[sonic2wb]

Hey guys! I thought I would share some info about what ive been messing around with to see if i could help someone out or others have more info to add. So here we go.

2months or so ago i got my avalon. being it a 96 and being the newest thing ive ever owned i was like Cool its got obd2 and after years of seeing programs like ScanXL and Scantool. I set out to buy me a obd2 reader.

Well first place I looked was EBAY ( i love and am addicted to ebay) So on that note i found this guy. ( hes the CHEAPEST on ebay right now for the OBD2 USB reader for your laptop) His name is Peter Wong. and Yes hes in Hong Kong but his shipping is the fastest i have seen from there. i bought my reader on 7-25 and it was in my mail box today 8-3. IF you have ever bought anything direct from China you know 7 working days is FAST. Heres the link to the OBD2 Reader that I got. It supports All OBD2 types.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=220637277029

So im waiting for the mail lady to drive by today (yea im like a kid after i order new gadgets)

Yay theres a gray package from china in the mailbox. now they packaged this thing very well. I wish i would have taken pics before i got into it but like i said im a kid.

it comes in a plastic zip lock bag, which has foam inside it around the reader and cd. then the zip lock bag is wraped in foam then put into gray bag. End of Part 1 ill contiune with first hook up and testing after dinner.

 

[sonic2wb]

Obd 2 Part 2

Ok back after the break. so im going to snap some pics real quick with my blackberry so the img quality is going to be crap lol. but i cant find my canon at this time lol. OK heres the unit with packageing lol.

IF u can make it out, there are leds on the unit for I know the Red one (thats on in the pic is for USB power ( now the reason i have not figured this out is that on my 96 gen 1 this thing plugs in with the leds faceing the floor lol and i didnt want to be gumby to see some leds.) tommorow I will take some pics of it connected to my car. (dont know why i didnt think about that today)

Software.


There is a good selection of free and paid software out there for this thing. it comes with a cd with a few free programs for windows. (note. I run linux and run windows in VMware. this setup works just fine)

Scantool_net113win * version 121 is out NOTICE this program will work but it will gripe about the unit being a clone ( its because they want u to buy thier hardware= big $$$)

But for just checking codes and clearing them and some sensors its the deal!
EasyOBDII
OBD2Spy
ScanMaster-ELM
ScanXL-ELM im evaling this program now, now this program is not free and it costs around $90 but from what i have seen so far if ur into tuneing and watching the workings of your car you will not be disappointed.


part 3 coming up once i get some screen shots

are a few tools

 

[Jigg007]

Been there, done that. Its really cool with some of the tools you can use. Sadly, I am not pleased with the limited number of sensors available on the avalon, but that goes to say as cars evolved past the original OBDII and with the EPA cracking down more systems become monitored over time.

My favorite feature was being able to watch MPG calculations in real time, along with calculated engine load and all that.

My only problem is that my serial-usb converter likes to crap out every 20 minutes. something not to fixable while driving!

I mostly bounced between all the free software, annoying that there was not one program with all the features I liked. Scantool.net and Touchscan.

 

[sonic2wb]

Supported OBD-II Parameters

Ok So my friend has a paid copy of ScanXL which he was over here helping me with this stuff and he allowed me to use it for a bit. Since the demo mode of ScanXL will only allow you to see your RPMS. i have petitioned the maker of scanxl to do like a 3day or 1day trail of the full program.

Here are the OBD2 things you see about your car * now my 1996 Gen 1 only supports 50 of these and im going to try to copy and paste them here. you can see the full list here http://www.palmerperformance.com/support/supported_vehicles/generic_pids.php


Ok so here is what my car says i can monitor. *I had to screen shot the program for this to work I hope im not breaking any copyright laws in doing this IF i am please tell me.

part 1.

Part 2.

Part 3

Now if u notice on the last pic is says 53 pid's thats because ScanXL comes with scripts to calculate your fuel mileage <--- THIS IS REALLY COOL it allows you to see ur fuel mileage real time.

**** Thanks to david for allowing me to hook my car up to his ScanXL and Thanks to ScanXL for makeing a compete software.

You can get a demo version at thier site. http://www.palmerperformance.com/

Now i know it sounds like im a sales person for Palmer Performance but im not I just ran across thier software from a good friend and its really good compared to the free stuff that just checks codes and displays sensor values.

 

[sonic2wb]

Check out ScanXL from the link above it gives nice graphs and even has a Drag strip setup that will do ur times and speeds.