Vehicle inspection and maintenance system

摘要

A method and system is provided for inspecting and maintaining a vehicle. In one embodiment, the present invention provides a method of capturing vehicle data including the steps of servicing a vehicle at a location corresponding to service data. Service data is input into a portable handheld computing device and transferred from the portable handheld computing device to a vehicle onboard computer. Vehicle warranty data is provided on the vehicle onboard computer. The service data and the vehicle warranty data are retrieved from the vehicle onboard computer. In another embodiment of the present invention, a method of inspecting a vehicle includes communicating with the vehicle systems using a portable handheld computing device to automatically inspect the vehicle systems. Prompts are displayed on the portable handheld computing device to guide a vehicle inspector to inspect additional vehicle systems. A help option is displayed on the portable handheld computing device associated with one of the additional vehicle systems. Selecting the help option displays instructions related to the vehicle system, such as how to inspect the system and how to fix the system if any problems are encountered.