My new Jetta and OBD app/adapter questions

Scott Leonard

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Nov 23, 2014
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Just came home with a brand new VW Jetta SE and want to get OBD Auto Doctor and a Bluetooth adapter but have a couple of questions:

Before I get started, let me say that I have now been affected by the app gap. VW's Car-Net service only has iPhone and Android apps :(

1. What are the differences between the $15 cheapo adapters and the $60+ adapters. I know one difference is the speed that the adapter can read the OBD sensors. Are there any other differences? Is the read speed really that important?

2. How many Bluetooth devices can I have connected to my WP 8.1 HTC M8 phone? It will be connected to the cars Bluetooth phone/audio system and I want a Microsoft Band soon. Will I have a problem having all 3 connected at the same time?

3. Any other concerns I should be aware of or any tips you want to convey?
 

oviedofreak82

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Aug 13, 2013
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The $60 connector is necessary as your car uses a high speed communication bus call CAN. The cheap adapter probably won't read the necessary data fast enough and I've seen some break easily.

2. As far as how many devices you can have, I currently have my Bluetooth headphones, my Surface RT, my wife's phone and her Surface RT connected to my phone as far as data transfer/connection I'm not sure as I've never used two Bluetooth devices at the same time.

Where did you get you Auto Doctor scanner from? I'd life to pick one up and use it on my iPad as a backup to my everyday scanner. Asks what systems can it access, engine/transmission only our other systems?
 

Scott Leonard

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I haven't purchased anything yet, just doing my research before breaking out the plastic. Their website is OBD-II software for car diagnostic | OBD Auto Doctor and you can get the full PC and Mac versions there. Standard is free, Full version is $39.95. The standard phone versions are free, Full license is about $10. The iPhone and iPad apps are in the Apple Store.

Now I just need to find a good quality adapter and find out how many Bluetooth devices can be connected at the same time. If I can't use at least 3 at the same time the app can connect to a wi-fi adapter instead.
 

o0Nighthawk0o

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Here is my experience with the Windows Phone OBD apps and Bluetooth adapters:

First are the cars I wanted to use this on. A 1999 Chevy Suburban, A 2000 Mercury Cougar and a 2013 Chevy Malibu.

I bought a cheap adapter first, a VGate ELM 327 Bluetooth OBDII adapter. This adapter worked on my 2013 Malibu but would not work on my older vehicles. It would connect to my phone but disconnect immediately or would not receive any data from the adapter.

I then bought a bit more expensive adapter, the BAFX adapter. (States Android Only but works well with Windows devices)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...ag=hawk-future-20&ascsubtag=UUwpUvbUpU2901361

This adapter connects and stays connected to my phone and receives all the data sent from the adapter. It will also connect to my laptop and tablet.

Now for the apps. I tried a lot of them and settled on the AutoGaugeX app and purchased it. It worked well until they did an update and now it acts like I didn't purchase the full version.

I now have OBD Auto Doctor and it works well but I haven't purchased the full version. I use this to read codes and then I use another app called OBD Clear Faults to clear any codes.
 

ratsttam

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I have two of the generic elm327 odbii adapters. I keep them plugged in full time to each of my vehicles. I was never able to get them to stay connected to my WP devices, they won't work with ios (that only works with wifi based adapters), so I got Torque Pro (more in-depth features and addons) and Touchscan (dashboard has fuel efficiency gauges that Torque doesn't have) for my Android and Fire tablets. They work great that way, and having that kind of information (such as fuel efficiency) can really help you drive your car better, more efficient, and be aware of any issues long before they show up as a check engine light (that you can clear on your own after reading the codes and their meanings).
 

hprvez

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I bought the cheapest Bluetooth obd adapter from eBay and it works perfectly, if they use elm they're all the same (unless they have an "i" before and are double the price, those are the best)
 

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