Carly is limited on the E46, E38, E39, E53 and similar chassis due to a number of factors.

But Carly is fine for BMW's older than 2011, for the chassis after the E46, E38, E39, E53 and similar Carly does have quite a few features. I have a 2008 E70 X5 which Carly can do quite a lot of advanced coding, I also have a 2013 E93 328 Convertible and Carly does for the most has the same support as for the 2008 E70 X5.

So I wanted to clarify what Carly's capabilities are on some of the newer BMW platforms. I believe Carly may have info on their web site as well.

So for example the E60, E65, E70, E83, E90 typically will have far more support with Carly. So just do not base this on 2011 and newer models.

Carly is a great tool if you have a fleet with newer BMW models, so while I have an E46, I still have Carly and use it far more on the E70 and E93.

 

The information on Carly website is misleading as it is marketing fluff. This thread is in regard to CODING, not diagnosis, so reference to Snap-On tools or OBD Fusion are irrelevant. Having used Carly in direct comparison to NCS Expert on about 6 different chassis post 2007 there is NO comparison - including that of my own two e9x's and my daughters. BMW Standard Tools can provide dealer level coding that Carly can only imagine. Everything in Carly is parameter driven. So forget doing anything sophisticated like editing a man file or a hex file (I.e. temp buffer adjustment). I couldn't even begin to ponder how you would use Carly to code a donor ABS module in a vehicle - it couldn't do it. Similarly if you needed to change the VIN on replacement airbags there's nothing in Carly for that.

Carly is intended for the leisure user who wants to do the "minor comfort" coding such as chimes, auto lock DRL's etc. It will never be robust enough for a shop or even a regular maintenance guy who does more than tinker with comfort options, but replaces modules and components and such.

 

I think the word "coding" is a bit loose and needs to be defined or clarified.

I agree that Carly is not a good OBDII tool, do not bother with this.

Carly can read other modules and provide vendor/manufacturer proprietary codes, BUT I find these codes and the associated definitions a bit unclear and Carly does not appear to have info on more details and better definitions than what the App shows.

I do not and did not expect Carly to actually code replacement modules and do more advanced things, not sure if the current info they put on their web site indicates this or not. Their info has changed a lot over the past few years and they have added features and model support.

I have used Carly mainly for quick and easy "coding"/"programming"/"feature" enhancement or adjustment depending on what you want to call it. For the most part these are Comfort and Access features/options that are modified. I do know they offer battery registration and Diesel maintenance options.

I recall I had to work with Carly to tweak their battery registration for my E70 because like anything battery Amp Hour Ratings have changed and I had a non BMW battery that had a different Amp Hour Rating. My Autel tool would only register a BMW battery based on the battery part/serial number as I recall, totally inflexible for a non BMW battery. My Snap-On Solus Ultra had some limits, I think they did not offer the battery size I needed, maybe something else. Carly seemed to be the closest and most straight forward to register the battery, but they did not have the Amp Hour size listed I needed. After a few emails, they offered an updated version with additional battery Amp Hour sizes, but I had hoped they would have given the user the ability to just enter the Amp Hour capacity rather than have hard coded battery capacity.

Anyway, I agree that Carly has limitations, is not the tool for the older models, but it does works well adjusting Convenience and Access features and offers a few other useful options and for someone that wants/needs an App based tool and does not want to deal with computer configuration it has its uses.

For the E46, I would say OBDFusion and BMW Scanner will cover what most people need to do. So for around $75, less than 1 hour of labor at most shops these 2 tools will do about 85-90% of what most owners need.

Marketing fluff and over exaggerating what a tool, App or software can and will do is nothing new. I am not standing up for Carly, but their tool covers many years and models and they tend to stress what the App supports for newer models so it is easy for people to fall into the trap with the earlier model BMW's.

They should probably do a better job describing what their App can do for each model.

If you have a newer BMW and need more advanced support chances are you are going to need a PC/Computer based software program if you do not have advanced professional stand alone scan tools and even these may not be able to deal with replacement module coding and so forth. It just depends what you are tying to do and how in depth you plan on diving into the vehicle.

