maintenance in Tulsa, OK
My parents had a Crown Vic and the idle surged, too. I cleaned the post on the coil. My Chevy truck was surging at idle until I used some Techron fuel system cleaner. After that, it was glass. Typically, the TPS shouldn't make the idle surge unless it has a glitch. As long as the TPS shows the ECM that it's consistently at/below a certain throttle %, the ECM won't make any changes. I think I would start by looking for cracked/broken vacuum lines or leaks at the carb base(or throttle body if that applies).
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
I looked for leaks and even replaced the gaskets on the throttle body. I have looked high and low for vacuum leaks but probably can do better job. I went and got that Techron fuel cleaner and put it in the tank. I set my TPS to .99 volts. That multimeter is pretty cool to use. So over the next few days I will see how the car drives and see if everything is fine :) One way or another I will get to the bottom of this, with the help I am getting theres no reason not too!Handyman, painter, wood floor refinisher, property maintenance in Tulsa, OK
Did you replace the fuel filter? That being dirty/clogged will definitely make it run funky. Also, if you have run the tank dry more than a couple of times, the fuel pump impeller is probably worn and the pressure won't be what it should. In the tank, the fuel keeps the fuel pump's internal components cool. I have even heard of GM and some other car manufacturers recommending the fuel level not going below 1/4 tank for this reason.
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
I replaced the fuel filter this afternoon :)I am thinking it is the fuel pump after all. I let it run a little dry about two or three months ago but made it to the gas station. It did stall out once and tried to die about two blocks away. After I replaced the filter the surging was still there. I have read the Lincolnsonline.com forums and this seems like a very real possibility. I will need to drop the gas tank since the fuel pump is inside of it. I can do it! Will do it tomorrow :)Handyman, painter, wood floor refinisher, property maintenance in Tulsa, OK
Do a fuel pressure test first. Also, take a fuel sample.
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
A fuel pressure test can read good if the car is not under a load. When I apply gas it does not want to go beyond 2000 RPM. But it will start up fine and accelerate slowly fine. Its when I want to speed it up it just wont go :(Those funny greek batteries came in my new wireless keyboard. They were called 'Rocket'! Crazy batteries... .Handyman, painter, wood floor refinisher, property maintenance in Tulsa, OK
So test the fuel pressure while it's under load. Also check the regulator and the vacuum line attached to it.
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
That must be some multimeter if it has a fuel pump and a vacuum system and a regulator!!!
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I would get one with a clamp on amp meter.
That clamp on amp meter looks nice :)Don't know if that is something better off kept separate or if in my case, an all in one would work.Handyman, painter, wood floor refinisher, property maintenance in Tulsa, OK
Actually for general purpose houseold wiring a solenoid test with continuity (wiggy) would be better. All you need to know is if the power is there or not. And you don't care if it is 120 volts or 119 and it won't be affected by false "stray volts" readings like digital meters.Then if you need to figure out if you have bad connectins or overloads then the digital meter/clamp on ampmeter will be of great advantage.But I don't know how deep you would get into doing things like that for property maintance.
Get a cheap digital with an audible ohm setting. These things tend to set for long periods and unless you take batteries out of stuff the risk of duracell leaking damage is high. I just threw my $90 meter away when the batteries leaked into the IC. The audible is nice so you dont have to look at the screen to know you have continuity.
Mike
For basic continuity, voltage, and resistance, it's hard to beat the Radio Shack pocket multimeter that sells for 14.99 (sometimes less on sale). LCD display, auto ranging, compact, simple to use.
It's not on their website, so no link, sorry.
I've had LOUSY luck with radio shack testers. I spent a bunch of money ($100, I think) on a nice one. It quit working after less than a year. I sent it off for warranty service, and after 8 months of putting me off they admitted it had been lost and they had no clue what had happened to it. Eventually they agreed to replace it, but didn't make that model anymore. So they replaced it with a cheaper one. It worked intermittently for a few years. But I couldn't get warranty service on it since I hadn't actually PAID for it. Eventually I threw it away.
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Divorced
"I've had LOUSY luck with radio shack testers. "
I know, Radio Shack is not tops for reputation. This particular budget tester has proven durable. I melted my first one leaving it on the dashboard on a hot day, but that was really my fault. It was 10 years old then. They even insisted on giving me a new one. The second one is now 10 years old, and going strong. I have a bigger fancier tester, but I always grab this one first for the basic stuff. 90% of the time, this is all I need. Compact and simple stupid to use. A real bargain.
Wish I could post a picture of what I'm talking about.
