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A lot of thread popping up lately about OBDII scanner for the TL. I've had my OBDII scanner for 5 years, maybe more, and have bought a few more for friends and family. Here is a sum of the information I have collected.
All adapters listed below work on Android phones and Bluetooth enabled PCs only. (iOS users see bottom of thread) They have all been tested by vehicles that use ISO based communication protocols. (pretty much all vehicles except GM and Ford). Some adapters are advertised as working on GM/Ford vehicles, I suggest you check listing detail and seller feedback before buying if you plan to use the SAE protocols.
Be careful, not psychotic about chinese adapters. We can all agree, no matter which one you buy, 5$ or 50$, it's Chinese. But there are many reports of some users having issues with the adapters, some sellers recycle their unsold adapters and modify the firmware to make them appear like a recent version, when in fact they are not. Watch out for any adapter advertised as v2.1. These adapter are most often v1.5. These adapters seem to have a MAC address that conflicts with the vehicles ECU and has in RARE cases blocked the ECU from communicating with the vehicle while being plugged in. Just get a v1.5, as far as I know, it still provides all features you will need. Some sellers list as v2.1 but write in their listing that it's software v2.1, hardware v1.5 which seems to be accurate. Just don't buy Hardware v2.1, it's a real ELM chip. ALWAYS LOOK AT SELLER NEGATIVE FEEDBACK.
The Adapters - All cost around 5$
This is (I think) the one i've been using for over 5 years. It is a VGate but this one says 2015 in title. My adapter runs v1.5, this one as well, so I don't know what's the difference except maybe new firmware
Before, let me just post a link to an app that will tell you if you have cheap chinese knockoff adapter, if you have a chinese adapter but that works perfectly fine, or an authentic ELM327 circuitry https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...7pidinfo&hl=en
The ultimate poweruser app. This is the app all iOS users envy and the standard every other app is compared to. Don't be fooled by the outdated UI, what this app lacks in beauty, it makes up 10 folds on functionality and versatility. Most apps are able to scan CEL codes and read sensor information, but where this app excels is in the wide selection of themes and plugins available. A good example is the track recorder extension which allows you to place your phone as a dashcam, to film you laps around a track and integrates many gauges and metrics directly into the video, allowing the driver to better understand why he was faster or slower. The ULTIMATE app for anything OBDII.
Claims to be able to access ECU, navigation control module, accessory module, and other. Also you can select app to run at boot and keep a quiet eye on the engine to make sure it runs as it should. Alars can be set to advise of higher coolant temps, low or high fuel pressure, odd catalytic converter data, and more.
Dash is to the OBDII as to what the iPhone is to the smartphone. It's clean, smooth, well coded, beautiful UI, it offers many of the features Torque does but adds its own little spin on it. Dash is an app that is able to take the raw data the power-users want and convert it into suggestions on how to improve your driving. If Facebook and Torque had sex, it would be Dash. It integrated powerful social media to allow you to connect with friends but also people around you where you can "race" to who is the safest, smartest driver. Dash wants you to drive the speed limit, to not accelerate to get an adrenaline fix, it wants you to save fuel and so much more. It then takes the data and suggest you on how you can improve. You are also given a score, the safer, most fuel efficient driver you are, the higher your score, the higher your ranking on the leaderboard. It's a great way to incite people to respect all driving laws and will even alert you when you drive considerably over the limit, or tend to brake to hard too often. It's a great app that does a lot of useful thing, but as a standalone diagnostics tool, it lacks in many areas. It should be used side-by-side with Torque and not try to replace it
ScanTool.net OBD-II software lets you turn your laptop or desktop PC into a sophisticated automotive diagnostics system. Currently, it can be used to read trouble codes, display their definitions, reset the MIL, and display real-time sensor data.
EasyOBDII works in compliement of ScanTools...it's basically like a mini portable version of it.
Advanced OBDII software. It has many cool features that might be useful for people with tuning kits like flashpro. As an example, you can simulate a tweak and take the car for a virtual 1/4 mile.
In the same family as the Android version. Automotive Diagnostic Software for everyone . It enables every car owner with a private PC or laptop to perform , read error codes , and delete sensor data queries that perform different tests and more the control of its Diagnostic modes.
Simple yet comprehensive, accurate and reliable Windows software for ELM 32x based OBD2 converters. 2 modes available, standard and advanced. The next best thing after Torque.
