hi folks,

well for a while now I've been saving up and debating on whether or not to get the Ford Dealership tool.

When i had my peugeot 307 a while back i bought the PSA equivalent called peugeot planet from a Chinese seller, it was a clone admittedly. but it still did all the same jobs as the original and i managed to activate a few features in my 307 and even scanned other forum members cars when they had issues.

So now I've saved up and now I've ordered the FORD VCM IDS. This is the device the dealerships use to connect to your car, scan codes, program new modules etc etc basically everything they can do, once I get the hang of the software so can I.

Again it's a Chinese clones and yeah there are plenty of rumours, but none with evidence. So once I have the device and tested etc I will post up the update and even a video ;)

I am not sure if I can post up the link to the shop, but will post up once I get the device, test it and a review to give.

Oh and it cost £176 for the device, £24 delivery charge and a few extra ££ for transaction fee to $$$. in total £209.

Thats not a bad price John , I'm sure you are going to have plenty of fun with it.

you can make money even charging 15quid to do codes and activate stuff knew a guy on the vw site who did it, its only fair its cheaper than a dealer and since you paid for it its worth getting something back. if i was anywhere near you ide happily pay

yeah i was thinking about that, ie going to members who are having issues and help diagnose and test things. i could even do it nationally...get enough people in one area and spend the day...meet members and their rides etc

You'd be like the Ford Doctor. All these poorly cars coming to see you!

Its a very reasonable price for what you can actually do with the device. I think worth the saving ay.

i like that - ford doctor...

on another forum, i did this for a while for peugeots and citroens as i had their tool... must have made 5x the value of the tool back just scanning abs faults and sorting my car out.

also when im done i normally sell for a fraction and normally people snap my fingers off for them.

once i get the device and had a play and got a review i will post up a link and a video...as mentioned before.

What can you do with it that you can't do with the ELM cable an FF2/ELMconfig?

basically anything a dealer can do...im not sure on the elm thing...but id rather stick to software and hardware that i know.

examples are:

reset DPF counters

program keys

program new ECU's, BSI's

full diagnostics

oscilloscope function

activate/deactivate features

actuator tests.

this device and the software i have, will be basically everything the dealership has, so id be saving money and helping others save money on diagnostics etc even on labour costs.

i was thinking, if i get enough interest i might approach the seller and ask about a forum discount to reduce the price to a more reasonable price.

Ford Doctor H! Ex RAF'man, Current Bus Driver and now Doctor to the Ford's!

Its a good idea, having a diagnosis day in certain area's, the only real thing is that the cost to you in fuel is going to be more than you may make back, so you might want to tread carefully!

Sounds a good idea though mate, a nominal fee, a bit of cash in hand and a few favours pulled!

Look forward to seeing 'Doctor Ford' take off (Ford Doctor doesnt quite have the same ring to it?)

Ford Doctor H! Ex RAF'man, Current Bus Driver and now Doctor to the Ford's!

Its a good idea, having a diagnosis day in certain area's, the only real thing is that the cost to you in fuel is going to be more than you may make back, so you might want to tread carefully!

Sounds a good idea though mate, a nominal fee, a bit of cash in hand and a few favours pulled!

Look forward to seeing 'Doctor Ford' take off (Ford Doctor doesnt quite have the same ring to it?)

i know what you mean jee, i was thinking lets say £20, get 5 people, thats £100 and it costs around £60 to fill my tank and on that i can get to and from london with some to spare so theres £40 profit....but yeah its something to work on.

i know what you mean jee, i was thinking lets say £20, get 5 people, thats £100 and it costs around £60 to fill my tank and on that i can get to and from london with some to spare so theres £40 profit....but yeah its something to work on.

you would also need a 12v car charger for your laptop mate,

but 100% possible and an easy earner for a saturday morning in a tesco car park or somthing.

i would be interested in purchasing the kit myself, im going to read more about it and find out what exactly i could do with it

a new laptop more like lol this one is 5 year old and can hold battery for all around 20 mins at best. i was thinking about getting a small netbook.

just bought this, thought it was a bargain and a good mod:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/160856035917

a new laptop more like lol this one is 5 year old and can hold battery for all around 20 mins at best. i was thinking about getting a small netbook.

yes some of the net books have up to 8 hours battery life on them

just bought this, thought it was a bargain and a good mod:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/160856035917

very good find mate,

they are like hens teeth trying to find them without the auto light setting but with the dimmer wheel.

been after one for ageis but as you say they're like hens teeth so when i seen it i was like mine....nabbed my car and did the deal lol

Lol, good find lenny, now we just have to pain John's car to reflect his status... :P

JohnH, as you say, if your looking to get around and meet people anyway, as you say, its a few quid pocket money if nothing else :) no real value lost if you wanted to head that way anyway, so more profit :P

as for the switch, looks good, very discreet mod!

yes some of the net books have up to 8 hours battery life on them

just be careful on the resolution. You will find that some software will fill more than the screen making it so you can't click stuff at the bottom. but besides that netbooks are great, had mine for around 3 years and still holds its battery. The latest range of 11.6" laptops are very good next step up if you still want something small, lightweight and portable.

got my switch this morning, straight swap...worked straight away. 1+ for the guide listed on the forum.

further update to the device, it is now on the way to sunny blighty...i really cant wait! lol start checking for things i can activate :P

got my switch this morning, straight swap...worked straight away. 1+ for the guide listed on the forum.

I believe that may of been my guide?

Glad it helped you.

sure was stoney, just had to check lol.

i should be getting my device later today or tomorrow. Its being delivered by DHL - they are notorious for going around with invisible delivery men in invisible vans and blow on your door then say your not in!!!

mind you, it could be worse, could of been parcelfarce - where they deliver to the wrong street and house on the other side of the city or royal mail, where it just gets lost...simples lol

but ive ordered myself a new laptop to run a Virtual XP terminal off or use my old laptop for ford software..

Sony Vaio F23P1E/B Core i7, 6GB RAM, 640GB Hard Drive, 16.4 inch Laptop with Blu-Ray

not bad JohnH, you just bitten your profit again though ;) lol

Surely being on the busses, you must know most of the other drivers who have Fords? you can start off with them guys and get them to spread the word!!!

i should be getting my device later today or tomorrow. Its being delivered by DHL - they are notorious for going around with invisible delivery men in invisible vans and blow on your door then say your not in!!!

mind you, it could be worse, could of been parcelfarce - where they deliver to the wrong street and house on the other side of the city or royal mail, where it just gets lost...simples lol

Don't get me started on Royal Mail/Parcelforce.

They mess you around and when you want to complain they give you such a runaround you give up in frustration.

My postman seems to walk around with an empty bag and a handful of "while you were out" cards.

The amount of times I've driven to the depot after leaving the usual 8 hours they write on the card and get the reply "it's not back yet", what they mean is "it's back but we couldn't be arsed to sort it yet".

Were forced to.wait 34 hours before we can collect from royal mail!

Not as bad as yodel though...if you havent seen them YouTube yodel and watch some videos!