Does anyone have experience using a handheld scanner on a diesel pick-up? I tried recently but the unit did not even acknowledge being connected much less give me a code. I thought the concept was OBD II was all compatable, seems not to be the case.

Bruce

On mine, I plug it in, turn the key on and press read on the scanner. On my friends diesel he had several codes and I cleared them with the scanner. Knowing the codes he was able to keep the stealer on track.

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Originally posted by Deolman:
On mine, I plug it in, turn the key on and press read on the scanner. On my friends diesel he had several codes and I cleared them with the scanner. Knowing the codes he was able to keep the stealer on track.

That is what we tried, with a scanner that is used daily in repair shop. All we kept getting was a list saying to make sure it was plugged in, turn ignition on, check for faulty grounds, etc. My neighbor uses this particular scanner all the time but it is all new to me. Once we replaced the air cleaner element the check engine light cleared itself, still I think it would be handy to have my own scanner. The ones that I have looked at came in a wide variety of prices, none said anything one way or the other concerning diesels. As in the case of your friend I would like to be able to keep the stealer on track should I have issues 1,000 miles from home.

Bruce

Did a road trip and was almost home when the CEL reappeared. Took it into the shop whose handheld scanner we had tried to use before and hooked up to their "big" scanner which yielded a "Unable To Communicate With Vehicle" message. CEL cleared shortly thereafter, truck running fine the whole time. I have seen one other '07 Duramax owner asking the same question as I have, i.e. Is there something different about the newer Duramax or do I have a "broken" computer? But have no answer.

Bruce

I don't have a portable scanner, but I have a programmer that reads, and clears codes. A programmer is a small fortune, I did click on the electronics section over on Xtreme Diesel for Duramax's that shows 2 scanners.

If you want one for a specific make vehicle they are not all that expensive. I have an SCT XCal (Ford and maybe GM now as well) that can be used as a handheld scanner or, if connected to a laptop, a data logger. It has all the 'make specific codes' built in. Now, if you want something that will work on ANY ODBII vehicle then you are looking at some big coin. Any code that pops on and then goes off is a 'soft' code, one that comes on and stays on is a 'hard' code and will probably require attention to make it go away (bad coil pack, burned out cat or sensor, etc).