Watch This Video Before Buying a Carly OBD2 Reader!

[@bengardiner6078]

I'm so pleased someone else has picked up that this is a scam product. I bought this for a Renault, but purchased the all vehicle options. When it arrived it actually caused faults on the car it was brought for. We then tried it on our BMW E53 X5 as I'd seen KZbinrs using these on BMWs. It read the ecus ok, but again created fault codes that I needed another reader to clear. To be clear, Carly had no interest in either replacing or cancelling our subscription. They are a European company that is only interested in the repeat charging of bank cards. Should have been closed down years ago.

[@harryevans4076]

Excellent advice, I was caught out by exactly the same scam. My wife and I are pensioners and couldn't afford to lose that money. Well done for bringing this to people's attention. 👍

[@sltillim]

I got a cheap $30 OBD2 reader at harbor freight - it lacked many features but it gives codes, which is all I need! I can search a code on the web and figure it out. The subscription economy is crazy - and I work in software.

[@Myguy1891]

I first bought Carly when it first came out. Bought the OBD reader and app separately, and back then, they gave a lifetime free use with all functions unlocked so no subscription and til this day it's still free. They've honoured their promise. I guess I was lucky to purchase it when they did that.

[@ferguscawley11]

Me too

[@stevewalker2028]

Me too. Lifetime full licence, and I only paid about £5 for the app. To be fair, it was us early customers who helped them get started and spread awareness of the excellent Carly system.

[@RabbitStu-M7UTS]

Didn’t work that way for me. Bought mine before subscription was a thing with them. Started getting charged through App Store.

[@MrStormas]

I’m paid £35 😊

[@sheerluckholmes5468]

Carly seems to be a brand aimed directly at the influenzas for them to push it really hard at their viewers.

[@hughjanus7354]

If only there was a vaccine that could stop the influenzas once and for all.

[@OO-xc7zg]

Thanks for the heads up. 👍👍

[@wakka]

Im so glad i clicked on your video😂 i was about to buy it yesterday and i didnt look at the small print about the annual payment so thank you so much. Ill keep using my £20 code reader😂 thank you

[@How-ze8hd]

Very devious. Glad you informed me.

[@tonydarby9096]

I got caught in the same way, blame myself yes, but did not see that it was annual payment. Response when I tried to cancel was tough. I have since canceled future payments on their website and instructed my bank to not pay any future requests from them. Decent companies will warn you two weeks to a month before a recurring payment is due.

[@darrenowens1543]

Thanks to the heads-up,I was thinking of purchasing one of these units, won't be buying one now! Thanks for the helpful info 👍

[@FatHead1979]

Same happened to me - Pushing back via their so-called 'customer services' got me nowhere in terms of a refund, apparently auto-renewing a subscription WITHOUT providing ANY reminder to the customer is "compliant with German law" (the company is registered in Germany).

[@chrisclarknoe]

Had this same issue myself last year. No obvious mention on the site that it was a subscription and even worse, they don't even send you a reminder before the subscription comes off. Which almost all other subscriptions do. Feels a lot like a scam to me. Guess there's a reason that the only real advertising of the product is via influencers...

[@nbrettoner]

Good timely important video, thankyou for the "head's up" 🤠

[@dbconstruction7892]

I bought this dongle several years ago, before they were subscription-based. I kept the old software on my iPad as long as I could, until Carly shut it off. Then I was forced to use the new system but, since I was an established user, they don't charge an annual fee. Frankly, the new software is not nearly as good as the old. What I used before was easy to understand and very intuitive. Now they have that auto-diagnostic "whatevertheycallit" that insists that it knows what I want to do when all it really does is waste my time. I bought Carly mainly because I can change the program settings on my E39 BMW. For that, it works very well once I can get to the right menus. For diagnostics I bought a dedicated OBD2 Creader that is much faster and easier to use than Carly.

