Folks:
For my 2000 323i (E46) I am thinking about purchasing an OBDII scanner, I also have a Chevy truck 1996. Does anyone have recommendation or know where there are reviews to find a good scanner, I do not want to pay more than $200US.
Rob
An OBD II scan tool will run from about $60 to about $150. ACTRON is a company that makes 4 of them at different price jpoints within this range. (I'm not selling Actron scan tools, I just know of them because I had an OBD I scan tool made by them.)
OBD II is a Standard, therefore the same tool will work on any car or truck built to the standard.
I just came from Pep Boys and they have the Actron, but the prices are much higher than I suggested. You will still get a decent unit in your price range, but I thought you would get a good unit for less than you were thinking.
I suggest you go to the store and get your need to touch and smell all of the options out there, then come home and price them on eBay.
As you move up in the price points, the feature sets expand.
Jeff:
You're right, all the bells and whistles add up. Thanks for the advice, it may take me a while to figure out what I really need.
The best way for me is to get the touchy-feely part at the store, then price shop online. I was at Autozone a year or so ago when I was looking for my OBD I scan tool. I was shopping online and stumbled across the OBD II machines, then saw them again at the parts store. My recollection was that the price in the store and the price online was pretty much the same, but today I found the prices to be much higher than I remember them to be.
Give the price I thought the scan tools to run in, I had myself set up for a mid-price unit that I expected to pay about $100 for. I don't know if the prices have gon e up, or they have more high end units now than they had before. Whatever the case, you will find a nice unit in your price range of $200ish.
If you take your car in for a scan, it will run to pretty close to $100 at the dealership. That's a stiff price to pay to find out the gas cap is not securely tightened. Do that twice and you could have your own scan tool ...
Well rob I wanted to save money on repairs too. I found a site with a good selection.
Baum tools has a selection from around $30 (does JUST OBD-II codes) to the thousands of $$$ (does extended BMW diagnostics.)
Thanks
Rob
No need to. That's done via the instrument panel. SEARCH and you will find.. (look on some E46 forums)
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