Which OBD vendor did you select?

[FerraraZ]

Wanted to bring about the discussion of OBD2 bluetooth sensors and what brands or online retailer you selected for this. I havent researched much but my plan is to drop an Android tablet into the dash of my FR-S and use the OBD2 Tuner program for all relevant car statistics.

The most important stat which I am trying to achieve is miles before empty. From what I'm reading, people have had great success with a wide range of devices that differ in price from 20-200.

I would love to see what other people purchased and how they are using their sensor. Are you leaving the sensor plugged in even when the vehicle is not on?

[humfrz]

I have a "Torque" program on my smart phone that gets a signal from the OBD2 port via an inexpensive bluetooth sender.

It works OK, however, I'm afraid to keep it plugged in all the time. Why? Because the sending unit has a little red light that stays ON even if the ignition is OFF.

Why does that bother me? Because the government may be spying on me .....

humfrz

[FerraraZ]

Originally Posted by humfrz

I have a "Torque" program on my smart phone that gets a signal from the OBD2 port via an inexpensive bluetooth sender.

It works OK, however, I'm afraid to keep it plugged in all the time. Why? Because the sending unit has a little red light that stays ON even if the ignition is OFF.

Why does that bother me? Because the government may be spying on me .....

humfrz

And see that was my issue too however if you check the link below, they claim that it is safe to leave plugged in but this is a $150 OBD sensor compared to the cheaper $20.

http://www.scantool.net/obdlink-mx.html

[jamesm]

it depends what you want it for. if you just want to see parameters on a screen, particularly ones that don't change often like temps, then any old bt obd2 device will work (even the cheap ripoff elm327's from ebay).

if you plan to watch something that changes rapidly (afr, boost, etc) and gain useful information or log from it, then the chinese clones are all but useless. really, any elm327 is as the minimum reliable polling rate for even a legit elm327 is 300ms, and the knock-offs often can't do even half of that.

the best devices i've found for logging obd2 are the innovate ot-2 or tactrix cable, depending which software you plan to use. both are capable of speed more than adequate for logging. plx also makes a bt-compatible device that should provide useful data.

[FerraraZ]

Originally Posted by jamesm

it depends what you want it for. if you just want to see parameters on a screen, particularly ones that don't change often like temps, then any old bt obd2 device will work (even the cheap ripoff elm327's from ebay).

if you plan to watch something that changes rapidly (afr, boost, etc) and gain useful information or log from it, then the chinese clones are all but useless. really, any elm327 is as the minimum reliable polling rate for even a legit elm327 is 300ms, and the knock-offs often can't do even half of that.

the best devices i've found for logging obd2 are the innovate ot-2 or tactrix cable, depending which software you plan to use. both are capable of speed more than adequate for logging. plx also makes a bt-compatible device that should provide useful data.

Well the most important stat I want immediately is miles until empty. I want to then use that info to push to a new in-dash system. I would also like to not have to disconnect the sensor everytime I turn the vehicle off. Are my desires unrealistic?

[jamesm]

Originally Posted by FerraraZ

Well the most important stat I want immediately is miles until empty. I want to then use that info to push to a new in-dash system. I would also like to not have to disconnect the sensor everytime I turn the vehicle off. Are my desires unrealistic?

i leave my ot-2 plugged in (whenever the tactrix cable isn't in there). they say if you leave it a long time it could run your battery dead, but i haven't experienced anything close to that and i don't drive often at all.

the in-dash system you plan to use will dictate what type of interface you need to buy.

[Hagbard]

Have a PLX Kiwi Bluetooth one its not cheap but works well with alot of apps.

[King Tut]

Originally Posted by FerraraZ

Well the most important stat I want immediately is miles until empty.

I am pretty sure any BT OBD device will be able to poll more than enough for a DTE calculation.

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by FerraraZ

And see that was my issue too however if you check the link below, they claim that it is safe to leave plugged in but this is a $150 OBD sensor compared to the cheaper $20.

http://www.scantool.net/obdlink-mx.html

Maybe I'm just paranoid about the light remaining ON, howwever, I can't keep from driving my FR-S long enough to let it sit and test it. Just my luck, that $20 thing would fry my cars ECU .....

humfrz

[Danklvr]

1. open bt obd-2 device
2. locate led
3. remove led
no more light staying on when car is off draining battery

[arghx7]

If you actually want to take logs and do work with it, a PC-based (or maybe Mac, but basically not a tablet) solution might be easiest. For universal OBD II use, I prefer the OBDWiz software with one of the compatible plug-ins. http://www.obdsoftware.net/obdwiz.aspx . Elmscan 5 is cheap and works well.

If you are going to put a tablet in there and look at it all the time--well you've got glare issues, and battery life issues, and all of that stuff. You have to put it somewhere. I think once the novelty wears off you won't find it that useful.

If you just want distance to empty, use your phone.

[Hagbard]

Not just the light in some of them if the device its self is not smart the BlueTooth could still be running as well.

Originally Posted by Danklvr

1. open bt obd-2 device
2. locate led
3. remove led
no more light staying on when car is off draining battery

[amram]

Originally Posted by Hagbard

Not just the light in some of them if the device its self is not smart the BlueTooth could still be running as well.

Yes reading some of the reviews off amazon for the $20 cheap ones, some people have said that they were able to connect to wifi also after car was off and key out (overnight even, so not like 5 mins after). So it's more than just led on. The more expensive ones (plx kiwi Wifi 2 for eg) seem to have a sleep mode where it turns off after some inactivity. See -

"The Kiwi 2 Wifi incorporates a new advanced power saving circuit, designed to shut off power to essential functions of the unit allowing the Kiwi 2 Wifi to be permanently installed in your vehicle without draining your vehicle's battery. After 5 minutes of inactivity, the Kiwi 2 Wifi automatically enters a low power sleep mode. To turn the unit back on, a simple press of the soft switch wakes the device back up."

But the con is it seems you need to press a 'soft switch' to wake it up. At least the kiwi one. Others may have an auto wake on car start.

[xjohnx]

Anyone know where I can purchase the GoPoint BT1 or BT1A?