cheap code readers
#11
07-13-2016, 08:22 AM
Guys,
Unless you have experience with a specific scantool, please do not recommend one. The scantool linked at Harbor Freight will NOT read the ABS or SRS modules on a 97 F-car. On these cars before 1999, the ABS and SRS modules are NOT on the OBD2 bus and are not OBD2 modules, and that tool only works for OBD2 modules. He would waste his money on it.
Here are some reviews:
By disaponinted
Comments about Cen-Tech OBD II & CAN Scan Tool with ABS:
this scan tool with abs does not work on abs for a 1998 Pontiac .it shows you go to Pontiac and it will work
no Pontiac only gm and when selected you get Buick only . so i just want to bye something that works like the box said it would
Bottom Line No, I would not recommend this to a friend
By Walter
Comments about Cen-Tech OBD II & CAN Scan Tool with ABS:
I have a couple older scanners which work well but they didn't get ABS codes so I tried this one out of the box and the ABS setup called for the 4th character of the VIN # but the "W" did not show as a selection. I tried all four of the codes listed and none worked. Then I tried updating the unit using the disk provided. The process went smoothly but when plugging it into my 97 Lumina it came up with the same result (unable to connect). Very good price and a quality tool if it worked on my car.
Bottom Line No, I would not recommend this to a friend
By Doinmo
Comments about Cen-Tech OBD II & CAN Scan Tool with ABS:
I bought this to check my ABS fault on a 97 Chevy Blazer. This device does not support this vehicle. Update did not correct the problem
Bottom Line No, I would not recommend this to a friend
If you want something that will do the PCM, ABS, SRS and many other modules on most GM cars from 1992-2013, then the Tech2 is the one you want. You can buy a perfectly good new cloned one from China for about $250 including shipping from AliExpress. These come from the factories that used to produce the "real" Tech2's for Bosch. It will take 2-3 weeks to arrive and there should be no customs charges if it is like the ones I have bought. At that price, it will not come with a case, but you can buy a suitable case at someplace like H/F for about $20 or less. There is an element of risk of course and it may be tedious to get warantee exchanges since you would probably have to send it back if there was a problem. The two I bought have worked perfectly for almost 2 years now.
I bought them from this seller, Sam Xiang:
DHL Free Shipping 2016 Best Quality GM TECH2 Full Set Support 6 Softwares(GM,OPEL,SAAB ISUZU,SUZUKI,HOLDEN) GM Tech 2 Scanner-in Code Readers & Scan Tools from Automobiles & Motorcycles on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group
Unless you have experience with a specific scantool, please do not recommend one. The scantool linked at Harbor Freight will NOT read the ABS or SRS modules on a 97 F-car. On these cars before 1999, the ABS and SRS modules are NOT on the OBD2 bus and are not OBD2 modules, and that tool only works for OBD2 modules. He would waste his money on it.
Here are some reviews:
By disaponinted
Comments about Cen-Tech OBD II & CAN Scan Tool with ABS:
this scan tool with abs does not work on abs for a 1998 Pontiac .it shows you go to Pontiac and it will work
no Pontiac only gm and when selected you get Buick only . so i just want to bye something that works like the box said it would
Bottom Line No, I would not recommend this to a friend
By Walter
Comments about Cen-Tech OBD II & CAN Scan Tool with ABS:
I have a couple older scanners which work well but they didn't get ABS codes so I tried this one out of the box and the ABS setup called for the 4th character of the VIN # but the "W" did not show as a selection. I tried all four of the codes listed and none worked. Then I tried updating the unit using the disk provided. The process went smoothly but when plugging it into my 97 Lumina it came up with the same result (unable to connect). Very good price and a quality tool if it worked on my car.
Bottom Line No, I would not recommend this to a friend
By Doinmo
Comments about Cen-Tech OBD II & CAN Scan Tool with ABS:
I bought this to check my ABS fault on a 97 Chevy Blazer. This device does not support this vehicle. Update did not correct the problem
Bottom Line No, I would not recommend this to a friend
If you want something that will do the PCM, ABS, SRS and many other modules on most GM cars from 1992-2013, then the Tech2 is the one you want. You can buy a perfectly good new cloned one from China for about $250 including shipping from AliExpress. These come from the factories that used to produce the "real" Tech2's for Bosch. It will take 2-3 weeks to arrive and there should be no customs charges if it is like the ones I have bought. At that price, it will not come with a case, but you can buy a suitable case at someplace like H/F for about $20 or less. There is an element of risk of course and it may be tedious to get warantee exchanges since you would probably have to send it back if there was a problem. The two I bought have worked perfectly for almost 2 years now.
I bought them from this seller, Sam Xiang:
DHL Free Shipping 2016 Best Quality GM TECH2 Full Set Support 6 Softwares(GM,OPEL,SAAB ISUZU,SUZUKI,HOLDEN) GM Tech 2 Scanner-in Code Readers & Scan Tools from Automobiles & Motorcycles on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group
#13
07-13-2016, 04:24 PM
The Actron CP9185 is excellent for the 94/95 OBD1 F-cars. It's performance with OBD2 is not as good as much cheaper ones, however. It has been selling on Amazon for $85 for several months now.
Edit update: I just checked again and the low price on Amazon is now about $77.
Edit update: I just checked again and the low price on Amazon is now about $77.
Last edited by GaryDoug; 07-14-2016 at 10:25 PM.
#15
07-17-2016, 04:18 AM
Thanks guys. Looks like i'll bite the bullet and buy one of those alibaba tech2 gm ones. I think it will be a good financial investment long term as i'll no doubt make the money back in saved repairs. - Especially since I own a C5 vette aswell.
Perhaps a cheap bluetooth scanner for the glovebox for roadside issues wouldnt be a bad idea?
