Hi,

I got a bunch of auto zone gift cards for the holidays, I used to have a scan gauge with my old srt4 but my buddy broke it. I'm looking for something to help me drive a little more efficiently. Kinda like this ScanGauge - Trip Computer + Digitial Gauges + ScanTools

I'd like to get it from autozone to utilize these gift cards. Any recommendations on a good scan gauge type tool. I'd like one that fits in a standard gauge pod.

Thanks

 

I personally am fond Equus Innova scanners. I personally have a 3140B (discontinued now) which reads both OBDI and OBDII codes with freeze frame data function. Here's a link to the updated version of it...


I'm looking into picking up the 3160 model which can read and clear ABS and SRS codes as well. The only downfall with it is that it doesn't read OBDI codes but that is a fair trade with this model... especially since I ready a scan tool which can read ODBI. Here's the link to it...

 

if youhave an android phone, I suggest finding an elm 327 v1.5 on ebay, and getting the free Torque app, or paying $5 for the pro version.

$20 or less gets you code read, code clear, datalogging, and seeing everything that your ecu sees!

Very handy tools!

 

Dammit, I got an iPhone 4S. Any iPhone options?

 

I was in the same situation as you. Although iPhone does have bluetooth, a BT dongle will not work unless your phone is jail broken (hacked). There are wifi dongles out that that do work with iPhone but are considerably more expensive.

I strongly recommend Ultragauge. It is a dedicated code reader that you can leave plugged in all the time. It has about 50 odd gauges. That you can assign to different pages. On my first page I have my instant mpg, trip average mpg and coolant temperature (really nice since there's no temp gauge in the Fit) among other gauges.

It's about 60$ and works as a code reader also. You can also set high or low alarms for any parameter. I opted for that since it's only marginally more expensive than a wifi dongle and I'd rather keep my iphone for music or as a dash cam.

 

The wifi ones are not much more expensive

here is an example

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ELM327-WIFI-OBD2-II-Wireless-Car-Diagnostic-Reader-Scanner-Adapter-For-iPhone-US-/171227479076?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27ddf3fc24
Here is what I personally use with great results

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Auto-Car-Diagnostic-Scanner-ELM327-OBD-II-V1-5-Bluetooth-/271382969666?pt=Motors_Automotive_Tools&hash=item3f2faf7d42&vxp=mtr
I get around 25 PID updates per second maximum.

 

That wifi dongle definitely looks like a good bet. However, I wanted to have a gauge to monitor instant MPG at all times. I can't be bothered to launch my iPhone app all the time. I like a standalone module with built in alarms/alerts.

 

It would be easier to get a real phone, the cheap ebay OBD2 plug in and an Android phone. The Torque app can give you instant and average MPG, HP , torque, engine temps, voltage, ambient temp, load, throttle position, air fuel ratio.......

Get a profile manager so you won't be "bothered" with launching an app when you dock it.

Or keep your iPhone, stay locked down to a single channel experience and spend a ton of money to monitor your cars parameters.

 

I advise finding an android phone on craigslist or such, and if you look online how to refresh its software, you can clean it of EVERYTHING except the torque app.

Basically make it into a single purpose device

 

or instead of buying an android phone, you buy UltraGauge which has all the gauges you need and max min alarms for any of the parameters and reads pending and trouble codes. It's like 70$ and comes with different mounting options. Plus the screen has automatic dimming so it has the correct intensity in any lighting situation. The only advantage to the dongle and android phone I can see is that it has no cable. I passed my cable in the kick panel and out the little fuse box door and up the side of dash (between the door and dash).

Also, the Honda Fit doesn't have an ambient temperature gauge so the ambient temp is (I believe) the reading for the intake manifold temperature when the engine is cold. Once the engine warms up though, I don't think it can be accurate anymore.