Haynes or Chilton

Stankoma

Stankoma

Yearly Wheeler
Joined
Mar 22, 2005
Location
Wake Forest, NC
I thought this discussion had been done before, but I can't find it.

But what are your opinions on which is the best service manual, Haynes or Chilton?

Which one is the easiest to understand, has the most pictures, and is the best for beginners?
 
honestly, niether are very good. Especially if they are covering several year models in one book.

Lot's of omittions, and loose ends that don't lend to continuity that one may need for proper repair/diagnostics.

What vehicle are you looking for a manual for ?

while it may cost upfront, a factory manual for your model year is the best way to go. what you spend on it may well save you down the road.

I bought the Helm's manual for my Honda, and I'm glad I did, has saved much $$$ over the cost of the manual ($60) in the times I've had to work on the car.
 
I've always found Haynes to be better on the mechanical side, Chilton's better for electrical and body. Neither are worth much, though. They're pretty good for a quick, greasy thumbprinted reference, but go to the factory for anything critical. Or Robert Bently, if they make one for your vehicle.
 
kevin nailed it. invest in a good factory service manual.

if you have to choose between the two, i've always found chilton to be much better.
 
i think it really depends and varies for each vehicle.
I remember the Chilton's i had for my 90 Cherokee (this was in the late 90s) wasn't too bad, was better than the Haynes, got me through a several repairs.

In contrast, if you have an 80s 4Runner, the Chilton's is useless. not worth the paper it used. It covers way too many trucks and is very un-detailed. The haynes is only slightly better but still barely worth anything. FSM all the way for these trucks, baby.
 
I vote for "both". They don't trump a factory manual, but looking at the crappy pics and descriptions in both books helps put stuff in perspective. One might have a better procedure, the other might tell or show a hint to that one trick that makes it easier.
 
kaiser715 said:
I vote for "both". They don't trump a factory manual, but looking at the crappy pics and descriptions in both books helps put stuff in perspective. One might have a better procedure, the other might tell or show a hint to that one trick that makes it easier.
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I agree - the more manuals you have, the better your chance of finding a clear picture & instructions for that particular task.
 
if your not gonna get a FSM (factory service manual) I usually get BOTH the manuals. But nothing helps more than some common sense and a rough idea of what your attempting to do..
 
BIGWOODY said:
Most of the shops around here have that program...we just call it "somedata"
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hahahahh I AGREE 100%

it sucks for 1st Gen dodges
 
I've found that the older the vehicle, the more useful the manual (Haynes or Chiltons). My Haynes for my '78 CJ is pretty thorough for what I have needed it for. But a buddies Haynes for his TJ was useful for startinga fire and that's about it. Seemed that everything except changing the oil said to take it to a Service shop. :shaking:

At $15 a pop, get both, and/or get an FSM.
 
Ebay or someone in the business. You can buy them from most dealers but they can cost an arm and a leg. A buddy of mine wanted one for a 02 Ranger. Ford would only sell him one on Ford trucks from a certain year range. Just over $300.........

If you can find one on ebay they seem to go for $20 to $90, just depending
 
FSMs usually have 10x the pictures..

Funny.. I had a FSM for the uhaul and it had sections that outlined 'alternate' repair methods if correct tools weren't available.. use big bar, pry here, stuff a good mechanic would know to do but doing it the first time you wouldn't...

x3 on the ebay for the FSM manuals..
 
Looks like all the ones on e-bay are on CD and they want freaking $6.99 to ship a CD. Whatever! I want a real paperback manual anyway.

Looks like Helm doesn't do Toyota. I found a FSM for $99. But if I'm not going to be doing engine/transmission work, think it's worth it to me?
 
You need lots of pics, do ya' there John? When BMW went to wiring diagrams on the computer I thought I was going to hate it, but it turned out to be a lot easier to find what you were looking for and faster too. As for alldata, I always called it no data. It was absolutly worthless in everything I ever needed it for. Interesting, the shop I worked for swore by it. $7 for shipping a CD is a bit much, but they have to make money somewhere. And It'll save you tons more $$$ than that the first time you use it. What are you looking to do?
 
Stankoma said:
I thought this discussion had been done before, but I can't find it.
But what are your opinions on which is the best service manual, Haynes or Chilton?
Which one is the easiest to understand, has the most pictures, and is the best for beginners?
Click to expand...


If this is for your Taco.... only one way to fly. www.techinfo.toyota.com You can pay by the day, week, month, year, whatever. It's the factory service manual online. Most people pay for a week and download their butts off. Alldata is a good program, but it has it's flaws and minor mistakes. I like the word straight from Toyota. Come by and I'll show it to you sometime.
 
i don't know about the Taco, but the FSMs for the older Toy's are excellent. Bought mine on eBay for about $75. Yeah, that's a hard pill to swallow. However, these days that's only about 1 hour's labor charge for having a shop do any kind of work for you. The way I see it, if I shave off that 1 hour (which i did in no time), by bein gable to do some job myself, the book is free.
 
I tried alldata on free trial, through AutoZone??, it's really a lot like the Hayes/Chilton stuff(Tons of misprints). I have a CDROM FSM that is the real deal, you can search for key words, and get an overview of chapters and such and I like it, I'll take my laptop in the garage if needed ($20 on eBay). On the other hand I have a CDROM FSM that is scanned ( also something cheap off eBay), it takes some effort to find what you're looking for.

Sometimes about.com has some stuff that comes in handy.
 
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