Carly For Mercedes. OBD Scanning/Diagnostic/Reporting Device & App (Alternative to iCarSoft)

[KillerHERTZ]

Hi Guys, this is my review of the Carly OBD (On-Board Diagnostic) Bluetooth Code reader & phone app. I cover all the features and abilities which this device allows you to do, including fault code reading/clearing, car history & service check with reporting and much more.

Can do all which iCarSoft can do and alot more including full car history, emision checks, and PDF reports

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Save 10% on your Carly device with code "KillerHERTZ10" until END OF JULY 2021 - Diagnose and code your car

Carly has a free lite version of the app to go with their OBD2 adapter. That gives you access to the standard OBD features and is a good way to test what Carly can do for your car. To unlock advanced features that might be available for your car model, such as the used car check, you can upgrade to the yearly licence

 

[regbuser]

Good feature thanks, and it looks like interrogation of SAMs is possible.
However, the Carly website doesn't state when the advanced features will be available on Android - anything definitive from the manufacturer?

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Good feature thanks, and it looks like interrogation of SAMs is possible.
However, the Carly website doesn't state when the advanced features will be available on Android - anything definitive from the manufacturer?

As per my closing comments in the video, the updated android app is out in a month, which allow the extra features.



The dongle can be used with the Torque app aswell I've been told.

 

[pmcgsmurf]

Looked at Carly.

I just don't like the idea that something I may use a few times I have to pay every month for in perpetuality.

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Looked at Carly.

I just don't like the idea that something I may use a few times I have to pay every month for in perpetuality.

Yeah I agree it's an odd decision, however even with a years worth it's still far cheaper than iCarSoft + the reporting feature (pdf's) is excellent.

 

[Awfluff]

I’ve just messaged Carly to delete the account I created to get to see what features it has. Mercedes are one of the few brands that have a very locked down system so you can’t do any coding on the car. Generally Carly gets good press and is considered to be the best of the plug ins & apps and if you are a VAG or BMW owner then they are worth the money because you can play around with coding features but unless you have a lot of cars or you change your car a lot then as a private owner it probably isn’t worth it unless you’ve don’t mind paying £75 for the adaptor and £3 a month for ever (or £8 if you want to unlock all cars).

If they sold an adaptor that came with one brand unlocked then I’d buy it. I’m Generation X so have issues with perpetual subscription models for non physical services. I’d rather pay £100 and have Mercedes unlocked and if I need another brand unlocked then I’d pay £20 to have it unlocked, I don’t like subscriptions for stuff like this.

Good device though, best on the market, but there are lots of cheaper not-as-good-but-will-probably-do devices and apps.

 

[KillerHERTZ]

I’ve just messaged Carly to delete the account I created to get to see what features it has. Mercedes are one of the few brands that have a very locked down system so you can’t do any coding on the car. Generally Carly gets good press and is considered to be the best of the plug ins & apps and if you are a VAG or BMW owner then they are worth the money because you can play around with coding features but unless you have a lot of cars or you change your car a lot then as a private owner it probably isn’t worth it unless you’ve don’t mind paying £75 for the adaptor and £3 a month for ever (or £8 if you want to unlock all cars).

If they sold an adaptor that came with one brand unlocked then I’d buy it. I’m Generation X so have issues with perpetual subscription models for non physical services. I’d rather pay £100 and have Mercedes unlocked and if I need another brand unlocked then I’d pay £20 to have it unlocked, I don’t like subscriptions for stuff like this.

Good device though, best on the market, but there are lots of cheaper not-as-good-but-will-probably-do devices and apps.

Hi, I do mention in the video about Mercedes being locked down and you dont have the ability to enable 'hidden' features such as the Netherlands mode (beeping alarm). - I guess you didnt get to the end of the video

The Subscription for Mercedes is only £36 a year and this includes excellent customer service (replies within the hour) for any issues and also a years worth of feature updates.

The cost over the cheapo eBay jobbies is for:
-Full code reporting with weblinks to what each relates to
-Full code clearing
-Mercedes Assyst Service history access
-Emmissions test/check
-Full PDF reporting for all the information which comes back
-Live data readouts

All of this is way cheaper than iCarSoft with more features...

 

[MercedesDriver]

I’ve just messaged Carly to delete the account I created to get to see what features it has. Mercedes are one of the few brands that have a very locked down system so you can’t do any coding on the car. Generally Carly gets good press and is considered to be the best of the plug ins & apps and if you are a VAG or BMW owner then they are worth the money because you can play around with coding features but unless you have a lot of cars or you change your car a lot then as a private owner it probably isn’t worth it unless you’ve don’t mind paying £75 for the adaptor and £3 a month for ever (or £8 if you want to unlock all cars).

If they sold an adaptor that came with one brand unlocked then I’d buy it. I’m Generation X so have issues with perpetual subscription models for non physical services. I’d rather pay £100 and have Mercedes unlocked and if I need another brand unlocked then I’d pay £20 to have it unlocked, I don’t like subscriptions for stuff like this.

Good device though, best on the market, but there are lots of cheaper not-as-good-but-will-probably-do devices and apps.

Is it really possible that we from X Gen have so similar opinions?! Exactly my first thought after watching KHs video and was questioning myself why would I rather pay more at once for having all the features unlocked than being on subscription which would spread the cost on monthly basis. Agree that it looks as a well thought solution but I would rather stick to a car brand unlocked code readers/coders.

