Mitchell Scan Tool Approved For GM Repair Shops

Mitchell Diagnostics’ MD OEM repair tool was recently approved for use in GM repair shops, meaning that GM-certified shops now have access to required software tools without the need to purchase scan tools from the OEM.

This latest approval follows widespread support for the Motor Vehicles Owners’ Right to Repair Act, more commonly referred to simply as Right to Repair. While Right to Repair has seen widespread support among independent repair shops and in the aftermarket, mainstream automakers and their respective dealers have generally been opposed to it.

This recent approval seems to signal that GM repair may be on a different path moving forward, or at the very least afford greater flexibility for GM-certified repair shops. Previously, The General also approved the use of devices from Drew Technologies and AirPro, in lieu of its official Global Diagnostics System 2 scan tool.

“The new Mitchell MD-OEM diagnostic product, when scanning GM vehicles uses GM’s proprietary GDS-2 software on the device directly at the vehicle’s location, as is required for use in the GM Collision Repair Network,” Mitchell Diagnostics states in a press release. “Scanning and diagnostic services are available for other OEMs, in each case using the OE’s factory diagnostic system and software.”

According to the head of the National Auto Service Task Force (NASTF), as reported in a recent post by Repairer Driven News, third-party tools can sometimes work better than the OEM tools. The Repairer Driven News post goes on to state that this same conclusion was drawn by a regional MSO at the recent Collision Industry Conference.

That said, aftermarket software is not all created equal, and some may be out of date or incomplete, thus full-scale approval doesn’t seem likely in certain cases when it comes to GM repair. For its part, the 2014 Right to Repair act means auto manufacturers are required to release their latest software for use in devices that fit with current standards, thus opening up a wealth of possibilities for independent shops without the need to purchase multiple scanner devices, whether it’s for GM repair, or some another automaker.

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Source: Repairer Driven News