[@danielmccarthy1982]

Had a big run-in with Carly a couple of years ago. Back then you couldn't get refunded because the scanner was 'free' and you paid a subscription for the (non-refundable) software. I wanted a refund because my car wasn't covered but Carly 'support' said that was just tough luck. Got my money back eventually but it was a very unpleasant experience.

[@marksmotorcycle375]

Great that you are making people aware, I bought this a few months back and I couldn’t get it working because I was trying to log in using a different email address, after messaging Carly and doing some extensive searching on their website I then realised i was a yearly cost, they don’t make it clear at all when buying, and I will definitely be cancelling mine.

[@alberttalbot9534]

This has been said so many times in the comments after a Carly advert has been included in a KZbin promotion. The comments section is sometimes better than the videos.

[@sarcastixx74]

Good info and thanks for sharing. Not got one of these but had been considering buying one for a while as it's much more convenient than my VCDS setup. Hopefully people jump on the channels of all the people promoting these and spread the word.

[@MrStevecrasher]

If you have a VAG vehicle, buy VCDS. One off cost, infinitely better product, brilliant forum backup from professional users including the companies owner and staff.

[@philipphilop5199]

Good video. If you have a Ford get a vlinker odb2 scanner & forscan for pc or android (needs side loading on android). I pay enough subscriptions for my TV, mobile phone, & broadband. Don't need more

[@khalidacosta7133]

Peugeot / Citrroen is Diagbox

[@Vince_Paul]

Get a carista obd tool. It’s cheaper and very good.

[@Andyah]

i did notice the star at the price...i have learned that along time ago that that is something it wants to tell you when a star is there.

[@PhannyObsession]

I’ve been calling this a scam from the first time I ever heard of it! A good product doesn’t need ‘up & coming’ KZbinrs to shill it. If they were legit, ‘real’ mechanics would use them and I’ve never seen one in a Garage. They all use Autel or Laptops

[@RabbitStu-M7UTS]

I bought my one years ago before subscription model came in. It was just for my one car and to occasionally reset service light and rare need to diagnose. Then started getting charged in apple App Store a couple of years later. I cancelled. They moved the goal posts.

[@RoysReviews]

Does the big * by the price not give a massive clue to look what it means? Its standard practice to for the way they market it. I dont have a Carly and not backing them up. But it does mention that its a yearly charge.. 90% of websites are the same.

[@eSysmanTech]

Easy to say this when you already know the answer.

[@RoysReviews]

@eSysmanTech not really as it's something I always look at when on a website or even a flyer...

[@duncanh997]

I got caught out with this too. Purchased mine last year and got charged last month for another year. I contacted them and told them i was not aware that it was a subscription but they pointed me to part of the site saying there are no refunds once payment is taken. Subscription cancelled now but £53 lighter for the year.

[@carlwilliams3488]

If it's within 6 month of the charge speak to the bank and raise a chargeback against them as if it was misleading in the point of sale the money can be pulled back as an 'unfair term'.

[@frankerin8655]

i just ordered one and ofcorse didnt watch any revievs because all big car youtubers recommended it... how can i cancel the order or the yearly subscription? i dont care if i lost that 70eur but i just dont want to pay yearly subscription and have anything to do with this company anymore. thanks for help in advance

[@PelicanIslandLabs]

That's very devious indeed! Borderline scam actually!

[@4port]

Nothing near a scam... its in English on the front pages.... all scanners that provide updates and current vehicle data require you to pay for subscriptions... they problem is youtube mechanics who think they can fix there cars at home.... in business it's called over heads....

[@lesliesmith4846]

Thanks for the tip off. Also it says on their site in small print that 'all countries outside of the EU are subject to customs duties'. We in the UK 'qualify' for that!

[@marksimmons8158]

How do you unlock features that are supposed to be hidden. I've seen various people unlock features on their cars. But no-one shows how to do this

[@eSysmanTech]

Because for the most part it doesn't work. Many cars are unable to access this feature. It's clearly something they are pushing when KZbinr's do adverts in an attempt to get people to buy them.