Purchase working adapter and connect with app. I really do not know what else to suggest except that my bud and I looked arond for a cheap adapter for iPhone, the main problem is they don't work at all or not very well. The app is rated 1/5 in appstore, and the adapter my friend bought said iPhone compatible but really was not. After taking his issue to Dash Support, they told
him Apple's restrictions on core system functions prevent app from sending raw, unencrypted data to an app or user because it emulates a stock function...in this case he was talking about air drop. Apple and their damn rules...precisely the reason I left the iphone and gave android a try. I never looked back and in moments like the ones where members ask for an iOS app like torque and gets a short and sweet "doesn't exist"...I really feel bad for them but on the other side, with all the smartphones on the market, its really their loss. The BT limitations are just an example among other.
If anybody has other cool tools/apps to show us, please do. I had a few others but listing them here would be vastly as most apps mentionned above do more.
Be forewarned that with this specific model of adapter, often the build quality is shoddy and the contact pins will recess in the device, making it very difficult to plug into the car OBD2 port. The pins are usually only held by dabs of hot glue.
Be forewarned that with this specific model of adapter, often the build quality is shoddy and the contact pins will recess in the device, making it very difficult to plug into the car OBD2 port. The pins are usually only held by dabs of hot glue.
Oh yeah? Thanks for the info. I got this one for my mom's mini and the build quality was ok i guess. But i did see that this adapter had 3 variants, the one i posted above v1.5, a model with wifi and a v2.1. Maybe it's those damn 2.1, maybe they refurbish them because i have seen a few people saying torque shows v1.5 and other apps 2.1. Anyways, i would not buy v2.1, it seems like to many of them are fake and repatched to be resold as new.
I've had my vgate for 5 years, works great, i just hit it one day with my boot and broke the plastic on one side that surrounds the pins. I just popped it back in, still works
Do you know what the processor version is? I'd be curious to see. If the higher quality models use the older hardware
P. S. Android rules. Was an apple fanboy for 4 gens of the iphone, wanted to try android for a change, never looked back. I even had a lumia for a few months, windows is like ios minus the app selection, plus crapware apps that cost 10-20$ just to emulate what ios and android have for free
Last edited by polish_pat; 10-27-2015 at 11:22 AM.
I always thought this was some extension to Dash so never bothered looking at it, but i fell on a video of it and it looked pretty cool. It's basically the closest thing to Torque i've tried. It's still not Torque, and it's also double the price, but the UI and how minute you can adjust the settings is what ties the knot. I finally bought the premium version. What I liked about it is the vehicle profile can be very detailed, which would allow for the most precise readings possible. You can even enter drag coefficients and frontal surface area just for those few extra points of preciseness.
This is the ugliest looking app i've ever used. And with a name like VAGerase, you'd think it's a hoax. It has almost no settings, and you can literally do 3 main things with the app. BUT, it's excellent at what it does. Some German cars, like my mother's Mini Cooper has a stupid feature where it tells you it's time to change your oil, but forces you to clear the code by dealer, or some freakishly long and complicated procedure. I changed my moms oil a few weeks ago, and I looked at all youtube videos about how to clear the light, non of them worked. The dealer wants 45$ to clear it. So I just told her to let the app I setup on her phone when its time to change it again, and ignore the light. I tried to clear the codes with many apps but all of them only work on CEL and not maintenance lights. This VAG blaster app did the trick. Plugged it in, pressed search code, came up with Code 1 or something, i pressed clear and BOOM, gone. Besides that, the app is useless. It also has a OBD adapter firmware update tool, but I tried it on 3 adapters, mine, my moms and dads and it all said not compatible to update.
Although this app doesn't connect to an OBDII adapter, man I wish it did because it would step up the app to an ultimate level. I've been using this app to keep track of all maintenance, repairs, mileage. It's basically a log boot for all things TL. Its has a good library of stock repairs, allows to add your own and customize the schedule. If you want to keep your car for long, this is a great tool to keep track of what and when.
Be forewarned that with this specific model of adapter, often the build quality is shoddy and the contact pins will recess in the device, making it very difficult to plug into the car OBD2 port. The pins are usually only held by dabs of hot glue.
For some odd reason it does not work on my phone, it worked with Audi and my dads Honda Pilot, but it will not work on my TL
10-27-2015, 05:21 AM
