To decode the CAN frames, he used an Arduino, a CAN bus shield and a python script to visualize the data, checking to see which frames changed when he performed certain functions — such as ...

Is there something better for CAN bus programming than the world of Arduino? Is Arduino a good prototype that can be easily translated to an automotive-grade hardware board?

You can pick up a CAN bus shield, and the Due CAN Library to get started. The ChipKIT Max32 is similar to the Due.