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2010 - OBD-II: Which logger and software to choose?

('09-'13) 
23K views 32 replies 17 participants last post by  boureesub 
#1 ·
Hi all,
Sorry for the ‘newbie’-ness, but my head’s spinning a bit with OBD-II. Point me in the right direction please if this has been discussed or has FAQs elsewhere.

I have a diesel forester and have been following the DPF woes (threads).

I’m looking for an OBD-II interface to log data, plot graphs and observe in ‘real time’ and was wondering which one was best for my needs. I wish to log data, for graphing and analysis. I would be happy to post data as well (e.g. on Subaru Diesel Crew). Also, I’d like to graph and/or display data in ‘real time’ whilst driving e.g. on a PDA/phone (not just on the Forester, I have a cold-running Mazda 3 and would like to watch the water temp).

I’m tossing up USB vs Bluetooth (BT), but would prefer both as I have a laptop and also a Symbian phone (N95), also probably to obtain an android phone in the near future.
I’ve looked online at some cheapies on Dealextreme , e.g. the $52.99 BT unit (SKU 16921) due to its size. There’s a number of others of varying types (all ELM clones, no doubt). This of course would be for talking to a PDA/phone in the car. I’ve seen it (or very similar) elsewhere advertised though a named company as well.

I’ve also browsed online genuine ELM units, the Tactrix 2.0, OBDPro, OBDKey, All-in-One, Scantool OBDLink, Laplogger and Proscan. I read the hardware comparison from GLM Software (OBD 2007). Plus software from the aforementioned hardware companies, OBD2007 and also OBDscope (Symbian) plus Torque (Android).

I note ScangaugeII is standalone and therefore I have discounted it.

Some queries:
* Which hardware units and software programs do people recommend? And why (briefly)?
* What’s the best ‘in car’ phone/PDA solution? I assume BT is the way to go here?
* What’s the best logging solution? Laptop? USB or BT?
* I believe the USB will probably be faster in communication, esp. With the faster units, but how slow are the BT units? Can I log effectively with BT? Can I get a USB/serial to BT converter (e.g. from RF Modules Australia) and use that for BT? Can you plug your own BT modules in and save a bit of cash?

Thanks,
Pitrack_1
 
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#7 ·
The Bluetooth dongle connectors seem more interesting and long term valuable. Plus I wouldn't be paying for a screen twice since id be reusing my iPhone or iPad as a screen. Plus I could pair it with my laptop too if I needed to get raw log output or use a different app.

But you missed my main question , for scan gauge and ultra gauge how well do they support the custom codes of subaru ECUs? (Eg. All, some or none?) if some, which ones?


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#8 ·
The Bluetooth dongle connectors seem more interesting and long term valuable. Plus I wouldn't be paying for a screen twice since id be reusing my iPhone or iPad as a screen. Plus I could pair it with my laptop too if I needed to get raw log output or use a different app.
iphone/ipad devices use WIFI as their connection
android devices or laptops can use bluetooth
 
#12 ·
bluetooth obd-ii device and loggers

Ahem,
Hi and sorry for the late reply, just came back and saw the thread replies by chance.

Yes I have had some success, on a 2010 Forester Diesel. I use the following:
  • a generic Bluetooth device, similar to this one
  • torque pro on android, can access extended/custom PIDs and log data
  • Wobd2 / obdiicrazy on WinXP, can access but can't seem to log the extended PIDs
Have a look at my thread Pitrack_1's Saga: DPF regens vs performance & economy loss especially the later posts to see what I've done.

Was even able to read out, log and clear a (hopefully random) fault code that popped up today.

Good luck!
 
#19 ·
I'd like to say that I did get torque pro working properly on my fxt with the elm327 bluetooth dongle. I'm running it on my samsung tablet and it works great. It logs lots of info, only problem is there's no knock info which sucks.

Another big problem, I can't seem to get a good refresh rate, it seems like its reading the info every half second even when I turn the number of datapoints all the way up in torque. This means when taking a log of AFR you'll get 5 off the same number and then five more of another and so on. That's only logging RPM and AFR. Just the two. Maybe I'm doing something wrong, not sure.

The logs are pretty terrible but I could dig some up and post them if you're interested...
 
#25 · (Edited)
I am looking at this wifi dongle that per the reviews works well with ios.

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Reviews state it works well with fusion, torque, dash command apps.

