Fault reader for an amateur

zl1whqvjs75cdy

Hello all. I was wondering if its possible for joe soap to buy a fault reader for the car? I recently sold a car and had three people show up to look at it. All three had code readers themselves. IS there anywhere handy to pick one up? I'm driving a mk 6 golf TDI if it makes a difference.

The Bishop Basher

There are plenty for sale on eBay.

They range from about a tenner up into hundreds. Obviously the more you pay the better you'll get.

I use a maxiscan ms509 and love it. Be careful if buying one of these though as there are tons of fake units about.

A quick Google search on reviews of this and all the other units should have you informed enough to get one that suits your pocket and requirements.

zl1whqvjs75cdy

Cool thanks.

CreepingDeath

I'd definitely class myself as an amateur who hasn't even changed the oil on a car, but I bought a cheap OBD adapter from a cheap chinese gadget site that I've bought plenty of stuff from in the past.

So I bought something that looks identical to this from DealExtreme : OBD Bluetooth Link. That one is only €7.27 but expect a long delivery wait of 4-6 weeks from cheap chinese gadget web sites.

I have an android phone and initially used the free version of the "Torque" app, but then paid for the full version for around €5 when it turned out to be very useful.

That combination detects a low pressure sensor warning on my Honda civic air con unit. ( I know it was leaking )
And a mate at work had an engine warning light, and it detected a coolant sensor warning. He topped up the coolant and it resolved the issue.

So as long as it's nothing serious, it can certainly give you a good hint at problems and save you money.

blackbox

A word of warning. The cheap units connect OK with an Android phone but they don't seem to work with iPhones.


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blackbox

A word of warning. While they work great with Android phones it is very difficult (impossible?) to get them to pair with an iPhone.

zl1whqvjs75cdy

Went with the cheapo version just to get a feel for the things first. The Chinese, a great bunch of lads.

cletus

Without trying to poop on the parade, the elm327 Bluetooth dongle does not always work very well (or at all) with VAG group cars. You may need to get some form of vagcom lite.

Re. the iPhone connection problems, Applewill notvallow the specific protocol needed for elm327 Bluetooth (probably cause somebody hasn't paid them a **** ton of money) however jailbroken phones can be made compliant, afaik

zl1whqvjs75cdy

cletus wrote: »

Without trying to poop on the parade, the elm327 Bluetooth dongle does not always work very well (or at all) with VAG group cars. You may need to get some form of vagcom lite.

Re. the iPhone connection problems, Applewill notvallow the specific protocol needed for elm327 Bluetooth (probably cause somebody hasn't paid them a **** ton of money) however jailbroken phones can be made compliant, afaik

Thanks for the heads up. For the 6 quid I'll take the risk ☺

O.A.P

Is it possible to check if a car has been clocked with one of these or is that only possible with the better expensive models ?

The Bishop Basher

O.A.P wrote: »

Is it possible to check if a car has been clocked with one of these or is that only possible with the better expensive models ?

The basic models certainly won't tell you. I'd imagine you'd be needing some pretty decent kit with a hefty price tag for that.

tossy

You can do a mileage verification on most modern VAG cars with VCDS. If you intend on sticking with VAg cars then VCDS is the best value for money out there, as capable as the delaer set up with a good resale value, it will also perform basic OBD II scans on most other cars.

I have mine about 5/6 years now and it's paid for itself a few times over.

ShaunieVW

I have a WIFI ELM 327, It connects to my iPhone with no issues at all and has diagnosed all kinds of stuff at this stage.

It doesn't do abs though or airbags.

biko

ShaunieVW wrote: »

I have a WIFI ELM 327, It connects to my iPhone

Do you use OBD Doctor as iphone app?

stimpson

Bluetooth ones will not work with iPhones. Wifi ones are available (a bit more expensive) that will work.

H3llR4iser

Swanner wrote: »

The basic models certainly won't tell you. I'd imagine you'd be needing some pretty decent kit with a hefty price tag for that.

For what is worth, I have an ELM327 cable and MultiECUScan is able to read the ECU mileage data; Granted, the cable cost about 25 euro and the software 50 and it's specific for Alfa/Fiat/Lancia.

The Bishop Basher

H3llR4iser wrote: »

For what is worth, I have an ELM327 cable and MultiECUScan is able to read the ECU mileage data; Granted, the cable cost about 25 euro and the software 50 and it's specific for Alfa/Fiat/Lancia.

Yeah cheers. I see it can be done on VAG's too from a post above.

I didn't know the functionality was that easily accessible.

Handy to know for future reference