HI
i have a 2000 grand vitara 2.5 liter

-looking for input on members who have downloaded PC diagnostic software for engine diagnostics and the pros and cons of the software, both free and bought?

- how well does it work and ease of use for non tech people?

-i also would like to know exactly what i need to make the software work such as cables/elm connecters, etc.

i posted several months ago on another suzuki site and got no real meaningful help/experience on the subject so hope to find some here!!

First question is what market was your vehicle built for - US market 2000 Grand Vitaras are OBDII compliant and an ELM327 with any of the OBD2 applications should work, non US markets are unlikely to be OBDII compliant (it's a US federal requirement), and if that's what you have the only PC based product that I know works is RhinoView which I believe requires a proprietary adapter that I'm not certain is still available.  There are other "non PC" based solutions, for example Launch EasyDiag which runs on an android device.

it is OBD2

anyone here using PC BASED  or  IPHONE/IPAD  based diagnostic hardware???

There is an iOS version of the Launch EasyDiag I mentioned earlier, it's called the Launch iDiag - I have not used it personally, but if I recall correctly an Australian member on one of the forums I frequent has and said it worked on his XL-7.  Because he had successfully used the iOS version, I took a chance and bought the android version, which I currently use.

Thanks for the info, have u been happy with your version of the Launch??

will it read/analyse more than what the check engine light reads or is that pretty well it??
easy to use??
any issues?

First - my GV is not an OBD2 model and it has a very primitive open loop only OBD1 system - it's also a manual transmission, with no other electronics.  The Launch EasyDiag, with the Suzuki add-on is capable of reading & resetting the OBD1 codes that set the check engine light, and also displaying live data.  I have also, just for the heck of it, connected it to a few more recent JDM Suzuki models, and it's been able to read fault codes relating to the automatic transmission & air conditioning (or climate control) systems - the most recent was a 2012 Swift, and it seemed to be able to communicate with all systems.

The vehicle on which I have used it most is a JDM Mitsubishi (I also have the Mitsubishi add-on) and on that vehicle it does the engine codes, transmission codes, ABS & SRS codes, along with live data  on all systems, both in numeric and graphical format  What it does not do, is send commands, other than to clear error codes..

I did try it, very briefly, on a US market Toyota Tundra so I know it can communicate with OBD2 systems, but I cannot tell you what systems that truck had to say that it can talk to everything.

Based on my experience using it on Suzuki & Mitsubishi vehicles, I believe it should be able to communicate with pretty much every thing built up to perhaps 2015 or thereabouts - I expect to take delivery of a 2021 Jimny within the next week or so, once that is the driveway I'll know if it can communicate with the more recent models.

Launch tech support is not the most communicative of groups, there may be a language barrier, but when I've reached out to them, I have received software updates that have resolved the issues I was experiencing, so whilst they could be a little more forth coming, I really can't complain .

Fordem - You're getting a new Jimny? That's awesome!   

Happy for you.

-Eric

She's in the driveway Eric, picked her up from the dealership two Saturdays ago - first of the new Jimnys on the road here.

Jungle green (looks like a micro Land Rover), with the 5 speed manual - base model, because this market doesn't get the fully loaded with the manual transmission, essentially what I gave up to get the manual transmission were LED headlights, a five inch touchscreen audio system and a bunch of electronic nannies (lane departure warning, auto dipping headlights, that sort of stuff).

And, yes, the Launch EasyDiag talks to the ECU and does it's stuff.

Missy (my youngest daughter) managed to find enough mud to get stuck in bright & early Monday, so my cell phone rang "Dad, how do I get this into 4WD?"  She took it out of first, shifted the t/case from 2H to 4h, and forgot to select first, so it wouldn't move.