Haynes Repair Manuals Reviews 96

If I could give zero stars I would. Compilation of useless facts probably by an IT expert and certainly not a qualified car technician/ mechanic. It’s that bad I can’t even blame Ai as it would have been better . My own fault for not checking reviews but like so many others I mistakenly trusted the Haynes past reputation. Disappointing waste of money that has left me non the wiser . To add injury to insult this is also subscription based .

As a Haynes manual user of many years I believed that I was buying a digital version with the autofix manual. I bought a car specific manual only to discover that it is not and the videos and most information do not relate to my car at all. It is absolutely useless to enable a DIY enthusiast to confidently carry out minor repairs. Not all parts can be seen in the locations tab and the navigation system sends you back to the start. There is nothing of value for me in this digital manual that I can find. Even the pictures of the parts do not necessarily reflect the actual part needed. I found this to be a complete waste of money and a rip off that has played on the reputation of the once excellent Haynes manuals of the past.

Waste of money will attempt to get a refund. If i wanted Generic information about cars i would have googled it. no technical drawings of engine layout.
Each manafacturer is differant generic information marketed as vehicle specific is deceitful at best and fraudulant at worst.

This is a complete waste of money can not find any items I am looking for and the guides I have found are generic and do not relate to the vehicle I purchased for .

wow how shocked and appalled am i about the online Haynes manuals. i have always in the past bought a paper copy Haynes manual for every car i ever owned and found them indispensable when carrying out repairs or servicing on my cars, and i still have a paper copy for my 2015 Audi A4, but i recently also purchased a Hyundai i40 2019 and was gutted to find Haynes do not do a paper copy anymore and i have to buy and view online, but as i have always found the manuals indispensable i signed up and paid for the Hyundai i40 online manual expecting the same level of information step by step guide on maintaining the car. OMG how times have changed and how the standard of the material in the online 'manual' has changed. I am absolutely gutted about the lack of information and actually feel cheated. DO NOT BUY the online manuals if you are expecting the same level of information as the old paper copies, you will be disappointed.

Complete waste of money, wish I saw these reviews before I paid for the "online manual"... Too generic information... why would you show photos of all types of vehicles (Subaru, Mercedes, Toyota, etc) when I have paid for a specific BMW manual??? Specifics I would expect to find in a real workshop manual.
The only marginally useful items are torque specs.... what is sorely lacking is OE part numbers - useless purchase! wish I could get a refund as I will not be using the online thing...
........
Update on this case, I received comms and a refund from Hayes, with a genuine interest in why this does not work for me. I would still need to find a more workshop style manual (Nuts & Bolts accuracy) with none of the generic bits... however increased the star rating due to after sales support!

I have purchased and used Haynes paper manuals for 60 years. I recently purchased 2 online manuals from them. They are appalling. There is no specific detail on my cars all just general stuff thta the home mechanic would be more than familiar with. How they get away with this i do not know. I have requested a refund with no success so far. Don't buy them they are a waste of money

Completely dissapointed

I’ve always bought printed Haynes Manuals for all my cars and motorcycles and wanted to get one for my 2015 Honda Jazz Mk3. It seems that Haynes would rather concentrate on novelty books on WWII fighter aircraft and tanks whilst relegating their old core market to an online fault code translation service, which seems to leave unfortunate buyers unimpressed.
I understand that, relative to the 1970s, 80s, 90s, and 2000s manufacturers are updating their model line-ups more frequently- and electronics faster than that- but there are still a few of us who appreciate help with the mechanical stuff (torque settings etc) in printed book form. Haynes diversification, whilst undoubtedly a commercial lifeline, is frustrating when you can buy a manual for a Tiger tank but not for your everyday transport!
I was going to buy the Haynes Autofix online manual in the absence of anything else being available but in light of the reviews above I’ll save my money.

I wish I'd seen these reviews before I wasted $55 on a Captiva "manual" !
There seems to be zero specific info on the vehicle, I kept thinking I must be doing something wrong, but no, it's just ABSOLUTE RUBBISH !!!!!
I put in for a refund and if they think they can ignore me, like them seem to be, they're in for a surprise.
I still have old paper manuals and they were excellent, what the hell has happened to them ???

What the ???? Haynes used to be THE name to go to for car manuals. This online/autofix incarnation has destroyed any trust whatsoever in the Haynes name as far as I'm concerned. Have had some time to use this online manual now and any job that has cropped up is really lucky if it's covered. Even if it is covered it's nothing more than a cursory overview with pretty much zero useful information. Absoute rubbish. Haynes should be ashamed of themselves for putting these out. If you can get a physical, hardback version for your vehicle then great, otherwise AVOID 'Autofix' and use youtube instead.

Most of the info is generic. Very little specific to my car. Youtube will give me better information than this scam manual.

Complete waste of money. Gives absolutely no useful info on anything

I totally concurr with all the previous negative reviews. Haynes Autofix really is disgraceful it brings shame to previously well respected Company. To save their reputation they should reimburse all the disgruntled customers, and withdraw the product.

Autofix is absolute rubbish, DO NOT waste your time. 90% is generic guidance for all vehicles. 10% is supposedly specific to my vehicle although doesn’t appear accurate.

Such a disappointment from such a previously trusted source of information.

Generic videos and guidance for all vehicles, which is borderline unsafe - what if I followed the vague guide for a light vehicle with my 3.5T vehicle? I purchased the manual for a Citroen Relay van, and spent some time talking to customer services about exactly which engine model etc to “make sure I have the correct manual”. Utterly pointless endeavour because it’s all generic advice anyway.

Purchased a manual for Audi A6 C8 model at £28 ..... absolute garbage!!! I would like my money back. Haynes manuals of old were the 'goto' publication but this ...... lost for words.

I bought the Autofix manual for my car. I was very disappointed at the small amount of car-specific data and how useless it was! Also some of the drawings were from some other car, not the one I have. Drawings did not have any parts named, only torques. There was no instructions at all, only for the engine part. Waste of money, do not buy!
Update: I did get an answer from Haynes customer service and got my money back, so thank you Holly!

If John Harold Haynes saw the garbage I just wasted £28 on he'd be spinning in his Grave.
A Haynes manual used to be a very useful resource for owners and mechanics,
but what I just foolishly bought is an insult and a disgrace to his legacy.

A Haynes manual used to be written based on first hand experience by professionals,
what they offer in the online garbage is copy/paste generalisations with few or no actual pictures of the vehicle or its components its based on!

Ok I'm a trusting fool, I didn't read the small print which says once I access it ( I had to, to evaluate it right?) i am ineligible to claim a refund.

Oh very clever, but it cuts two ways, I'm logging all the ways it fails as I go and will go online and warn others and go into minute detail to describe the many ways its a worthless imitation of what a Haynes manual used to be.

I always bought a Haynes repair manual for any car I had, and with great satisfaction.
Now I couldn't get one for my new 5year old car, and out of demand I signed up for the Autofix.
Man did I get disappointed.
My current problem is not covered, well, the parts in trouble are not described.
There are very few photos, and I watched one of the few videos, about changing pollen filter. I have a Peugeot, and it was shown on a Mercedes.
In short, useless