Bluetooth OBD Adapters

Discussion of various J2534 Pass-Thru devices and Portable Computers.
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Dolfius
Posts: 64
Joined: May 31st, 2017, 2:54 am

Bluetooth OBD Adapters

Post by Dolfius »

Hello guys. For the record, I have a Versa Link cable and 8" Proline Windows tab I use for monitoring. The inability to charge the tab whole having the Versa cable connected is a right pain in the ass for my requirements. That, and my tab is acting weird as well - it'll only charge when switched off, and I can't seem to find the problem.

So I'm exploring other options. I know monitoring via a Bluetooth adapter is generally slower than a wired connection. But as far as I know, most (if not all) use the cheaper obd2 scanners found on ebay, Amazon, etc.

The question really, is has anyone used a more expensive adapter, like this one for example? http://www.obdlink.com/mxbt/
They claim it can read around 100PID/s. I know ine of the bottlenecks is the ECU itself, but is this regarded as good by the set standards?

Some input and expert advice here would be great.

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Ugnius @ VersaTune
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Joined: March 19th, 2010, 11:57 am

Re: Bluetooth OBD Adapters

Post by Ugnius @ VersaTune »

We have tested OBDLink LX and MX and we recommend them as the highest speed wireless alternative.
It is not possible to reach 100 PIDs/s over Bluetooth, but we have seen rates as high as 47 PIDs/s (as opposed to 20 PID/s with cheap ELM327 based adapters). We found no differences in terms of speed between LX and MX.
Dolfius
Posts: 64
Joined: May 31st, 2017, 2:54 am

Re: Bluetooth OBD Adapters

Post by Dolfius »

I see when having my Windows tab hooked up to my gen 1 Versa Link cable, it says "50 Requests Per Second" on the Dashboard screen. Is that the same thing, meaning it's reading 50 PIDs per second?

Gen1 ECU in question here, btw.

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Ugnius @ VersaTune
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Joined: March 19th, 2010, 11:57 am

Re: Bluetooth OBD Adapters

Post by Ugnius @ VersaTune »

That is correct, 50 PIDs/s is the limit imposed by the gen 1 ECU. Starting with gen 2, the limit has been raised to 200 PIDs/s.
Dolfius
Posts: 64
Joined: May 31st, 2017, 2:54 am

Re: Bluetooth OBD Adapters

Post by Dolfius »

Thank you Ugnius. Just one last question (I think ) - apart from monitoring (not logging ) with Versa on a Windows tab, is there an app you have found to work the best for this? Preferably an Android one. I know Torque Pro is quite popular. Anything else just as good, or even better, in your experience?

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Ugnius @ VersaTune
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Posts: 580
Joined: March 19th, 2010, 11:57 am

Re: Bluetooth OBD Adapters

Post by Ugnius @ VersaTune »

I don't own a Mazda vehicle anymore, so my information might be outdated. From what I've seen Torque Pro only offers the standard OBD-II parameters and does not include Mazda specific ones (like knock retard, wastegate DC, etc.)
There is an app called FORScan Lite that supports Mazda specific logging parameters as well as dealer level diagnostics.
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