The FF ECU Reader...?

[ben]

Seeing as so many of you are having ECU problems, I decided to look into getting hold of the OBD2 interface kit, which would allow the reading in of ECU data (Error codes etc) + plus allow minimal changes to the car itself.

Can get hold of it at not a too extortionite price, so was wondering if anyone thought it would be a useful item to buy, then whenever a meet was planned, be able to offer ECU readings out.

Or something like a 'rent out' - you put a deposit down on Paypal, I send it to you, you fix your car, send it back and then I do a PayPal refund on the transaction (minus a minimal fee to go towards the cost of the kit)....?

Better than this £45 or whatever FIAT want to charge.....?

Discuss

 

[gaz.d]

not a bad idea, does it come with instructions

does anyone know how to use one??

 

[ben]

Just found another one which you plug in, press 1 button and it gives you the error codes on its built in screen. Then use the manual to look the code up.... might be better than a laptop style one, though obviously lacks some features (however, ANYONE could use it....?)

Oh, and its half the price

 

[dave]

does it read fiat codes or do you have to buy extra pods for diffrent makes of car?

 

[Helz]

It sounds like a good idea . I for one would be interested.

 

[ben]

of course it reads fiat codes it would be a pretty pointless FF ECU reader otherwise ...

 

[polecat]

Good idea, but i'm not OBD2 compliant.

Now if you were to get a 4 line Sykes Pickavant ACR.....

 

[dave]

of course it reads fiat codes it would be a pretty pointless FF ECU reader otherwise ...

i was just wondering if it comes with the right pod? or are the pods extra

 

[JonnyBoy]

Sounds like a great idea just out of curiosity, what do these gadgets actually cost to buy?

And is it self-contained with a wee screen or does it plug into a laptop computer??

 

[ben]

Laptop kit about £50, self contained box £30 (just has an LCD screen which returns the code number)

Laptop kit limits a bit (but then allows a lot more in another sense...)

 

[JonnyBoy]

Is that all? Yet Fiat want £45 an hour to use theirs!

Definitely a good plan - you could hire it out for a few quid a time and once you've got back the cost of the kit it'll help pay hosting for the forum?

 

[gaz.d]

you sure its the right one if its that cheap

the place i take my car too spent 3k on his

 

[ben]

So what we think would be better? Maybe get the HH first and see how it goes, always useful I guess... then find somewhere to download the engine maps and suddenly we have a whole new business plan ...

 

[ben]

you sure its the right one if its that cheap

the place i take my car too spent 3k on his

Uh-huh - all it does it read error codes... the 3k one must allow full tuning or something... (or maybe comes with engine maps?)

 

[gaz.d]

Uh-huh - all it does it read error codes... the 3k one must allow full tuning or something... (or maybe comes with engine maps?)

im not too sure, he has 2 machines and can do whatever fiat can do

 

[Stu DemonD]

I thought alfanige also had a bit a kit that can read error codes as well?

This is in addition to his millenium tuning kit.

 

[wimmy]

I thought alfanige also had a bit a kit that can read error codes as well?

This is in addition to his millenium tuning kit.

He does. And doesnt charge that much either.

Ben - I'd definately have a look at what you are buying at that price mate. I remember Nige talking about purchasing his (in addition to the one he uses for tuning) and it was a lot more dosh than that!

 

[alfanige]

We have the diagnostic kit for Fiat/Alfa plus the SRS and ABS stuff too for airbag warning lights. It trawls around with us as part of the service, i.e. we always do diagnostic testing before we do anything else.
We normally charge £25 for a full diag with a £10 refund if there are no errors, £15 for ABS and £10 for a SRS reset/diagnsotic. We dont always charge, it depends where we are and what we are doing and if we need to travel out of our way - we have even know to do it for lunch!

 

[HP]

Ben, for £30 I might want one just for me! Can you PM me the details?

 

[ben]

Just noticed this I have a feeling the kit nigel does is to run diagnostic checks to make sure something is ok? (right nige?) whereas this box is used when your 'Check Engine' light is on (ie the ecu knows something is wrong) and will just give you the error codes so you can tell what the exact problem is.

The laptop one of course tells you loads of things, and can be run whilst you drive the car (making it a lot more versatile) - but from starting this thread, i was under the impression people already knew they had a problem (due to the light) so could just use the tool to let them know what it was....

Is that right?