rover75lover

rover75lover

Active Member
I see quite a lot of lads on here referring to reading fault codes,clearing fault codes etc.
Please excuse my ignorance but what unit should youu use thats available to a diyer that is? If theres more than one,which is the best to use?
Lastly ,u where does one stick it in?
I'm a dad so know most of what you lads are thinking about the last question,lol. I meant where does one connect what and where on the old p38.
OOPs sorry 1996 diesel p38 automatic,I live in the uk,well Wales,lol
 
Hi, Nanocom by black box solutions will deal with most issues on a petrol or diesel and at around the £400 mark is good value for money, others that are available are the msv fault mate wich again is also very good, the cheaper ones are Lynx and hawkeye but will still save you money on garage bills. There is a ob2 connector in the passenger side footwell to plug your diagnostic reader into. Hope this helps.
 
Nanocom is the best, covers everything you will need, I can supply EAS diagnostics for £18.70 plus RAVE on CD
 
Take my advice, never listen to anyone. lol.

Seriously, don't even think about a lynx or hawkeye. I myself don't recognise these as diagnostics tools. They may be a cheaper than A nanocom, but after you bought it, you'd sure wish you paid a bit more & got a proper diagnostic tool. Cheap is no good if it only covers half the car.
 
We've just bought a P38 - the basic chinese code reader I had (legacy of VW ownership) which reported an engine sensor issue (more to add to the list!). I've not tried the odb-usb adaptor yet to see whether the software reader does anything useful.

I've looked at more readers than I can keep track of in forum threads going back a while, which has left me thoughly confused!

Currently I'm thinking of getting this:
http://www.nanocom-diagnostics.com/news.php?articleid=60
as it appears to do everything (Aircon, suspension, etc...) for £360 quid

But I'm now studying the Blackbox website - confused me for a bit until I realised they sold the same thing!

Just need to make a decision now :)

Rich
 
Last edited:
richl said:
We've just bought a P38 - the basic chinese code reader I had (legacy of VW ownership) which reported an engine sensor issue (more to add to the list!). I've not tried the odb-usb adaptor yet to see whether the software reader does anything useful.

I've looked at more readers than I can keep track of in forum threads going back a while, which has left me thoughly confused!

Currently I'm thinking of getting this:
News
as it appears to do everything (Aircon, suspension, etc...) for £360 quid

But I'm now studying the Blackbox website - confused me for a bit until I realised they sold the same thing!

Just need to make a decision now :)

Rich
Click to expand...

Must be a petrol then, petrol engine ECU is the only thing an OBDII reader will touch on a P38
 
So when dealing with Black Box which diagnostics ends up being
the best between Nanocom and the Faultmate - they're both not
massively different in price from one another in cost if I budget it
with use as a sole user / vehicle = 4.6 Gems?

I'm not expecting to do much more than reset and trouble shoot
'mild' issues for things like EAS, ABS, SRS and possibly for duff
sensor feedback. If the car works when left to its own devices i don't
care about realtime engine feedback or tuning / adapting the
car's systems.
 
I can't find too much information about the faultmate - other than the reports and clears faults?

I'm just looking at this pdf and it looks like the evolution does a lot more? Not sure I need to yet, but it might be useful when I do?

And it has a much nicer screen! (Shallow, but...) :)
 
From memory the Faultmate does more but is locked to a specific vehicle. The Evolution is cheaper and handles any similar car so you can help your mates out or go halves.

Got a feeling one of the faultmates needs a laptop too whereas the Evolution has its own screen. All on the Blackbox solutions website. Check the shop part.
 
Grrrrrr said:
From memory the Faultmate does more but is locked to a specific vehicle. The Evolution is cheaper and handles any similar car so you can help your mates out or go halves.

Got a feeling one of the faultmates needs a laptop too whereas the Evolution has its own screen. All on the Blackbox solutions website. Check the shop part.
Click to expand...
Nanocom is a small hand held device with a colour touch screen, it does not need a lap top, it's not VIN locked and come configured for one engine type, the other 2 engine types can be added for £50 a pop. The Faultmate Extreme MSV II has a small screen and can operate as a stand alone but really needs a laptop. It can be bought either as VIN locked when it can have up to 2 additional VIN's added, or it can be bought unlocked for a lot more cash. I have the unlocked version. It's the dogs and with the SM035 module can do things with the BECM that no other diagnostic tool can do, not that you are ever likely to need it.
Fo DIY, Nanocom is best IMO unless your eyes are poor.
 
Thanks,yep my eyesight must be poor,I look at my rangey and i@m in love,lol
Seriously though thanks for the informed (expert) help
 
Hi been looking at the nanocom for my p38 thor engine but on the site it says that it does all systems but limited on hevac has anybody tried it just how limited is it
 
Markbarneyallen said:
Hi been looking at the nanocom for my p38 thor engine but on the site it says that it does all systems but limited on hevac has anybody tried it just how limited is it
Click to expand...

Think you may have misread the info. It will do everything you need to do on the Hevac. It's just that some of the ECU settings are readable but NOT changeable. That is the nature of the ECU not a shortcoming of the Nanocom.
 
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