Many cars today still continue to ship only with basic driver information functionality. That model without an onboard computer, for example, could tell the owner more if the equipment were installed.
However, there are many alternatives available in the aftermarket to give the owner more access to their vehicle data. It all starts with the famous OBD II port. In the 1990s, only mechanics (skilled, by the way) knew what it was and what it was for.
Today, some consumers, more interested in technical items, know well what an OBD II port is. On-Board Diagnostic (OBD) is a self-diagnosis system used by virtually every car in circulation today. The ODB has been standardized since 1996 starting in the US and Europe. In Brazil, the ODB II started from 2010.
It is through the best obd2 scanner that the mechanic has access to the data contained in the engine ECU so that he can discover and correct faults that may be occurring in the propeller. However, thanks to the opening of communication codes and international standardization, the repair costs of the vehicle (in this case) and its reading device have dropped dramatically.
If in the 1990s the dream of some was to be able to read the ECU from their car at home, today this is a reality. Not many devices connected to the OBD I and II are now self-diagnosing and still offer the owner an even more complete on-board computer than the factory-available one.
How it works?
Today you don't need wires and a big handset. The idea is to use the smartphone's Bluetooth or Wi-Fi (Apple apps only) connection and apps to interpret the information. A good app today can even use mobile GPS to determine at which point in the trip the vehicle has performed the best or worst overall.
An OBD II adapter (ELM327 interface in general) connects to the vehicle's access port and sends the information directly to the smartphone, which through an app can provide information about actual car performance, consumption, fluid temperatures, emission CO2, dynamometer, among others. Torque Pro, for example, is one of them.
This data can also be viewed through specific devices such as portable HUDs that project this and other data onto the vehicle windshield. Navdy, published in NA on August 7, has this role. In addition, most function as a black box type, recording all vehicle data on a trip or over certain periods of time. One app with this functionality is Dyno-Scan, for example.
Some apps even calculate maintenance costs according to engine usage and condition, making it easier for those who program in advance. In general, most apps work in any car, but there are more specific apps dedicated exclusively to certain makes and models.
Even the driver profile is recorded by these apps, such as DrivingStyles, for example. Dash Commander is another very interesting app. It not only diagnoses ECU errors, but also turns off the engine fault light.