 

[FiveAlive]

I bought a Carly lifetime Mercedes licence a few years ago, before they moved to the subscription model. For a total outlay of about £80 including their specific adapter it was quite good although it didn't provide specific support for my W212's engine (OM642 265bhp is hardly rare) and the error descriptions can be imprecise or even wrong. Support is quick, yes, but having a rapid response to tell me that they are "working all the time to improve the error descriptions" or "Sorry, your engine is not supported and there are no plans to do so" doesn't actually help. They did offer me a partial refund about the lack of engine support, although then seemed to lose my PayPal ID so I never got it. Some parts of the app (list of engine management units, live data descriptions, error descriptions) look like they just dumped some database into the app without trying to make sense of it. The app's forced landscape view, overly-graphical user interface and sometimes unclear operation are minor niggles, but irritating nonetheless.

Here's hoping that the upcoming update is an improvement. It looks like it'll work in portrait mode, at least.

 

[markjay]

Excellent video, KillerHERTZ.

I have been using Carly for a number of years now. And I have upgraded the dongle to the latest version a couple of years ago. I love it... I also have iCarsoft MB v2.0. Both can connect to same number of modules in my car (26).

Carly is far easier to use than the iCarsoft. It scans all of the car's systems in one go, creates a PDF report, and stores it in your account in the Cloud, so you can keep copies of all the scans done and access them from your PC. Another convenient feature is that you can run a full scan while driving the car normally (warning: the EPS/ABS will disable momentarily when the scan process gets to it). Also, once you've chosen the model of car, it actually remembers it which saves time in future scans. The fact that it's small and mobile will also be a benefit if you have more than one car, or if you are looking to buy a car (as explained in the video).

In contrast, iCarsoft is an old-fashined scanner that can't do any of the above.

However... I had quite a few instances where Carly wouldn't erase a fault code in spite of several erase attempt, while iCarsoft always deleted fault codes on first attempt. Maybe it's just my car - I don't know.

I downloaded the new Carly app (I have an Android phone), but have not yet tried it in the car - so perhaps the issue has been resolved now. Will let you know when I start using my car again......... and definitely the ability of the new app to access the stored service data looks very impressive.

Personally, I have both the iCarsoft and the Carly and I intend to keep it this way, but I appreciate that not everyone will want to have two OBDII scanners (I also have the basic ELM327 with the Torque app, BTW...).

On another note, I am aware that many people have been disappointed with Carly for Mercedes, but this is only because they expected it to be able to do coding like the Carly for BMW (the original product that made them popular) and Carly for VAG do, which is obviously not possible with Mercedes, as explained in the video.

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Thanks for the replies, yes I too are not keen on subscription models however this is the way the world has gone. Adobe suite has gone this way also, both models of pluses & minuies I guess.
Regarding Carly I look at it as as £36 a year rather than a monthly fee (its only charged one a year anyway).

I am planning making an iCarSoft video soon and I will do a side by side comparison also.

 

[regbuser]

Total outlay for a year then?
Can you cancel subs then re-subscribe at a later point?

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Total outlay for a year then?
Can you cancel subs then re-subscribe at a later point?

As per above, £36 for Mercedes, slightly more for all brands unlocked + the actual device (10% via my code)

All prices on the Carly site

 

[markjay]

After installing the new app, I emailed Carly support and asked them to transfer my license from the old app to the new app, which they did.

The New app is now showing as 'All features unlocked'. No mention of subscription period or renewal.

I am guessing that for those who, like me, purchased the full app before they changed to a subscription model, the old perpetual license will contiue to apply indefinitely - but time will tell.

 

[KillerHERTZ]

I have managed to extend the 10% off discount code until 15th of May. KILLERHERTZ10

Thanks to everyone who has supported by channel by purchasing via the link

 

[rsvgreg]

Hi Carl.

Good video which has prompted some additional helpful comments from other members. I was looking for a multi vehicle blue tooth OBD2 scanner and this has helped point me in one direction. I note several members mention the Torque Pro App and the Elm 327 dongle, but I understand the App' only works on Android (I am Apple OS).

See you on the road sometime soon.

Greg

 

[markjay]

Hi Carl.

Good video which has prompted some additional helpful comments from other members. I was looking for a multi vehicle blue tooth OBD2 scanner and this has helped point me in one direction. I note several members mention the Torque Pro App and the Elm 327 dongle, but I understand the App' only works on Android (I am Apple OS).

See you on the road sometime soon.

Greg

I have both the Elm327 dongle with the Torque app, and Carly for Mercedes (both on Android). The two are not really comparable.

The Elm327/Torque only reads standard OBDII codes. Carly on the other hand is an MB-specifuc scanner, and it reads and erases (on my W204) fault codes on 37 different ECUs that Elm327 can't even see because they are propriety MB ECUs and not generic OBDII.

The Torque app has one advantage over Carly, though, in that you can create custom dials that display input from various sensors (especially useful for the turbo boost increase brigade ).

And so I have both. But if you are planning on buying just one Bluetooth OBDII scanner, then Carly wins hands down.

That said.... Elm327/Torque costs a fraction of the price of Carly. So it's horses for courses, really....

Hope this helps.

 

[gemiz]

Can you use other IOS/Android apps with Carly OBD2 dongle, or just the carly app?
>I have the Mercedes App from Carly allready.

 

[markjay]

Can you use other IOS/Android apps with Carly OBD2 dongle, or just the carly app?
>I have the Mercedes App from Carly allready.

The old Carly dingles were marque specific, I.e. a different dongle for Mercedes, BMW, etc. These were the short beige dongles (v1.0 and v2.0).

The later dongle is called Universal Carly Adapter, its longer and black, and will work with any marque supported by Carly apps.

 

[markjay]

I may have actually misunderstood your question... if you are asking if the Carly OBDII dongle will work with other non-Carly apps (e.g. the Torque app), then the answer is no. Unlike generic ELM327 dongles, the Carly dongle will only work with Carly apps.