[@richardharrison6993]

Thanks for the heads up. One has to be really careful with these things on the internet. I know I’ve been taken advantage of a couple of times. Not to the tune of £86 but one certainly does have to be careful.

[@acelectricalsecurity]

Yeah it seems everyone wants either a monthly or annual payment and it does piss me off

[@melvinphillips786]

I’d go back to the so called influencers and ask why they pushed the scanner without making it clear to their viewers who earn them a lot of money, that it was a subscription service…

[@IANHANDS]

Wel sir you would be wasting your time.

[@melvinphillips786]

@IANHANDS I was making a point. These so called influencers make a lot of money and, as we see here, "sell their soul to the devil" as it were, and forget about the people who helped get them where they are. For me, it's all about morals. Sadly, some of these people have very little or none.

[@robthomason1]

Found myself in exactly the same situation ! Saw it on Legit street cars and it was described as the best thing since sliced bread, bought one and it did what was advertised. Put it away as its job was done and a year later a charge on my card-I too didn’t realise it was a yearly subscription. Cancelled immediately!

[@frankerin8655]

i just ordered one and ofcorse didnt watch any revievs because all big car youtubers recommended it... how can i cancel the order or the yearly subscription? i dont care if i lost that 70eur but i just dont want to pay yearly subscription and have anything to do with this company anymore. thanks for help in advance

[@robthomason1]

@@frankerin8655 Just cancel any recurring payments from this company at your bank!

[@Bullwinkle39]

I looked into that a while ago after seeing the adverts on KZbin. The first thing i saw was the * next to the price, that's the big give away that you should look closer. I saw the *, looked around for what it meant and in seconds knew that it was a subscription. Honestly if you or anyone gets caught out by it then thats on you. That said, they could make it more clear

[@RichieRouge206]

I'll stick with my old fashioned plug in OBD2 tablet. Sick to death of everything being bloody subscription based. Good to hear someone speaking up about it.

[@simonelliott5956]

I commented on the last video, that these Carly things often read the wrong info on codes especially to do with Airconditioning from experience. I bought a iCarsoft unit that does any car, yes it was £350 but it’s updated all the time and not subscription based.

[@bengardiner6078]

I experienced the same as yourself. Great to know the iCarsoft works as am looking at that model too.

[@stevenc5227]

I have the ICarsoft as well, had it for a few years now, and its free updates no subscription updated about 3 times so far and you can choose what vehicle make to update, i have four different makes of vehicle in the family so only update those, but if i need to i can update any make, its better to pay a bit more for the product and have free updates rather than subscription, for me anyway.

[@BazDeeWren]

Thanks for this, I’d looked at it and had no idea it was a subscription.

[@davidreville7211]

Thanks bud - very helpful advice 👍🏼

[@roynorton4000]

scanners are scammers now, it's a sad state of affairs, appreciate the heads up on this con

[@Archiegser]

I bought the original and then upgraded and found out the same way 2-3 years ago. I then repurchased a new device and it came without any options and then I thought to myself bugger this and bought a Topdon diagnostics scanner. Caveat Emptor do your own due dilligence although they do not highlight it's a subs based set up. It was handy though due to it's size.

[@JACB006]

Is there not way to cancel the subscription on the Carly website?

[@Law_Abiding_Citizen_ok]

You got no chance, I changed my credit card number so they could not take the money at 12 months, as I sussed out you cannot cancel.

[@Manu-Official]

£53.89* And that's when I went to read the line associated with the * - hence why I bought a real OBD-II reader instead. Then the premium being cheaper than regular was a big hint: product clearly aimed at mugs who want the features now and worry about details later.

[@Mihai_Ciulei]

Buy a xtool anyscan a30, the basic is 100 usd , reads all the car modules, codes and parameters, erase codes, some special functions, oil, and brakes, the a30m is with all special functions active, and is 160usd, free lifetime update.

