Fault code readers...

twain · Mar 4, 2013

cannot justify spending another £45 (it would be the 3rd time) to get a code read on my car.
so, i have been looking at OBD 2 readers from ebay.
not having done this before, just wondering if anyone has any experience with one off ebay?
i was looking at this one:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CAR-FAULT-COD ... 35be5e2b2b

the seller says it can talk to the ECU safely - are there risks that it wont? what harm could it do?

they also says the cd contains all possible codes for all cars - how is this possible? i thought this information was held exclusively by the manufacturer? (this may be my inexperince showing through here..)

i'm reluctant to take it to another garage, again, and the little faith i had in garages to begin with has all but diminished amongst the high costs and very little help i have received in return. i've tried 3 different garages so far and they all just do something that costs me money and doesnt solve the problem. f**king sick of it.

so, rant aside, anyone done this before with much luck?

ruttegercarruthers · Mar 4, 2013

I'm guessing it's a main dealer charging you £45? - that is indeed too much. I have a recurrent code on my Celica (once a month maybe) which according to those in the know is not a major issue and is not going to cause any long term issues (I hope....). Consequently I bought this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/CAN-Bus-Trouble ... 100&sr=8-1

It allows the code to be read and deleted in a couple of minutes (note that I would be very wary of turning off ANY code which you don't fully understand however - they come up for a reason after all!).

First couple of times it came up I took it to a local garage who read and deleted it for beer money.

In terms of the CD, I wouldn't worry too much, the internet will likely be a far better source of information relating to your particular code/problem. Hope you can get it sorted though

B77 · Mar 4, 2013

Got one of these for a tenner....

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/U281-VW-Audi- ... 337711c3ea

Works like a charm and has saved me quite a bit of money, well worth getting. They won't make any changes to your engine other than erasing the fault codes if you want them to, perfectly safe to use. As the guy above said, the internet is your freind when it comes to diagnosis and codes plus there are forums you can ask questions on.

twain · Mar 4, 2013

mines a Nissan micra (known for its throttle body problems) and thos readers dont list Nissans.
it wasnt a main dealer charging me that. its 3 independant garages. they all seem to charge this premium for it.
as for beer money, that be the same money down here anyway! :shock:

i'll use this reader to compare to the last readings i;ve had from the garages (kept the documents with the fault codes on) if its the same as the last, i'll reset it.

there are other things i can do to solve the issue i think, but just want the light off! i was tempted to just take the bulb out....

Neil · Mar 4, 2013

twain":1yic8cow said:
mines a Nissan micra (known for its throttle body problems) and thos readers dont list Nissans.
it wasnt a main dealer charging me that. its 3 independant garages. they all seem to charge this premium for it.
as for beer money, that be the same money down here anyway! :shock:

i'll use this reader to compare to the last readings i;ve had from the garages (kept the documents with the fault codes on) if its the same as the last, i'll reset it.

there are other things i can do to solve the issue i think, but just want the light off! i was tempted to just take the bulb out....

Just over a year ago, I bought a cheap code reader - similar to the ones there's been links for - from ebay. Was somewhere in the teens of pounds, it's worked on several cars, including a Nissan. I also bought a USB ELM module from ebay that was around £13 or £14 pounds, and that's worked fine on everything I've tried it on, too.

What I would say, is that any of those will probably read the standard codes, the marque specific stuff (eg VAG, Ford, Volvo) where they have their own set of codes on top of all the standard codes, or stuff like airbag lights, and they probably won't deal with that. Tried it on a Ford with a troubling common EAC fail / fault on the display, and neither my OBDII code reader, nor ELM module could see anything wrong, and they could connect to the car fine.

twain · Mar 4, 2013

well i just ordered this one http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CAR-FAULT...t&hash=item35be5e2b2b&clk_rvr_id=455823939227

on the basis that its still cheaper than going to the garage.
will see if it lives up to its other features when i use it.............i was interested in the feature that checks your cars emissions.

anyway. a full write up on it when i get this and try it out.due to change the oil soon, so will do it then i guess.....

Neil · Mar 4, 2013

twain":1b1x5geq said:
well i just ordered this one http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CAR-FAULT...t&hash=item35be5e2b2b&clk_rvr_id=455823939227

on the basis that its still cheaper than going to the garage.
will see if it lives up to its other features when i use it.............i was interested in the feature that checks your cars emissions.

anyway. a full write up on it when i get this and try it out.due to change the oil soon, so will do it then i guess.....

Looks fine probably will do all you need.

As to emissions probably just looks at the values for certain sensors?

The USB ELM thingmy I bought, is pretty good for many generic things, and allows you to do real-time logging, and see the fuel trims, and the real-time O2 sensor readings. It was pretty cheap, too - but as it's USB, you really need to use it with a laptop, and there's a certain cavalier attitude to the software they bundle with / link to.

Bluetooth versions are also available, and you can use something like Torque on Android (or probably other platforms, too. They can also reset codes as well as monitor.

Again, though, things like ABS issues and airbag lights are probably off the menu, there.

sylus · Mar 4, 2013

Is it the same persistent problem?

twain · Mar 4, 2013

sylus":10flmzt7 said:
Is it the same persistent problem?

similar niggling issue i've had a for a while. light touch on the accelarator causes the idle to dip (sometimes enough to stall).
worse when its cold. after a run (10mins or more) its fine.
also some engine judder a bit when i release the foot off the pedal at speed (i've had the engine mounts checked).

replaced the MAF sensor recently which helped with the judder and the low idle for a bit, but its all coming back slowly....

i would replace the throttle body completely, but dont have the money for that right now.

i'm almost to the point where i can't figure out what it is, and have no intention of spending anymore money to find out.
but the low idle dip/stall can be dangerous when pulling out of junctions, which is why i'm trying to do something about it myself before i give up completely.
scoured countless forums, talked to many 'mechanics' about it before fleecing me and providing no solution.
i'm tempted to get a credit card and get myself a Honda. FTW!

Neil · Mar 4, 2013

twain":1waazej8 said:
sylus":1waazej8 said:

Is it the same persistent problem?

Click to expand...

similar niggling issue i've had a for a while. light touch on the accelarator causes the idle to dip (sometimes enough to stall).
worse when its cold. after a run (10mins or more) its fine.
also some engine judder a bit when i release the foot off the pedal at speed (i've had the engine mounts checked).

replaced the MAF sensor recently which helped with the judder and the low idle for a bit, but its all coming back slowly....

i would replace the throttle body completely, but dont have the money for that right now.

i'm almost to the point where i can't figure out what it is, and have no intention of spending anymore money to find out.
but the low idle dip/stall can be dangerous when pulling out of junctions, which is why i'm trying to do something about it myself before i give up completely.
scoured countless forums, talked to many 'mechanics' about it before fleecing me and providing no solution.
i'm tempted to get a credit card and get myself a Honda. FTW!

I take it the throttle body / butterfly has been cleaned - is it an ETM, and does it have a separate or intergrated TPS?

Some of the bigger engined Nissans, with ETM, have a throttle position relearn and idle relearn procedure - is that a factor?

Fault code readers...

twain

ruttegercarruthers

B77

Senior Retro Guru

twain

Neil

Old School Grand Master

twain

Neil

Old School Grand Master

sylus

Old School Grand Master

twain

Neil

Old School Grand Master

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