If you are going to use it for automotive sensor testing you need to make sure that it has the resolution for that. Some voltmeters only read whole volts. I have a Fluke T5 series meter which great for household voltage testing, along with amperage and continuity / resistance. It however is useless on electronic components since you need to see fractional voltages in many cases with electronics. Many of the electronic sensors on the car run between 0.01 and 2.00 volts. My car wants the TPS sensor to be between .45 and 1.25 volts, and the oxygen sensor should be under 1 volt. A meter that wont read tenths or hundredths of a volt wont help, since it'll just show 0 volts or 1 volt. If you want a high end unit for a mid end unit price go to e-bay. I've bought a few Fluke models there for about 1/2 the money of the stores.
Really the easiest way to test automotive sensors is by accessing the computer itself with a scan tool. I bought one a few years ago and it has paid for itself many times over between family and friends cars. It will tell you what the voltage or reading that any sensor on the car is in real time, even while you drive if you have an intermittent problem. I think I paid $200 for a used Auto X-Ray brand unit with all the connectors for just about any car on the road.
I've used more than a dozen over my lifetime. Personally, I can't staaaand the digital ones. Nothing wrong with a needle if you ask me. The automotive mfr's seemed to have also picked up on that concept years ago. ie the digital dash days of the '80's.
My current favorite is a GB (GarnderBender) GMT-19A. I think it goes for $20 or $30. I'll do everything you need (other than act as a clamp-on amp meter) and it's made in the USA.
And if you think you need one, buy a stand alone...
Here's a pic of mine.
WSJ
Edited 4/4/2005 3:13 pm ET by WorkshopJon
Edited 4/4/2005 3:15 pm ET by WorkshopJon
I've everything from a Fluke 123 scopemeter at home on down. Access to nearly anything at work, e.g $50K Agilent and Tektronix socpes, analyzers, etc.
However, when working on cars, 99% of the time I use one of the $2.99 HF cheapos - accurate to withing 2% for the ones I have bought. Bought 30 of them last Christmas for stocking stuffers, have about 20 or so sitting around the house, one in each vehicle, and plopped around the barn and garages. Cannnot beat them for the price. The $20 HF version has a handy type K thermocouple that is usefull. If you drop one into the car fan while its running and it does not hit the radiator, you are not out much<G>
Well guys, I went and bought a Greenlee DM-110. It also measures resistance and capacitance, something I might want to do when troubleshooting say... a guitar amp. It was about 95 dollars and came with a lifetime limited warranty, which seems hard to beat. Thank you for the tips and I am looking forward to seeing you all on the forums!Handyman, painter, wood floor refinisher, property maintenance in Tulsa, OK
Multimeter tips? I prefer the pin-style tips, but some people prefer banana plugs.
Oh, that kind of tip!!
When you get right down to it, there's something to be said for a mechanical meter vs a digital unit -- better stability when contact is iffy, easier to read from a distance, etc. The only problem is that decent quality mechanical units are hard to find, and you need a really good unit if you're planning to measure resistance accurately.
For 99% of the folks here, though, unless they have need of a clamp-on ammeter, a cheapy digital unit from RS is perfectly sufficient. These start at about $9.95 when on sale, and $20-30 should get you something pretty decent. Features like autoranging are nice, but not absolutely necessary. An audible continuity checker is nice.
I have 8 or ten meters, including two I built myself, but my "primary" is a Radio Shack unit that cost me about $40 10-15 years ago. It's digital, and includes frequency transistor gain, and capacitance scales I've never used. It's not autoranging but has plenty of ranges (mainly 10x steps), and it has max, min, and hold features I've used once or twice.
The main reasons I like that one are probably mechanical -- it's not as big and clunky as your old traditional Fluke, but not super tiny -- closer to an electrician's Simpson in size. The display is fairly large and easy to read. It only uses one 9V battery, and that doesn't need replacement very often. It comes in a nice storage case that holds the leads and manual.
Yes, I probably should have named the topic 'Multimeter suggestions?' This was before I even knew about alligator clips haha :) I looked at the mechanical meters and was fascinated by them. I like the fact you have a good case to put yours in, along with the leads.I went ahead and bought a Greenlee digital multimeter. I had to measure down to two places on the DC scale at less than one volt. It is my first meter and I am sure it won't be the last :)Handyman, painter, wood floor refinisher, property maintenance in Tulsa, OK
Pebble,
Whatever you do check on the batteries, for some strange reason every multimeter I buy has some wierd obscure battery that a well stocked hardware store never carries.. Thus when the batteries die and I can no longer readjust it to zero I know that I'll open it up and some battery that is only available on some greek island 20 years ago will be inside.
I have a forty year old collection of dead multimeters most with corroded batteres still in it. (I need them to ro know what battery is supposed to go in it)..