Milazzo

Hi All,
Looking to buy a scan tool for my 2003 SL 500. Not looking to spend a lot and was looking at a Foxwell NT510 for under two hundred. Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Just want to be able to read and erase codes.
Thanks for reading

Milazzo

going to answer my own question. i bought a Foxwell NT530 for Mercedes for under $200

starfighter

How do you like the nt530....
I have a have a 2005 sl500 and was hoping for something cheaper and more flexible than Star....(usable on multiple vehicles)

Milazzo

For me its worth the money. It will not program a new key like star, but will read and give you codes to most of the senors on the car. For $60 you can add other Car . I have a BMW and will be adding it my Foxwell

Adi-Benz

iCarsoft

bobterry99

A Mercedes tech on another forum once wrote that reading codes comprises just 10% of troubleshooting a problem. Therefore, you want a diagnostic device which can display sensor and status data and control outputs; e.g. raise and lower the suspension from the PC. As far as I am aware only Star Diagnosis can do this on a low budget.

starfighter

Thanx Bob

SLcharge

Contact member @pmercury and have talk with him about a complete Xentry install. Total cost incl. C4 multiplexer, less than $800, and you will be able to do more than your MB workshop can.

bobterry99

For just $250 you can obtain all of the SDS hardware and software from aliexpress.com. To complete the system you can buy a Dell D630 laptop with 2GB or RAM and no hard drive for $50 or use any laptop you choose.

SLcharge

Unfortunately, there is a difference in the result you get, the cheap China pre-install, and the online Licensed install.

I bin there my self, and I can recommend the install done by @pmercury . It works flawlesly, in contradiction to the China install I started out with. The last money is well spend, and pmercury is very help full in regards of solving your immediate problems, after the install.

Take a look at the comparison in the below link.
https://ibb.co/frGWBkT

bobterry99

The author of that comparison is trying to sell you something. He has a bias. Kind of like listening to a liberal law professor give testimony in the impeachment of President Trump.

There is a thread -- an extraordinarily long thread -- over on the R129 forum of Benzworld. It chronicles the successful purchase and setup of dozens of SDS clones from China. And where members have encountered an issue or have a question, they are well served with help from the forum.

SLcharge

I believe I got value for money. I am not trying to promote something here, just sharing my experience. Pmercury is a nice guy, but besides that, I have no Benefit from him doing installs.

For me, it's not about saving the last buck. My time was, and is, to valuable to fight that *****ty clone i got from China,

I want to drive and enjoy instead of sitting in front of the computer, trying to solve errors,with a non optimum working software.

I guess it's up the beholder to judge, but I remember reading about others who have encountered the same problems like me.

I even managed to install padle Schifters, with online coding help, without any help from MB, and they are now listed in the cars Datacard.

Happy coding.

Rudeney

Just so you'll understand, there are only two places to get SDS. One is to buy if from MBZ, which is VERY expensive (over $10K) and requires monthly licensing fees. Many indy shops that would use this to generate income cannot justify the price. The only other alternative is to buy a Chinese "clone". They have reverse-engineered the MUX and they build them in unlicensed factories. The software is the genuine MBZ product, but has been hacked a bit so it will work on different computers and will run without licensing. There are no "German made" or "Australian" SDS clones - they are all Chinese.

Anyone that claims to sell a "better" SDS setup or one that isn't Chinese is at worst simply lying, and at best is providing value-added services for the same Chinese SDS clone you can by on aliexpress. As with most things from China, quality is extremely variable. When a name-brand company decides to manufacture their product in China, they hire a factory and pay for a level of quality control. Samsung, LG, Apple, etc. all pay top dollar for the best products. Companies like Hisense, TCL, Huwaei, etc. pay less for lower guarantees of quality. "Cloned" electronics tend to have a lower level of quality because they are not sanctioned products. Even in a factory that churns out poor quality products, they can make a number of good ones. What a lot of these people selling so-called "better than Chinese" SDS systems do is buy from a Chinese seller who tends to have better products, and then he tests and does secondary QC, and then resells then with his personal guarantee and support.

