CA SMOG police In California they passed a law prohibiting anyone other than a smog authorized shop to read the codes. Anyway that is what the local Autozone just told me when I took a friends car in with a check engine light. I own a Peake tool and have used it to reset service lights and it correctly diagnosed a bad O2 sensor which more than paid for it. Jack 98 740iL 97 318ti 98 Ford Ranger 73 MGB
I call BS. Not that there is any trust in anything they say to begin with ("you've got questions, we've got blank stares"), but it would be fascinating to watch their reaction if one asks them for a reference to the exact section of the law that prohibits whatever they say it does.
CarChip works good on the cheap side. But for something that goes beyond the basic OBDII code reader I thing the AutoEnginuity tool is the best on the market for BMW. http://www.autoenginuity.com/ http://www.carchip.com/
Carsoft 6.5 sp1.1 I have had Carsoft 6.5 Sp1.1 for about six months and love it.... Bought the cable on ebay for $80 bucks.
carsoft i second the carsoft notion... got the software for free from a mirror sight, and borrowed cables from a buddy...diagnosed former srs issue granted i had to hack a bad file in the software, but was super easy to do
I bought a Peake R5/FCX-3-U and an Actron CP9180. The Actron was less from Amazon.com and it does more diagnostics like reading O2 sensors, A/F ratios, and other parameters. It's also able to be used on multiple vehicles. The Peake is downright outdated and overpriced for what they offer.