Perhaps a cheap bluetooth scanner for the glovebox for roadside issues wouldnt be a bad idea?
#16
07-17-2016, 04:19 AM
getting out my laptop is fine - but then what software could I use and what kind of interface to connect to laptop?
#18
07-17-2016, 04:40 PM
It sounds like this would be significantly cheaper then buying a whole tech2 scanner. What limitations, if any, are there using a aldl adaptor with PC software compared to a alibaba tech2 scanner?
#20
07-19-2016, 05:40 PM
Guys,
Unless you have experience with a specific scantool, please do not recommend one. The scantool linked at Harbor Freight will NOT read the ABS or SRS modules on a 97 F-car. On these cars before 1999, the ABS and SRS modules are NOT on the OBD2 bus and are not OBD2 modules, and that tool only works for OBD2 modules. He would waste his money on it.
Here are some reviews:
By disaponinted
Comments about Cen-Tech OBD II & CAN Scan Tool with ABS:
this scan tool with abs does not work on abs for a 1998 Pontiac .it shows you go to Pontiac and it will work
no Pontiac only gm and when selected you get Buick only . so i just want to bye something that works like the box said it would
Bottom Line No, I would not recommend this to a friend
By Walter
Comments about Cen-Tech OBD II & CAN Scan Tool with ABS:
I have a couple older scanners which work well but they didn't get ABS codes so I tried this one out of the box and the ABS setup called for the 4th character of the VIN # but the "W" did not show as a selection. I tried all four of the codes listed and none worked. Then I tried updating the unit using the disk provided. The process went smoothly but when plugging it into my 97 Lumina it came up with the same result (unable to connect). Very good price and a quality tool if it worked on my car.
Bottom Line No, I would not recommend this to a friend
By Doinmo
Comments about Cen-Tech OBD II & CAN Scan Tool with ABS:
I bought this to check my ABS fault on a 97 Chevy Blazer. This device does not support this vehicle. Update did not correct the problem
Bottom Line No, I would not recommend this to a friend
If you want something that will do the PCM, ABS, SRS and many other modules on most GM cars from 1992-2013, then the Tech2 is the one you want. You can buy a perfectly good new cloned one from China for about $250 including shipping from AliExpress. These come from the factories that used to produce the "real" Tech2's for Bosch. It will take 2-3 weeks to arrive and there should be no customs charges if it is like the ones I have bought. At that price, it will not come with a case, but you can buy a suitable case at someplace like H/F for about $20 or less. There is an element of risk of course and it may be tedious to get warantee exchanges since you would probably have to send it back if there was a problem. The two I bought have worked perfectly for almost 2 years now.
I bought them from this seller, Sam Xiang:
DHL Free Shipping 2016 Best Quality GM TECH2 Full Set Support 6 Softwares(GM,OPEL,SAAB ISUZU,SUZUKI,HOLDEN) GM Tech 2 Scanner-in Code Readers & Scan Tools from Automobiles & Motorcycles on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group
Unless you have experience with a specific scantool, please do not recommend one. The scantool linked at Harbor Freight will NOT read the ABS or SRS modules on a 97 F-car. On these cars before 1999, the ABS and SRS modules are NOT on the OBD2 bus and are not OBD2 modules, and that tool only works for OBD2 modules. He would waste his money on it.
Here are some reviews:
By disaponinted
Comments about Cen-Tech OBD II & CAN Scan Tool with ABS:
this scan tool with abs does not work on abs for a 1998 Pontiac .it shows you go to Pontiac and it will work
no Pontiac only gm and when selected you get Buick only . so i just want to bye something that works like the box said it would
Bottom Line No, I would not recommend this to a friend
By Walter
Comments about Cen-Tech OBD II & CAN Scan Tool with ABS:
I have a couple older scanners which work well but they didn't get ABS codes so I tried this one out of the box and the ABS setup called for the 4th character of the VIN # but the "W" did not show as a selection. I tried all four of the codes listed and none worked. Then I tried updating the unit using the disk provided. The process went smoothly but when plugging it into my 97 Lumina it came up with the same result (unable to connect). Very good price and a quality tool if it worked on my car.
Bottom Line No, I would not recommend this to a friend
By Doinmo
Comments about Cen-Tech OBD II & CAN Scan Tool with ABS:
I bought this to check my ABS fault on a 97 Chevy Blazer. This device does not support this vehicle. Update did not correct the problem
Bottom Line No, I would not recommend this to a friend
If you want something that will do the PCM, ABS, SRS and many other modules on most GM cars from 1992-2013, then the Tech2 is the one you want. You can buy a perfectly good new cloned one from China for about $250 including shipping from AliExpress. These come from the factories that used to produce the "real" Tech2's for Bosch. It will take 2-3 weeks to arrive and there should be no customs charges if it is like the ones I have bought. At that price, it will not come with a case, but you can buy a suitable case at someplace like H/F for about $20 or less. There is an element of risk of course and it may be tedious to get warantee exchanges since you would probably have to send it back if there was a problem. The two I bought have worked perfectly for almost 2 years now.
I bought them from this seller, Sam Xiang:
DHL Free Shipping 2016 Best Quality GM TECH2 Full Set Support 6 Softwares(GM,OPEL,SAAB ISUZU,SUZUKI,HOLDEN) GM Tech 2 Scanner-in Code Readers & Scan Tools from Automobiles & Motorcycles on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group
Do you have any experience on these cloans - I have read this review and am concerned it may not be any good.
GM TECH 2 Diagnostic tool - A quick word before buying on Ebay | eBay
Does anyone else have any experience with any tech2 scanners that are decent for a DIYer for home repairs?
GM TECH 2 Diagnostic tool - A quick word before buying on Ebay | eBay