[@walterwings2222]

I bought one and had the same issue. I cancelled the same as you. The real problem was the support for my vehicle (Toyota C-HR) was reduced!! I was unable to adjust car settings after the new version.

[@neilwharton720]

A lot of these obd reader’s are yearly subscription normally hidden in the small print.

[@bobhope4395]

I got 1 of these aswell, I used it for the year and cancelled the subscription via Google. It's a great bit of kit, but works out very expensive with the subscription.

[@DangerousPersonProduction]

Yes, i was scammed by them as well on the renewal. They spam you with emails and don't tell you about the renewal. I could not find any way of cancelling the subscription on the site other than ringing them or messaging them. I messaged them to say how much or a poor company they were and untrustworthy for not having anyway of cancelling. They gave me a 10% refund. Hopefully the new law in America will come to Britain soon regarding companies having to make it as easy to signup and cancel. They should be investigated for trading standards.

[@masoumasefi5864]

Thanks for sharing my thought and experience with this scammers

[@Poulpy68]

I have used it on a VW car. Carly found one error my xtool device found 2 errors...

[@kevinhansford3929]

I bought an obd2 reader for £20 off euro car parts, it gives me the codes i want and no subscription cobblers

[@razzledan77]

Thanks for the heads up. Just cancelled my “annual subscription”. You saved me a few quid today.

[@stumartin2644]

Same happened to me, even after returning it to Carly. I’ve a 2005 S2000, Carly didn’t read my ecu. I spoke to them and was told that they don’t know if my ecu will ever be added to the list of what the Carly can read. Shocking!

[@eSysmanTech]

Wow that's pretty bad.

[@teinspringz]

tldr version - Carly is a subscription model product that unlocks advance programming and diagnostic tool on a subscription. if you don't pay you only get basic tools and no programming. Carly started out as a once off payment model many many years ago until the company cotton onto the subscription business model. As e85 Z4 owner I knew about this from day dot, and decided I'd rather pay someone who has already purchased Carly unit to help me program my car just the once rather than buy my own unit and do it once.

[@stuartmarshall5824]

I got ripped off just the same. So did my brother. They are a nightmare company to deal with. Non of the influencers mention the subscription either, and that is deliberate. I'ts blatant dishonesty.

[@TD5rage]

I thought everyone knew that Carly was an annual subscription. I never bought one based on that and the fact that it is mostly aimed at German branded cars. If you missed the line where it says annual subscription then that is on you and not Carly. They didn’t hide it in other lines of rubbish, it’s there out in the open. What you get for your annual subscription is updates for cars either new to the market or unlocking hidden tech.

[@hughjanus7354]

Even though I agree one should always read the small print, this shit is sneaky AF. Typical shysteryankwank.

[@anghelteodorclaudiu508]

thank you, I was just about to buy one and u saved me , I didn't see that little text, I thought it would work permanently , I will look for something else, most likely OBD11,but I'm not in a hurry anymore

[@MrL22]

With how much they were paying influencers to market it, there had to be something up. A tip for anyone looking at something like this, get an Ancel VD700, can get them as little as £50. Nowhere near as pretty but it does the job and can even code new parts to the car, I used it to code 6 new injectors.

[@maffthetaff8625]

I went for the carista Evo obd instead, it was on offer for £44 and it's £15 a month to use but U can cancel any time, so I just bought one months subscription, did wot I needed to do and that's it,,, when ever I need to use it il just pay the £15 as and when now....

[@centurion262]

Im pretty sure some KZbinrs do say its a subscription service, (i think i saw that on samcracs channell where he says it is )so i just bought myself a cheap scanner and works great so far

[@philf5043]

Cant you get a recall by the bank and get you "subcription" back its a con.

[@hansgielen8841]

Thanks for the info. Contacted Carly to stop my subscription. Quick reply and confirmation that the anual renewal has been stopped.

