Best non-OBD diagnostics approach?

[Douglas Meredith]

Having recently acquired a '97 w210 e300 turbodiesel estate, I'm busy climbing up the learning curve of home ownership and maintenance of these wonderful beasts. The question of how best to diagnose faults seems to be particularly confusing, with the 38 pin socket only on this vehicle. Is a breakout box and multimeter the way to go? I have managed to get a copy of WIS running on a computer, so I have printed out the pin assignments, but will I be able to interpret the readings- is the information buried in WIS somewhere? It's not the easiest thing to navigate. Any advice would be appreciated on this before I spend money on stuff that doesn't deliver anything useful. I think I will be staying with w210 diesels now I've found them, so investing some money is on the cards, but not the pro type systems, more like a max of £350-400, preferably less. I am not hugely proficient, so kit that works for dummies would be the best recommendations- thanks!

 

[type49]

Why would you want to spend so much time & money on diag equiptment in the first place, has the car got lots of problems, if so, post them up, this is what the forum is for. Save your pennies for the parts to cure the problems.

 

[darrenb1707]

Having recently acquired a '97 w210 e300 turbodiesel estate, I'm busy climbing up the learning curve of home ownership and maintenance of these wonderful beasts. The question of how best to diagnose faults seems to be particularly confusing, with the 38 pin socket only on this vehicle. Is a breakout box and multimeter the way to go? I have managed to get a copy of WIS running on a computer, so I have printed out the pin assignments, but will I be able to interpret the readings- is the information buried in WIS somewhere? It's not the easiest thing to navigate. Any advice would be appreciated on this before I spend money on stuff that doesn't deliver anything useful. I think I will be staying with w210 diesels now I've found them, so investing some money is on the cards, but not the pro type systems, more like a max of £350-400, preferably less. I am not hugely proficient, so kit that works for dummies would be the best recommendations- thanks!

You can pick them up on Ebay for about £50-60. Check out http://search.ebay.co.uk/_W0QQsassZ*sand66p*

I've bought one from this seller and its been invaluable. It also allows you to clear fault codes. You can also buy the 38pin plug to directly plug into your ECU.