Why would you get a scangauge....

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Nick R

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When you could get a $25 OBD 2 bluetooth reader, and a $5 app (for android phones) that does everything right on your phone. I picked one up, installed the torque pro app, and paired it with my S5, and drove my dad's car around. Realtime Cat temp, O2 voltage, manifold pressure (boost),fuel trim, ignition advance, pretty much everything but oil temp. It was the coolest thing I've ever seen. I just need to set up the gauge setup I want for my focus, and get a dash mount for my phone. I'll just leave it running all the time. Iz so cool. Scangauge is $200+, this cost me $30 and does everything right on my phone.
 
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Only issue I have noticed is the phone's battery can't keep up when I'm using a bluetooth scanner. Doesn't matter if I have it plugged into the 12V outlet or the original charger on a power inverter ... it drains the battery fast.
 
You had me excited for a little while until you mentioned that it doesn't read out oil temperature. You shouldn't tempt the BITOG Gods that way.
 
Originally Posted By: Nick R
Why would you get a scangauge....
So that you have a dedicated display that you can permanently mount in the car, and you can use your phone for other things like nav or talking or texting, and all these other things that you should not be doing while driving. smile
 
Originally Posted By: A_Harman
You had me excited for a little while until you mentioned that it doesn't read out oil temperature.
Yeah, and neither does Scangauge, at least for my car.
 
no, it can read EOT if the ECU provides it, apparently. But the cruze at least (my mom has my focus right now) doesn't seem to report it. I'll try it with the traverse, and my focus and report back later. But engine oil temp doesn't seem to be a super common sensor even now for most cars.
 
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Originally Posted By: A_Harman
You had me excited for a little while until you mentioned that it doesn't read out oil temperature. You shouldn't tempt the BITOG Gods that way.
Me too, I want something that will tell oil temps and transmission fluid temp if possible.
 
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
Originally Posted By: A_Harman
You had me excited for a little while until you mentioned that it doesn't read out oil temperature. You shouldn't tempt the BITOG Gods that way.
Me too, I want something that will tell oil temps and transmission fluid temp if possible.
It will report these, if they are reported by the ECU.
 
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: Nick R
Why would you get a scangauge....
So that you have a dedicated display that you can permanently mount in the car, and you can use your phone for other things like nav or talking or texting, and all these other things that you should not be doing while driving. smile
This is exactly why. I wanted a permanent display, that just happened to integrate into my dash somewhat nicely. Mine was about $150 and it was worth it to me. Camera makes the display look messed up, but it is actually clear in person.
 
Originally Posted By: KrisZ
Why would I need any of that? I can see this being cool for a while but getting old mighty quick.
I found the same thing. I bought the $20 Bluetooth dongle and use Torque app on my small Acer tablet. It's fun to play with, and for even confirming that my ECM can tell the difference between 87 and 93 octane fuel (it does!), but for day-in and day-out operation, I just didn't find all that information to be terribly compelling. Both of our vehicles have a instant and average fuel economy display, and I use those a lot. If I didn't have an instant or an average MPG meter, then I'd feel more compelled to have a product like a Scan Gauge or Ultra Gauge installed.
 
Originally Posted By: Hokiefyd
Both of our vehicles have a instant and average fuel economy display, and I use those a lot. If I didn't have an instant or an average MPG meter, then I'd feel more compelled to have a product like a Scan Gauge or Ultra Gauge installed.
Good point. Same here... the OBC in my car can display most of the stuff that I'm interested in like avg/current MPG, liters of gas left in the tank, true coolant temp (not the dummy gauge), etc, so unless I can find a gizmo that can show me my oil temp, I don't really care. Unfortunately, the Torque people don't know the PID to be able to display the oil temp. I guess that's why you have to pay the big bucks for AutoEnginuity to be able to get this info.
 
Originally Posted By: Nick R
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
Originally Posted By: A_Harman
You had me excited for a little while until you mentioned that it doesn't read out oil temperature. You shouldn't tempt the BITOG Gods that way.
Me too, I want something that will tell oil temps and transmission fluid temp if possible.
It will report these, if they are reported by the ECU.
Good to know I'll have to look into it a little more. Thanks
 
Originally Posted By: Nick R
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
Originally Posted By: A_Harman
You had me excited for a little while until you mentioned that it doesn't read out oil temperature. You shouldn't tempt the BITOG Gods that way.
Me too, I want something that will tell oil temps and transmission fluid temp if possible.
It will report these, if they are reported by the ECU.
If the car has an OLM, it will have an oil temperature sensor. It's necessary input for the OLM algorithm. (At least on GM cars.)
 
here is the setup I just did, with the traverse at idle for a few minutes as I set it up. I need to adjust minimums on maximums for a few of them, like fuel flow rate, and fuel rail pressure. It was originally configured for metric, so the mins/maxes are a bit off.
 
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Originally Posted By: Nick R
here is the setup I just did, with the traverse at idle for a few minutes as I set it up. I need to adjust minimums on maximums for a few of them, like fuel flow rate, and fuel rail pressure. It was originally configured for metric, so the mins/maxes are a bit off.
Does your vehicle send the signal for transmission fluid temps?
 
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
Originally Posted By: Nick R
here is the setup I just did, with the traverse at idle for a few minutes as I set it up. I need to adjust minimums on maximums for a few of them, like fuel flow rate, and fuel rail pressure. It was originally configured for metric, so the mins/maxes are a bit off.
Does your vehicle send the signal for transmission fluid temps?
Neither the traverse, nor the cruze does. My car I know doesn't have an actual trans temp sensor. I have no idea what cars do, or don't have it. EDIT: It seems they do, but I have to find the PID data so it can read it, I guess. I'll do a bit more reasearch and get back on this.
 
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Originally Posted By: Hokiefyd
Both of our vehicles have a instant and average fuel economy display, and I use those a lot. If I didn't have an instant or an average MPG meter, then I'd feel more compelled to have a product like a Scan Gauge or Ultra Gauge installed.
That's exactly why I would want one - for our older vehicles. I have a hard time going out and buying one just for this purpose though.
 
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