I currently run a 2008 120d, my newest Beemer till date. Could anyone please give me any info on the best, most cost-effective diagnostic equipment? There are quite a few on eBay, just want to know what others are using, before I pull the trigger on one.
you can get a handheld autel maxiscan, has live data and code reading specific to bmw
if you want to do some coding and scanning with a laptop
then either PA soft or
blue cable and inpa
pa soft requires far less space on a hard drive
inpa/GT1 can do more
ive got a handheld ( as can use with other car too) as well as pa soft
You need DIS (laptop version of GT1) on anything newer than 2006, INPA is fine on E46's and early 1 & 5 series but falls over after that.
The blue cable is fine but you will need to endure the Epic of loading DIS on a virtual machine on a laptop. hand helds and PA will do basic fault codes but none of the clever diagnostics
You want to make sure you buy the correct cable OP. You want a D-CAN type which is usually black or transparent (K+D). K line ones are blue and for older models (up to early 2007) without the faster ethernet connection. This D-CAN cable will cost you more.
Thanks gents! I ended up buying the Autel MaxiScan, works quite well, and so far, it hasn't failed to communicate with the various control modules.
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