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MG MGA - Not MGA related but...

As there does not seem to be many postings at present, I hoped I could be indulged and allowed to ask a non MGA question.
I am looking to purchase an OBD diagnostics tool to analyse problems that arise from time to time on my daily driver, and that of friends. I have used them in the past, and they are a handy piece of kit.
I see on the web that you can now buy a Bluetooth adapter for a very modest sum (maybe £12-£15) which links to an iPhone or iPad, after downloading an appropriate app. There are many adapters available, and very many apps, some free, some for only a modest charge.
Does anyone have experience of using this kit and able to offer any recommendations or warnings on what to look for please?

Thanks.
Graham V

Graham, I bought one only this week to ID a fault on my daughters car. Given that the Rev counter had stopped in conjunction with the engine symbol illuminating, logic led me to a dodgy crankshaft sensor.

The reader found no codes at all. A waste of money and returned.

Regards
Colin
Colin Manley

Graham- The Bluetooth adapters are fine BUT it depends on the car as well
If the car is 2006 on-OBD11 then it should work fine but if it's Euro obd from mid 90s to 06 when obd11 took over then you can have issues as there aren't enough pins wired into the car's connector to power it- Also the apps to run them can cost heaps depending on where you get them ,so be carefull
I bought one and paid a lot of money for it and it was supposed to do everything, but no, it would read basic codes on 06 on obd11 cars but if you wanted to do anything like coding in a module or keys it was more money all the time to get upgrades
It wouldn't work on vw or on my mate's v8zt- the zt didn't have all the pins in the connector and the bluetooth adapter wouldn't power up
I cracked a wobbly with it in the finish and luckily got my money back through a false advertising claim
I bought a little fully loaded Carmen tester with a hardwired connector and it did everything, even vag for vw etc, it can code keys, modules and has a cylinder balance feature which is magic for finding missfires on modern coil on plug cars
It was that good that 'someone' has nicked it from my shed
The same options would be available through bluetooth on later cars but not the earlier---Bit of a trap when the obd plug looks the same for both-
-the secret will be what you can find to download to go withit
William Revit

It's all beyond me. My village garage has all the diagnostic kit and does anything that arises on my Merc and daughter's Boxter. It's one thing finding out what is wrong. It's another getting the offending item replaced. My man in the village has a little black book for the suppliers of identical but non OEM parts. He has saved me hundreds. A recent air con issue cost me £600 through him. We then priced it up as if I had got Mercedes to fix it - around £1800. Daughter's Boxter cost £50 including labur for something in the braking system. Porsche menu price was £400 + labour. He replaced one switch. Porsche only replace the entire management unit.

Steve
Steve Gyles

Colin
Interesting that the light came on but it didn't log a code
Crank sensors are a bit difficult to find sometimes
Their signal varies a fair amount, so if the engine runs then the ecu usually thinks the crank sensor is working--a scope is the go to check their output
This is the issue with the Bluetooth adapter, it isn't so much the adapter, it's only transfering data, it's more to do with level of the operating program
A basic program only reads live codes
Needed is a program that will read memory codes as well(that's where your crank sensor code would be) and preferably one that reads current date with a graph option--with this you can watch your crank sensor running and pick up any faults with it
This is the issue I had with my bluetooth thing, evertime I wanted to do something with it you had to pay for more downloads all the time--can get expensive after a while
Same goes for cheapy basic wired hand held scanners
Just a simple code reader doesn't do much apart from read/erase codes, you need one with current date option as well
If you're going to use a scanner on pre 2006 obd11 cars then you need a hand held with it's own built in battery/power supply to connect and this is where the bluetooth adapter can't work on the earlier cars

A hand held scanner with a cable and plug that has it's own battery power and will read obd obd11 and euro obd back to 96, that will show current data in graph form is the best option for home use
William Revit

Thanks for the feedback
And that was a helpful warning about the app thanks William. I have since looked more carefully and see, as you pointed out, many have in-app purchases to get full access (and yes only talking about post 2006).

I see there's a hard wired Carmen on ebay for only £75 that is more than just a code reader. Looks good value. I already have a basic code reader but in the past had the use of a sophisticated tool that showed, for example, the speed each wheel was turning (to test ABS), and lots more.
I'm in no mad rush for it but its the sort of tool I would like on the shelf to use when a problem does crop up.
Graham V

Apologies - I blame eBay misleading me - its not a Carmen, even though the link said it was. But it looks interesting at that price as it has freeze frame, ABS and SRS capability.
Graham V

For the budget conscious in Oz. Are you going to invest, Willie?
https://www.aldi.com.au/en/special-buys/special-buys-sat-3-october/saturday-detail-wk40/ps/p/obd2eobd-code-reader-or-12v-battery-analyser-1/?pk_campaign=au_product_newsletter&pk_kwd=2020-09-28_16-29

Mike
Mike Ellsmore

Mike
Devices like that one normally pay for themselves very quickly.
I have used one, for example, to pinpoint a particular oxygen sensor needing replacement (easy as changing a spark plug). But without the knowledge of the fault, you are in the hands of your car mechanic. And not all of them are known for their honesty.
But I was thinking of getting something a bit more sophisticated that for example includes ABS analysis. Some years back, my sons car MIL light came on, and a basic reader showed there was an ABS fault. But nothing more. I then used a more sophisticated machine that told me whilst driving, the speed each wheel was turning. That can be really useful as replacing a wheel sensor is relatively cheap and simple, replacing the ABS ECU is very expensive.

Graham V

Umm
I think i'll give that a miss thankyou Mike

This is what the Carman looked like--bit of a fizzer ,they've come down a lot in price, mine was about $4000 for the kit about 8 years ago

http://www.m2kinc.com/detail-carman-scan-lite-229-275-36-1.html

Something to be aware of diagnosing stuff is that quite a few ecu's have what's known as fme (failure mode effects)which can lead you astray

An example of this could be--
Ford Mustang or F series truck, can come up with a code for a faulty EGR valve, so you go to check it and there's no power to the operating solenoid, so you go off pinning it out at the ecu to find there is no signal coming out of the box----hmm ,must mean the ecu is faulty--no-- the ecu has detected a failure in the egr system and has kindly turned it all off---after clearing the code it magically returns to normal and then ,and only then you can continue diagnosing the fault, which on these is usually the piston in the valve has worn into it's seat and the sensor reads out of spec
result--it will be the valve not the solenoid or ecu as the previous testing had indicated

Something else to be aware of if you're going to plug up to pre 06 vehicles is that some talk to the scanner with old analogue signals and some talk serial data and this is where you need a scanner with a built in battery so that you can dial in exactly what car you're plugging up to before you poke the plug in
kia sportages are a prime example, they changed over half way through a model and if you plug up wrong a spark arrives inside the hand held smoke machine
William Revit

This thread was discussed between 26/09/2020 and 29/09/2020

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