Every tool/App/software has its limitations. I would never use a manufacturer tool or software for basic driveability issues when a generic OBDII App is much faster, easier to use and everything presented is consistent without language issues or confusing semantics.

For almost any vehicle there will never be a single tool/App/software that does it all. This is unfortunate but just how the industry is. Things are not going to become any simpler or easier with all the nanny driving assistance items on the newer models. Park Distance sensors, radar and optical lane detection, cruise control and accident avoidance. All of these systems have complex sensors and calibrations that the DIY'er may never be able to get their hands on. A simple bumper hit now on some of the newer cars can cost upwards of $2500-$7500+ with all the systems, sensors and calibration requirements.

Something to be said for keeping the 10-20 year old cars running even if you are spending time and money to do it. Careful what you might end up with if you buy a "new" vehicle!

 

The problem is the word/term "coding". I think this is used very loosely in the industry and on forums it is thought of very differently when people have LIMITED automotive knowledge. I try very hard to post comments and information that the novice or beginner can understand.

There are still plenty of people that think INPA is the only software/tool that is needed and is the only software/tool that will allow you to repair an E46. While INPA has its features and benefits, there is plenty bad about INPA IMHO as well.

Face it, INPA, BMW Scanner 1.4.0 and most of the dealer based tools were written close to or over 20 years ago. Many had poor language support and/or poor/bad translations that were and are confusing. There is also an idea if you get a code, if a sensor is listed in the code, the sensor must be replaced. This is typically not the case. This is a knee jerk reaction to people only partially paying attention to a code definition in addition to a lack of experience. Even many full time technicians and mechanics do business this way.

Unfortunately the industry is full people that may mean well but are in over their head, there are good and honest technicians/mechanics but these are far and few between and very hard to find, then there are the straight out crooks and people that take advantage of anyone that walks in the door for a repair.

Case in point, I recently was doing a family member a favor. Not on a BMW, but a GM car that had a window regulator replaced about 2 years ago which seemed to be getting noisy and was probably ready to fail again. After a lot of thought and reflection I decided to go with a Dorman replacement regulator and motor which cost me $67. The point here is when I remove the faulty regulator that was previously replaced, it was the exact same Dorman regulator I was installing. The local garage charged my family member LIST price of $285 for a OE GM regulator but installed a cheap Dorman regulator that they probably paid slightly less than I just paid 2 years ago. Straight out theft IMHO. I would not have a problem if the regulator was an OE GM part, but to charge OE part list prices on a cheaper aftermarket part is theft and this goes on a lot more than people realize.

While automotive diagnosis and repair is not really that hard, IMHO, it is still the Wild Wild West and there is a lot of misinformation and just as many incompetent and/or crooked people in the industry. This is why many relay on DIY and forums, to not only control costs, but to hopefully get the job done correctly the first time. Not a bad idea to have multiple tools/Apps/software available, some are better than others, some you want to stay away from.

Carly has its place, maybe not the greatest for the E46, E38, E39, E53, E85/86, but it does have support for models before 2011.

Like anything, before you buy any tool/App/software, you should research and ask a lot of questions. Marketing material is marketing material, any company wants your money and they will never apologize for vague or possibly misleading info. This is just how the world is these days. Buyer beware!

 

How to stay connected to the internet while using Carly with iOS

Although I still don't recommend Carly for the e46 I do use it frequently on newer models. In any case there was some discussion on here about not being able to connect to the internet while using Carly with iOS so here's some info for those (like me) that use it on Apple products:

How to stay connected to the internet while using Carly with iOS

1. Connect to the Carly Adapter WIFI via the iPhone settings
2. Click on the blue “i” for info next to the Carly Adapter Name in the settings menu
3. Write down the IP-Adress of the Carly Adapter WLAN
4. Switch from DHCP to Static
5. Type in the IP-Adress that you wrote down into the Static IP Adress field
6. Below that put 255.255.255.0 into Subnet Mask
7. Leave the settings and start the app