In this article I want to show you how to use your phone's camera to look up unidentified antique car parts. This is great news if you like going to swap meets to find deals but just can’t figure out what the part fits. Or if you found some random parts in your attic that you’d like to turn into cash.  Or if you just want to know what to call the part so you can order one from a parts store. This is one of the easiest and fastest ways to do it … in fact, my 10 year old has already made over a thousand dollars using this feature. 

You can either watch the video of me demonstrating the steps or read them below:

STEP ONE: DOWNLOAD GOOGLE LENS

Make sure your device has Google Lens installed on it.  You can go to GooglePlay (Android) or the App Store (iPhone) to download the app.  Some versions have Google Lens as part of the Google App.

STEP TWO: PHOTOGRAPH THE PART 

Open the Google App and look for the icon of the colored camera in the search bar to open Google Lens.

You may need to give permission for Google to use your camera and access your images.  Then you are ready to snap a photo.  The key is to capture the unique feature of the part.  If the part is a straight molding then it will be challenging to identify it since there are millions of straight objects online, but if it has a unique shape or contour, you will want to capture all of this.  We recommend you use a plane background so as to not confuse the object with background.

NOTE: Color can also be a player.  If the part has a part with a color that is common to this particular part then you will want to capture this (ex. amber park light lens, sea foam green speedometer background, engine orange valve cover, etc).

BONUS: You can even use previous photos that you have taken to let Google Lens do a search.  Instead of taking the photo simply select an image from your device and Google Lens will do the same type of image search.

STEP THREE: ADJUST IF NECESSARY

Occasionally, Google won't know what to focus on.  Simply adjust the frame by touching and sliding either of the four corners to modify the frame.

STEP FOUR: SEARCH THE RESULTS

Scroll through the results and see if Google was able to locate an example of the part you have.  If you did not find the part, don't worry.  Take another photo from a different angle and see if the part will show up.  Sometimes it may take a few extra photos before you find the angle that Google is able to use in order to identify the part.  Keep in mind that it is going to reference photos that have already been taken so if you can imagine how the previous person would have photographed the part then you are off to a good start.

That's really it.  Now, I have not been 100% successful with the parts but I have certainly found a lot more then I ever would have without it.  This feature is so helpful that I've shown my employees how to use it so that they now are empowered to identify these parts WITHOUT MY HELP.  I like that.

So what hacks do you know for identifying parts?  Please comment below.  I may even turn them into an article or video and give you all the credit.