So, you have to decide if you want to spend $350 on your own Chinese-sourced SDS and deal with the (potential) hassles of difficult software installations and configurations and poor QC hardware. Or, you can spend $800, basically paying someone else $450 to do that work for you. I would never fault anyone for selling or buying these, but I have no need for that. I am perfectly capable of setting up my own SDS software, and while I did have one MUX go bad, the one have now has been bulletproof.

SLcharge

Just to get this straight !!!

Are you calling me a liar ?

Rudeney

No, I am not stating that you are lying about anything, but if you have SDS and did not buy it from MBZ, then it came from China. If you believe otherwise, then I believe that you are mistaken or misinformed.

pmercury

iTrader: (2)

There is a misunderstanding

You are talking about hardware
this is about the SOFTWARE part
Hardware can only be genuine or Chinese clone
But the chinese version software sold with the clones is total crap and even their windows is manipulated

pmercury

iTrader: (2)

just read around, many users who switched to the "real" full install with me didn't regret it


https://mbworld.org/forums/mercedes-...mendation.html

BayArchitect

Nothing on the market will diagnose your Mercedes like Xentry/WIS. No other program will give you part numbers and describe the repair procedures with up-to-date drawings and photos like the genuine article.. The Chinese "clones" have so many faults in their programming they crash and are useless. You need to purchase an IBM Thinkpad and a MB C4 Connect (not a Chinese copy) for the program to work. I installed a Samsung one TB SSD and the system really sings. The program will only work properly if installed by a competent Mercedes technician. You can't DIY because you need MB dealer access. Before you spend a cent on lesser hardware, read the following link and contact Peter. He will help you:
https://mbworld.org/forums/mercedes-...ml#post7914223

NHSl550

I also went through 2 setups with the Chinese software. Nothing but problems with both. In other words they sucked. I went with the full setup with Pmercury. Best thing I did. Flawless. Works great and he is
always available to answer question. I highly recommend him.

SLcharge

@NHSl550 @BayArchitect

Thanks guy's for the support, I was starting to feel a bit cornered here.

I am happy to learn that others have the same positive Experience with @pmercury

bobterry99

Curiously, two forum members "liked" a post that is fraught with nonsense.

I've been using "Chinese" software since 2008 and it has never crashed.

The software can run on any PC -- not just a Thinkpad -- and you needn't use a "C4 Connect" multiplexer.

If you use a Dell D630 laptop with a C3 multiplexer installation is practically plug-and-play. You simply insert the Chinese-sourced hard drive into the Dell, boot to Windows, and generate software keys.

pmercury

iTrader: (2)

bobterry99, how would you know anything as you only have used void old Chinese junk since ever ?
you forgot many people who post here had your junk before upgrading
do you even know what SCN and offline coding is ? What quality components are ? what special functions looks like ? what DOIP is ?


kjb55 MBWorld Fanatic!
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Chicago
Posts: 1,055
from this post https://mbworld.org/forums/mercedes-...mendation.html

is member since 2005, he is MBWorld Fanatic!
he is not a joker or a liar is he ?

bobterry99

Yes, and I can also quote the value of pi to five decimal places. Both facts are immaterial to this discussion.

You may offer a marginally superior and considerably more expensive product than what most people are using. But you lose me when you promote lies about competing product and misinform this forum to promote your own selfish interests. Further, fancying yourself as a "ninja" is comical to me and does not inspire my confidence.

Pmercury, I have low opinions of your intellect, maturity, and character. To maintain tranquility in this forum I suggest that you avoid addressing me in any of your future posts in a way which would give me cause to reference those opinions by addressing you in return.

pmercury

iTrader: (2)

You might have a low opinion of my intellect, but at least I have one, which I doubt you have at all. Your childish comments on my maturity and character, is below my dignity to comment on. Desperate people often chose radical measures to defend them self’s and disguise their lack of knowledge. Your persistent defense of an outdated technology, lead me to doubt your capabilities, and insight. If any of us is blurring the picture, and trying to persuade people to chose wrongly, it is definitely you.
I will gladly avoid to address you in the future, given that you stop blurring the picture, and start act professional, instead like an amateur.

testimonies are the best judge, not one person

Rudeney

Unless you obtain the software from MBZ, then it will be hacked. So who hacks it? Some guy in China? A young lady in Russia? A fat guy living in his mother's basement in Peoria? Are any of these better than the others? Maybe, but the location of the hacker is no indication of quality.