[@Law_Abiding_Citizen_ok]

You sure…..wait til next year🙄

[@markmorais5846]

Whenever I see an asterisk beside anything, I check the fine print first. There's obviously an asterisk beside the "SELECT" price so, honestly, you should have been looking for the conditions for that price first.

[@Alexcustominstall]

Yes maybe, but the marketing of this brand somehow projects ‘trust’ and you feel that as you buy into it. If they can’t make their money without these little tricks it’s sad. What if Apple tried this approach?

[@eSysmanTech]

All adverts on KZbin with well known KZbinrs pushing the brand should have said it was a subscription service. Not one of them mentions it.

[@michaelhastings7441]

I don't have a Carly but i'm now checking my Topdon readers

[@normandavidson6889]

I got caught as well. The guy on High Peak Autos was plugging it. I paid £130 and didn't know I had signed up to a subscription until my card was charged £130 a year later. Cancelled after that.

[@bryangreenwood8453]

Shocking way to treat their client base, I have had a similar problems with anti-virus software companies charging my card a full month before the product expires. Also if you cancel auto renew you lose some of the features you are paying for. I cannot believe they can be allowed to carry on this way.

[@swampusmaximus]

Thanks for the heads up, I won't be buying one of these now !

[@mwalmsley72]

Same as many products pushed by “influencers” on KZbin. So many turn out to be not quite what they seem. Companies using crafty marketing by getting KZbinrs to market their products as people “trust” the KZbinrs they follow far too much. People need to understand KZbinrs are not your friends. They do it to make money. Treat them as sales people and don’t blindly trust everything they say or any products they push. Red flag is if lots of KZbinrs are pushing same product.

[@kiphakes]

I made a video on how Carly is very scammy .. my comments were riddled with people who have ended up having money taken, despite cancelling. They make it nigh on impossible to send back too - which I found out!

[@Alexcustominstall]

I’ve had a recent bad experience with this product. I wanted to renew my license and their price was quoted in euros. When I went to purchase the price quoted was the exact same number but in GBP. This made me question the integrity of the brand, so I began the long process of customer support/creating a ticket. Let’s just say I spent way too much time pushing for their explanation of how the numbers could possibly be the same, in the end I just moved on and will no longer buy into the brand. Disappointed, it felt like an Apple worthy product was just a facade and money grab. Would never recommend solely based on the ‘smoke and mirrors’ aspect of subscription. Ps/ the standalone product is very good.

[@eSysmanTech]

That's not good.

[@Law_Abiding_Citizen_ok]

That will be Carly for you then, get your money ( any amount) and with minimum back up.

[@MickCheeseman]

I’ve just got stung by this. Contacted them immediately but no refund. I have now stopped the annual fee. But worse is it doesn’t work. It will read the codes but will not allow me to make any changes. Wouldn’t work on my previous Audi S4 or my current 2020 Audi A3. I bought mine after seeing it being pushed by Mat Armstrong.

[@nicholasthackeray4357]

They got me with the subscription also 🤬. Just found the process to cancel and they don’t even make that to easy :(

[@GenXBoomer22]

Cheers for the info mate, much obliged.

[@skiingfast1]

Thank you.

[@TheJaoMing]

Heh, I was one of the first 100 buyers I think and at that time it was very cheap and not a yearly subscription. I few years in I had to mail them to activate my account as I bought a "forever" app with them and they made my account the same as a sub, but for free. I would not pay that much for the app, I use it a few times a year.

[@georgieliverpol]

Thanks for the heads up i nearly bought one

[@johnoconnor3005]

Yep got caught same way no reminder of subscription renewal……

[@elliottpeters2996]

All of these companies are making it while they can. The dealers are working hard to stop the manufacturers of diagnostic tools accessing the vehicle software. More and more repairs need dealer software with online accounts (that cost a fortune or you can't access at all). Someone needs to look at why the "right to repair" does not exist in the UK anymore.

[@mowermanone1621]

That’s shocking. I guess read the fine print. Wow.

