High spec - OBDII, CAN & ABS error codes

Innova are among the leading manufacturers of OBDII and other engine diagnostic tools offering a wide range of products at different price points for all types of motoring enthusiasts and professionals. The Equus 3160 is one of those at the top of their range and while it does come with a higher price than other models, it does come feature packed.

We look at what real users of the Equus 3160 had to say about their OBD II, CAN and ABS scan tool and most importantly whether they think it is a good purchase.

See the full specs of the Equus 3160, plus a $265 discount!

The Equus 3160 is designed for the professional mechanic or serious car enthusiast. It offers diagnostic trouble code solutions for OBD II vehicles (1996 US vehicles and onwards) as well as CAN (Controller Area Network) and ABS codes. It has a backlit display for low lighting conditions and this views up to 25 data points at once. More advanced features include the ability to view, record and see live PCM data play back streams.

Innova Equus 3160

At the time of writing this review roundup, a total of 112 customers had written reviews for the Equus 3160 with 59 of those giving the full 5 stars and a further 28 people awarding 4 stars. The 4 and 5 star ratings represent the majority of customers, however a further 12 people gave 3 stars, 6 awarded 2 and 7 people gave 1 star.

This means that the Equus 3160 scored a total of 4.1 from the maximum 5 star rating.

Other than the fact that like all auto scanners the Equus 3160 can save you a lot of money, customers seemed to rate the amount fo features, ability to read ABS codes and the large backlit display as the main draws for the Equus 3160. In addition to this this code reader seemed to perform quite quickly compared to other models which can be quite slow in determining the engine warning light error code.

“I bought this tool to supplement an OTC scan tool I use in my business. It is so easy to use & much faster than my $3000.00 tool & actually has some features that the more expensive scan tool doesn’t have…”

“I actually take the data from the scanner for each of the 20 frames and put it into a spreadsheet so I can make my own graphs…”

“The ABS circuit is a plus. I own a small used car dealer ship but it has already paid for itself in pointing out driveability issues. Other brands had reliability issues or customer service issues but so far it this a winner…”

It seems the Equus 3160 just works as it should, according to this person anyway:

“I found it to be very useful in many different cars, like a 2001 sequoia, 2001 dodge ram van, 1999 venture, 2002 Isuzu rodeo, a 2006 GMC savana. It worked for all these cars, and I haven’t found a car it doesn’t scan…”

“Nothing scans everything, but this scans the most for >$200. I would buy again…”

“Does what it advertises to do. Worth the money…”

“Took a chance; it worked better than expected!”

While most people had comments similar to those above about their Innova 3160, some people were not quite so impressed. Take this person below for example who didn’t think much of the bundled software:

“The software that comes with it is helpful, but could be better…”

And this person that struggled with operating the unit:

“Not bad, a little hard to operate…”

Another area where the Equus 3160 lost some ratings were with the hardware itself…

“Good Scan Tool…Serial Ports very out-dated…”

“Another thing I would have liked is a USB port/cable instead of a serial port/cable…”

“It requires a serial port for PC communication, meaning you would have to purchase a Serial to USB cable along with it…”

So there you have it – most people agree that the Innova Equus 3160 is a worthy high-end OBD II auto scanner and overall the features work well, it is quick and easy to use thanks to the large backlit display. However, some also expressed usability concerns with certain models of vehicle and others were not impressed with the serial ports on the device and the bundled software (which we believe can be update don the Internet through CanOBD2.com).

If you are in the market for a more advanced OBDII, CAN and ABS scan tool, judging by the user reviews, the Equus 3160 is worth looking into.

Customer Rating:

4.1 out of 5 stars – Save $265 on the Equus 3160 or see more recent customer reviews here…

Equus 3160 Features

- Reads ‘check engine’ light warnings on all 1996 and newer cars, light trucks, SUVs and minivans, domestic and import — including C.A.N. (Controller Area Network).
- Diagnoses ABS codes on most 1996 and newer GM, Ford & Chrysler vehicles.
- Features unique patented back-lit, all-in-one screen display which allows for simultaneous viewing of 25 data points without changing menus in low light conditions.
- Provides SAE enhanced Live Data (view, record and live PCM data plays back streams), displays freeze frame data, automatically refreshes updates data every 30 seconds when connected to the vehicle, and is flash updatable with a standard Windows PC.
- Comes with access to additional online vehicle diagnostics through ‘Repair Solutions’ program.

[The quotes used above are from real users of the Innova Equus 3160 engine code reader - Source]

A more serious auto scanner...

While the Autel Maxiscan MS300 and ElmScan 5 engine scanners are the biggest sellers in the auto scanner world, they are both relatively basic, entry level scanners. The Actron CP9580 is a much more serious device and could really be considered the best selling advanced scan tool.

The Actron CP9580 is more of a choice for real motor enthusiasts. Those maybe in the profession as a mechanic or somebody who really loves their cars and wants to be able to check engine trouble with a trilingual OBD II, CAN and ABS device.

Save 51% on the Actron CP9580 or see full specs here…

Actron CP9580

The majority of users found their experience with the Actron CP9580 a very good one. Though this currently costs about $100 more than the MS300 and Elmscan, it does considerably more than those models and is still very good value when you consider your alternative is paying a mechanic hundreds of dollars just to turn off your engine warning light let alone fix it.

44 out of 58 reviewers of the Actron CP9580 awarded the auto scanner 4 or 5 stars (30 gave 5 stars) and only 14 gave 3 or below. This gave an average of 4.1 stars out of 5 and an overall ‘satisfied’ rating. Let’s see what people thought of the Actron CP9580 in their reviews…

Actron CP9580 – The Good

“Best DIY Scanner on the Market…”

“Paid for Itself in One Use…”

“This scanner is head and shoulders above it’s competition…”

“Definitely worth the $$$…”

“This worked perfectly as advertised…”

“A great scan tool for late model cars!”

“Excellent…”

Actron CP9580 - The Not So Good

“I hope Actron actually tests the next version of their driver software before releasing it…”

“Good stand-alone, but forget PC connection…”

“Nice product if you do not need to connect to a PC or update with a new vehicle…”

As you can see the reason why some people awarded a 3 star rating is because they had trouble with the bundled Actron CP9580 software. Of course all electronic devices are prone to this as most people have different PC set-ups etc. It is best to check before making a purchase that both your computer is compatible with the device, the manufacturer has a good support service and that your particular model car can be scanned for OBD II, CAN or ABS (i.e. Post 1996 US).

In general people loved the advanced features, the backlit LCD display and the ease of use that the Actron CP9580 offered and used the device trouble free. Click the link below to read more user reviews of the Actron CP9580.

Customer Rating:

4.1 out of 5 stars – See complete ratings and all user reviews here…

Actron CP9580 Features

- Generic and manufacturer specific code definitions on screen and trilingual support.
- With CodeConnect quickly pinpoint and prioritize the solution not just the code, providing 3 million verified fixes specific to the vehicle’s make, model, year and engine.
- Compatible with OBD-II and CAN vehicles 1996 and newer and includes domestic ABS code coverage, record and playback data stream and on screen graphing.
- Custom data list for live data and graph live data.
- Additional advance features such as freeze frame data, drive cycle mode, state OBD check and print data support.

[The quotes used above are from real users of the Actron CP9580 auto scanner - Source]