Anybody know of a good diagnostic scanner/code reader

I am hoping that some of you might have some suggestions about a good diagnostic scanner/code reader for my 2002 LS 6 speed. Not that it matters, but it has everything on her but a rear spoiler and the 6 disc changer. I'm not 100% certain (I'm sure another enthusiast can set me straight) but I think she is the next best thing to the limited edition. I throw that out there in case the 6 speed had peculiarities from the 5 speeds.

Point is, I found the "specific" diagnostic codes from another post

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and I want to find a goodscanner/code reader to suit my DIY needs (I may show my ignorancesince I am not certain if there is a difference between a scanner anda code reader). Some criteria for the scanner/code reader - 1) pricerange ~$100-$300 (I tend to think the higher the price the better thequality and I realize these things can easily exceed $3K) 2) ease ofuse (I am more of a craftsman than a mechanic, but I do know my wayaround a wrench and socket) 3) upgradeable (via software downloads/patches etc) 4) needs to show the "specific" fault codes more thanjust emission fault codes (I think what I'm seeing at this pricerange is emission only and very general fault tools- I would likesomething that shows me the actual Mazda "P" codes that I found at theabove link) 5) it would be nice to be compatible with Subaru andHyundai (Those are my other cars). This maybe unrealistic at such a low price, but maybe somebody out there knows of such a tool or a suitable "work-around". As such, I'm willing to bend on a few of those qualifiers. I found several devices from a simple Google and Amazon.com searche. A few such devices are: the Equas 3100 Innova Diagnostic Code Reader, Acutron CP9180 Scanner, and the AutoXray 2500. All seem to get decent reviews (albeit limited in the scope of the review), but I am a bit suspicious that they will not be able to read the "specific codes" ("P1000" +). I went to Actron's
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and its sister website, AutoXray
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and tried to plug in a few of the "P1000" series codes to see if they register on the website. Alas, they did not, but I cannot be conclusive since I am not 100% certain if the lack of those codes registering on the respective websites mean the scanners/ code readers themselves cannot detect the fault codes. I emailed the Actron manufacturer (17 APR) and included the "specific" fault codes but have not heard back from them as of yet.

Lastly, I found a Snap-On scanner the Solus and what appears to be a European scanner Launch Tech X-431. But the lack of price tags suggests these are into the $1K + range which is not for me.

I appreciate any info any of you can share on this, if there has already been discussions on this topic, any threads leading to the discussion is appreciated as well!

Thanks in advance!

Drew

Reply to
ajk170
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This is the one I've been looking at:

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I have no experience with it and can't say how closely it matches your needs (other than price) but the concept looks good and I've not seen any negative reports about it. The ability to use it as a trip computer as well as a diagnostic tool is what makes it attractive to me.

Reply to
John McGaw

Reply to
Chuck

Thanks John-

I will have to take a closer look at that one! I would think that somebody would just design a cable interface to an actual laptop and create a program that would run on the laptop rather than a these seperate little handheld devices. I guess that would be too easy for the DIYs!

-Drew

Reply to
ajk170

ajk170 wrote:

I didn't realize that you wanted to hook up your laptop since you asked about stand-alone devices. There are a lot of products to do that job. A simple Google search for "computer ODB interface cable" (without the quotes of course) turns up more results than I am willing to wade through. You can even get a Bluetooth interface to do the job wirelessly if you care to. Again, I haven't used any of these but they are certainly out there.

Reply to
John McGaw

Two possible sources for OBD2 to laptop with laptop software.

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Alex Pepper has had his units and software on the market for some time.

"John McGaw" wrote in message news:9DaVh.5809$ snipped-for-privacy@bignews1.bellsouth.net...

peculiarities

Reply to
Chuck

On Apr 18, 1:04 am, John McGaw wrote:

John,

I didn't even think about the idea of a PC and software - which seems like it would be a much better idea rather than a stand alone. I'm trying to wade through the different things that are out there now! You're right, there certainly is alot out there to go through!

Thanks for the tips!

Drew

Reply to
ajk170

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