does the Fabia have an OBDII port ?

Yes, pull open drivers side mini glovebox, then pull it right open, the socket is behind the rear flap.

thanks a lot mate, i havent noticed a drivers side glovebox, so guess ill have to find that first lol

do VAG vehicles require any special kind of fault code reader ?

i dont actually need one as of yet but xmas is coming up so might ask for one

The one below is a cracker for the money.

VW Audi Seat Skoda VAG 5053 Pro Super Scanner Handheld scan tool

You can get 'generic' readers, but they have very limited functions.

Another good one that is very cheap is

Fault Code Reader for Volkswagen, Audi, Seat, Skoda (1996-2008) :: Gendan Automotive Products

It wont do as much as the 1st one, but is handy for general on road use. I carry one in the car.

thanks mate, that top one looks spot on

can the VAG405 do more ?

I've just got the Gendan VAG scan tool suggested and its great just if you only want to check up on engine+auto trans+ SRS+ABS - it will only reveal logged codes and let you clear them - but mainly that is all you might need, especially if you use it for on the road diagnosing. I've already got VAG-COM HEX USB +CAN for home use and for looking at other modules and making changes. Also, I believe the latest version of VAG-COM can be used in an OBD11 mode to cover other marques engine fault scanning (I have not tried that yet since upgrading from an older version).

Its horses for courses really - the Gendan one is also useful as it covers some future needs like CAN BUS - well you may already be needing CAN BUS compatability.

I took on board the advice to buy the Gendan VAG one - but looked at another more expensive (£80) one that covered VAG a bit better and offered general OBD11 compliance - but in the end I choose the cheaper Gendan basic VAG one as I already had VAG-COM.

Ah, I've just seen that the VAG 405 tool that you refer to is the other tool that I was looking at! And the price I quoted is wrong!! This tool was labels built in so it tells you what the code means, instead of needing to look up a list (supplied), also it can scan all the smart modules in your car, reset service indicator - plus it operates as a generic OBD11 scanner so can be used on some other marques engines.

I scrubbed the freeze frame function as I'd lied!!

Edited 13 December, 200817 yr by rum4mo

The one below is a cracker for the money.

VW Audi Seat Skoda VAG 5053 Pro Super Scanner Handheld scan tool

.

I have this one. It's very good.

i keep reading about VAGCOM, i get the idea of what it is roughly, but where can i get it ?

is everyone buying it or is it a case of find it on Ebay ?

also, this seems very good for the cash

Edited 21 December, 200817 yr by BRUN