[@keefnbailz]

I've been caught with this too. I'm currently disputing any further payment to them. Not to be trusted.

[@MCS.2012]

thank you went into my paypal account and under payments yes there it was active auto payment I have cancelled 👍happy days

[@nubie1100]

Am I best off getting the ODB11 for my audi s3 ?

[@Mat0305]

So many of these products advertised by KZbinrs are either scams or severely overpriced, many of the car KZbin community have been pushing car vertical too which I've also heard negative comments about this

[@whathasxgottodowithit3919.]

Thanks for the heads-up

[@jaswingrove]

you know OBDEleven is the way the truth and the light for VAG car owners 😊

[@N22CHT]

I got stung by the same thing, when I got mine the website had nothing as I checked everywhere before buying it. When I complained it had been added in the small print and they refused to issue a refund. Disgusting company, avoid

[@KarmaCorner]

Never heard a single KZbinr say its a tearly fee, other than you

[@keithstapleton7805]

Looked at their website yesterday and it’s obviously a subscription, plus the any car cost is offered later, otherwise it’s locked to a car brand. I don’t agree with it, but it’s buyer beware.

[@eSysmanTech]

Things are obvious when you know it's there already.

[@TheHooverit]

I never noticed that

[@Flowerpotmen]

The devils in the detail, in this case it also in that asterisk 😈

[@1Patchilo]

Thank you

[@jeffamlwch]

The subscription should at least be under the price. I bought a OBD11 reader on eBay for £5 & downloaded a free app off the Google store, it will read codes & clear warning lights. That's all you need really so you can go to a garage with an idea of what's wrong or fix it yourself. I would contact Carley & tell you didn't know about the subscription & tell them you don't want it anymore, they can only say ok, no or *"#@ o#f

[@kennethiman2691]

Screw them! Thanks for the heads up!

[@derrickflight135]

They tried to do it to me Luckily I paid via PayPal and they refunded me and said the will look at carly closely now

[@Doesnotcare12]

Thank you for this video. I've have had the exact same scenario. The difference being I bought it over a year ago to save money fixing my car. This year I am away to lose my house due to not being able to work after losing my wife. This year my bank account is empty and they took my money. I have emails that to and from them and they were basically sarcastic when telling them about the lack of advertising on the subscription and how I have no money.

[@AMG63]

Yes my friend fell for this scam, I bought a obd 2 scanner with Bluetooth and installed the free app on my phone, everything comes up and I can delete code.

[@alm3464]

Remember people always look for an asterisk after a price!

[@markhatley-k6s]

I agree completely! I bought one about 2 years ago and found it to be far less capable than advertised. It did nothing more for me than a cheap reader. Even with the upgrades I purchased, it was at best poor.

[@andypoopoo16]

I got one of these after seeing shmee and mat Armstrong pushing it.i did not know it was a subscription till a year was up and they wanted money...only managed a couple of tweaks on my car and that's it. Also a few months in I received an email asking me to push it on social media and they would pay me up to £10000 for doing so! I knew then it was a total SCAM.

[@karlj1717]

I don’t buy anything that anyone on KZbin advertises, the only thing I will buy is a T-shirt made by the creators, I know that goes directly to the creators and a T-shirt is just a T-shirt.

[@SJB3D]

I bought one for my 2024 VW Touareg. Absolute scam. Doesn’t do anything. I complained and they said it’s not compatible. Strange as u enter your car make, model and year to purchase it

[@PhilipHudnott]

Get onto your bank and dispute the charge stating there was no mention of a subscription when you purchased it. Bank should reverse the charge.

[@TringmotionCoUk]

So if I can add my tuppence worth. If you are looking for a bare bones idiot proof OBD scanner with the basics of functionality and code clearing I recommend the Vgate VS-890. I managed to decifer a faulty MAF sensor that was not throwing a code with one, with the help of online data. More advanced ? Go Autel