Now, if I have my iPhone 6 connected to my kenwood multimedia/Navi In dash touchscreen HU (dnx 6990hd) via the kenwood video/audio/iPhone cable i should be able to mirror the app on my HU...

And I forgot to ask but is there a list of the pid's I can expect to see? Thx


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#26 ·
I am looking at this wifi dongle that per the reviews works well with ios.

And I forgot to ask but is there a list of the pid's I can expect to see? Thx
iCar 2 mini Wifi looks good. Just check if it supports the CAN protocol. The SJ FXT can connect via the CAN bus using 'ISO15765-4 CAN, 500 Kbaud'. 500kb is fast enough for any software to log over 50 Pid's a second.

I use Fusion and have it configured with 'Fast polling' and a requested interval of 50ms. Have a look at the screenshots enclosed for all the available SAE Pids that the Forester exposes. Bare in mind its only the standard SAE Pids, you won't get any of the Subaru Select Monitor 3 (SSM3) parameters like knock/AF learning, CVT temp, AVCS etc.

You also need to find out what other custom Pids Subaru supports.
 

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#29 · (Edited)
tactrix + romraider if your ecu is supported is really the "cheapest" (or, most limiting?) that I would consider if you want to do any real logging, and not just have a childs toy that is the hoard of common bt/wifi adapters.

use datazap to make your tactrix logs pretty (you can log directly from the tactrix without anything else connected) <:
http://datazap.me/u/terrastrife/27-09-2014-uel-13?log=0&data=3-5-6-7-8-9-14
 
#30 ·
Toy? Well it is Xmas... :)

tactrix + romraider if your ecu is supported is really the "cheapest" (or, most limiting?) that I would consider if you want to do any real logging, and not just have a childs toy that is the hoard of common bt/wifi adapters.

use datazap to make your tactrix logs pretty (you can log directly from the tactrix without anything else connected) <:
datazap.me | terrastrife | 27-09-2014 UEL 1.3
Toy? Hmmph! ;)

I just thought it was a v cheap way of viewing CVT temp and any potential error codes. (Not that I've had any so far)

Can you post links to buy the hardware you recommend...
 
#31 ·
Hi all,
Sorry for the ‘newbie’-ness, but my head’s spinning a bit with OBD-II. Point me in the right direction please if this has been discussed or has FAQs elsewhere.

I have a diesel forester and have been following the DPF woes (threads).

I’m looking for an OBD-II interface to log data, plot graphs and observe in ‘real time’ and was wondering which one was best for my needs. I wish to log data, for graphing and analysis. I would be happy to post data as well (e.g. on Subaru Diesel Crew). Also, I’d like to graph and/or display data in ‘real time’ whilst driving e.g. on a PDA/phone (not just on the Forester, I have a cold-running Mazda 3 and would like to watch the water temp).

I’m tossing up USB vs Bluetooth (BT), but would prefer both as I have a laptop and also a Symbian phone (N95), also probably to obtain an android phone in the near future.
I’ve looked online at some cheapies on Dealextreme , e.g. the $52.99 BT unit (SKU 16921) due to its size. There’s a number of others of varying types (all ELM clones, no doubt). This of course would be for talking to a PDA/phone in the car. I’ve seen it (or very similar) elsewhere advertised though a named company as well.

I’ve also browsed online genuine ELM units, the Tactrix 2.0, OBDPro, OBDKey, All-in-One, Scantool OBDLink, Laplogger and Proscan. I read the hardware comparison from GLM Software (OBD 2007). Plus software from the aforementioned hardware companies, OBD2007 and also OBDscope (Symbian) plus Torque (Android).

I note ScangaugeII is standalone and therefore I have discounted it.

Some queries:
  • Which hardware units and software programs do people recommend? And why (briefly)?
  • What’s the best ‘in car’ phone/PDA solution? I assume BT is the way to go here?
  • What’s the best logging solution? Laptop? USB or BT?
  • I believe the USB will probably be faster in communication, esp. With the faster units, but how slow are the BT units? Can I log effectively with BT? Can I get a USB/serial to BT converter (e.g. from RF Modules Australia) and use that for BT? Can you plug your own BT modules in and save a bit of cash?

Thanks,
Pitrack_1
Me i use VEEPEAK OBD bluetooth reader with car scanner pro IOS we have many option for data logging and many customize way to show the data you want to see.
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