Recommend Software Please?

[darklight7]

Hello World. Im Reggie. I just bought my first BMW a week and a half ago. I bought a 1997 328is e36 5 speed and its the love of my life. My first question for the forums here is can anyone recommend software to me so i can use a computer to scan my car and check trouble codes etc. My airbag light is on and the previous owner said they fixed the problem but didnt get a chance to have the codes cleared. A program with the ability to do SRS codes as well as engine codes would be preferred. Thank you to all.

[David Mc]

Get a good quality ADS/OBD interface and install INPA.

[vexplorer]

a good quality ADS/OBD interface

Please, help with some example. Do I need "set of Carsoft 6.5 cables" or "INPA K+CAN Interface USB"? Looks like last one will NOT work for my 1998 328is with OBDII, is it right?

Thanks.

[David Mc]

http://interfaces4beemers.com

[flyfishvt]

Your 328 is a hybrid car. It has the OBDII port but that will only give you access to the engine and emissions. Your car also has the OBDI round 20 pin Diagnostic Port in the engine bay near the passenger strut tower. All e36's from 96-99 and some e46's have both ports like your car has. The 20 pin connector was discontinued around 2001. You have to use that 20 pin port to access all the other stuf on the car including the ABS and SRS. If you have an auto tranny you access the tranny computer through that same 20 pin port. You can also access all the engine/emissions through that same port so forget using the OBDII port. The only thing its really any use for is if your state requires emissions inspections.

The best setup you can get is one of Gert's ADS cables and INPA. Installing INPA will allow you to use other programs like DIS in the future if you decide to get further into the software world. Gert sells a cable that is gauranteed to work on that port. You can buy his cable as a kit or preassembled and tested. My soldering skills are pretty bad when it comes to circuit boards so I just bought the preassembled cable last week and I love it. Its not cheap...$100 but it WORKS and it can be used for other things down the road.

INPA is a really good basic diagnostic tool that will allow you to reset any codes from just about any part of the car. ABS/ASC, EGS (auto tranny), OBDII and SRS codes. It also alllows you to view live data as the car is running and diagnose things like your door locks and windows and in my case my convertible top. Its an easy install and there are plenty of guides on how to configue your computer so it works correctly. The only issue with it is you really should be using a computer with an old school serial port on it. Newer laptops dont have a serial port anymore. Some people have been able to get a serial to USB adapter to work. I tried many of them and never had any luck. Since I wanted to start using more and more different software I ended up getting a decent used Dell laptop with a serial port and Windows XP on it. I paid about $75 for that and its now a dedicated diagnostic laptop.