P38A Which diagnostic tool to use?

I’ve had my P38 named Big Phil for just over a year now and I’m slowly getting everything sorted to hopefully take it to some shows in the near future.

I‘m now looking to get the HEVAC issues I’m facing sorted and I’ve got the book symbol on the display (when I can actually see the screen - bulb isn’t illuminating) so I’d like to know where to start with fixing it.

Can anyone recommend which is a decent diag tool to use? Is the iCarSoft good enough to diagnose and clear any codes or do I need to stump up the money for the Nanocom? All threads I’ve found so far date back to pre-2013 and I’m sure tech has come on from there.

The car is a 2001 2.5D Vogue.

All help is appreciated!

nanocom for total peace of mind is the best.
Welcome to the Zone.

As you have a dozzel then nanocom as they are about the only one that will talk to the engine ecu, and make sure it has the Wabco d module for the brakes.

Cheers for the replies, both! Looks like piggy bank is going to be raided then!

As a left field option I did see that EASUnlock V4 might be an option? I’ve used the free version already to sort a fault on the air suspension, or is the fact it’s the oil burner still going to mean Nanocom is the best option?

P38Seb said:

Cheers for the replies, both! Looks like piggy bank is going to be raided then!

As a left field option I did see that EASUnlock V4 might be an option? I’ve used the free version already to sort a fault on the air suspension, or is the fact it’s the oil burner still going to mean Nanocom is the best option?

Click to expand...

Nanocom is the best for the diesel but for the EAS I prefer the free RSW EAS software. V4 does the V8 but not the diesel I think.
The book symbol can be many things but is likely to be a blend motor or a sticking distribution flap.
If some or all of the segments of the HEVAC display do not show, you may need to replace the zebra strip for the display, available on Ebay for about £12

Datatek said:

Nanocom is the best for the diesel but for the EAS I prefer the free RSW EAS software. V4 does the V8 but not the diesel I think.
The book symbol can be many things but is likely to be a blend motor or a sticking distribution flap.
If some or all of the segments of the HEVAC display do not show, you may need to replace the zebra strip for the display, available on Ebay for about £12

Click to expand...

So Nanocom it is!

That’s what I presume it’ll be, I just want to confirm before I go ripping my dash apart.

So the hevac LCD display doesn’t have any damaged pixels, I’ve already done the repair with the new zebra strip thing. The issue I have with that display is the bulb doesn’t illuminate (except for about a week last July), so there’s also that to fix - I’ve replaced the bulbs, checked the plug is in securely, I just need to get a multimeter in there to see if the power track is getting power to the bulb, all the other lights work fine.

Datatek said:

Nanocom is the best for the diesel but for the EAS I prefer the free RSW EAS software. V4 does the V8 but not the diesel I think.
The book symbol can be many things but is likely to be a blend motor or a sticking distribution flap.
If some or all of the segments of the HEVAC display do not show, you may need to replace the zebra strip for the display, available on Ebay for about £12

Click to expand...

+1 V4 doesn't do the diesel

I have a Nanocom but I prefer the interface of Storey Wilson's EAS Unlock which runs on Windows. I purchased a licence for the V4 version of the software. It does most everything that the Nanocom can do but is easier to use. I have been running EAS Unlock in a virtual machine on my MacBook Pro but I noticed that pretty decent Windows tablets are very cheap used on eBay. I just got a HP ElitePad PRO G2-1000 running Windows 11 for £74.99. It runs EAS Unlock perfectly. It came with an OTG USB adapter & works with the cable that Storey sent me when I bought the V4 licence. It didn't work with a couple of other cables that I have that were purchased on eBay as there was a comms error. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/325644071523