The full walkthrough
How Fixiom works
From the first question to a confirmed, documented fix — here's the whole flow, including what's free forever and where the AI earns its keep.
Install it. That's the whole setup.
Download Fixiom and you're in. No account, no email, no sign-up — a quick three-screen tour shows you around and the app is ready to work.
- Add a vehicle any way you like: scan the VIN barcode on the door jamb with your camera, pick year/make/model from the lists, or just mention the vehicle in chat.
- Or skip it entirely — you can ask general questions with no vehicle attached, and attach one later.
- Set your experience level (beginner, DIY, pro) and Fixiom matches how it talks to you — the reasoning underneath stays the same.
Ask it like you'd ask a sharp technician.
The chat is the heart of the app. Describe a symptom, paste a trouble code, ask for a spec, a fuse, a diagram, a recall — in your own words.
- Talk instead of type. Tap the mic and dictate with greasy hands; have replies read aloud in a natural voice while you're under the hood.
- Send a photo. A connector, a worn part, a leak — the picture becomes evidence in the conversation.
- It works the problem, not just answers. On a real fault it asks the questions a good tech would ask — one at a time — lays out likely causes with the evidence for and against, and gives you a directed next step.
- It shows its confidence honestly. Possible, likely, strongly supported — and it won't claim "confirmed" without a confirming test.
Connect an adapter when you want live data. Optional
A Bluetooth OBD2 adapter is a one-time ~$20–30 buy that turns Fixiom into a scan tool. Any standard ELM327 adapter works — Bluetooth LE on iPhone and Android, classic Bluetooth on Android. Not sure which to get? The app has a plain-English buying guide.
- Plug it in — on nearly every 1996+ US vehicle, the OBD2 port is under the dash on the driver's side.
- Pair inside the app (not in phone settings): OBD2 tab → Scan for adapters → tap yours.
- It identifies the car itself. Most 2008+ vehicles report their VIN over the port — Fixiom decodes it and locks the exact vehicle and engine, so answers can't drift to the wrong truck.
- It reconnects automatically next time you're in the driveway.
The scan-tool layer is free. Forever.
Everything a code reader does — and a good chunk of what a $400 scan tool does — costs nothing in Fixiom. No subscription, no credits, no catch:
- Check codes. Stored, pending, and permanent codes with plain-English explanations — plus the freeze frame: what the sensors saw the moment the code set. Clear codes when the job's done.
- Live gauges. Pick the sensors you care about, arrange them your way, tap any gauge for a live chart, flip to a full-screen drive view, or record a session to CSV.
- Trip & fuel. A live trip computer — distance, average speed, fuel-economy estimates — plus a 0–60 timer.
- Emissions check. Readiness monitors before a smog run, and Mode 06 — the engine computer's own self-test results, decoded: per-cylinder misfire counts, catalyst and O2 margins.
- Deeper coverage where it exists. On many models Fixiom's per-vehicle catalogs unlock signals far beyond the generic set — including ABS/chassis data on covered vehicles — and the app is upfront about what your car supports.
The AI diagnosis — where it all comes together.
Found codes? One tap — "Diagnose these codes with AI" — hands them to the brain with the vehicle attached. Or just describe the problem in chat. Either way, Fixiom runs a real diagnostic process:
- It narrows like a tech. Directed questions, bounded physical checks with big glove-friendly answer buttons, and code pulls when a re-scan would settle something.
- It watches the car live. This is the part nothing else in the category does: the AI sets a watch condition worth catching — say, fuel trims past +10% at warm idle — your phone monitors locally while you drive or work, and the moment the condition hits, the window is captured and the diagnosis updates on real evidence.
- It concludes with a call. A committed diagnosis with urgency, safety warnings where they matter, relevant recalls and TSBs, and a link to video guides for the repair.
- You stay the judge. Confirm the fix when it's done — or tell it it's wrong and it keeps working. Confirming doesn't end the conversation; "Keep working on this car" picks right back up.
Every fix becomes a record you can hand over.
- Records tab. Confirmed fixes are archived with the full conversation — what it was, how it was found, what fixed it.
- PDF report. Any concluded diagnosis exports as a clean, customer-presentable PDF — complaint, findings, steps, captured data, outcome.
- Shop branding. Put your shop's name and logo on the report from Settings → Shop profile.
- Pick up where you left off. Chats persist per vehicle — the Last Vehicle cards on the home screen jump you back into the right thread.
Credits, in plain English.
The scan-tool layer is free forever. The AI's diagnostic work runs on monthly credits — you get 25 free in your first month (enough for a full diagnosis), then 10 free every month for quick questions and lookups.
Working on cars weekly? Hobbyist ($11.99/mo, 100 credits) covers a few full diagnoses a month. Doing this for a living? Pro ($29.99/mo, 250 credits) is sized for shop flow — and never leaves you stranded mid-job.