Bluetooth OBDII scanner

I found a new piece of technology recently that I predict will help me out greatly in the future, and it already has. With a little patience, I am sure others reading this could also put it to use.

Things needed:

• Bluetooth capable Android device (sorry no Apple based apps could be found) 
• Torque app (free/lite or paid/Pro)
• OBDII bluetooth scanner 

I recently purchased a bluetooth OBDII scanner, listed on the Amazon store as "Yongtek ELM 327 Bluetooth Obdii Obd2 Diagnostic Scanner, Elm327 Wireless OBD 2 Scan Tool Check Engine Light CAR Code Reader". It can be found here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0076KBPNI/
The price as of today (without shipping) was around $15 which is a great deal. At this price if it dies or breaks after a short time, I am not out much money, unlike other code readers which tend to start out around $100.

I already have an Android tablet (Viewsonic 7") with Wifi and bluetooth capability so I hoped it would work properly. The only other thing needed is the Android app called "Torque". There is a free version called "Torque Lite" and a paid version "Torque Pro". These apps can be found here: https://play.google.com/store/search?q=torque and http://www.1mobile.com/torque-lite-obd2--car-96634.html
My tablet cannot use the Google Play Store so I had to get the Lite version from 1mobile which is included on my tablet (as is Amazon Marketplace, but they do not have the app available there).

 One big downside is the documentation that comes with the OBDII device. It comes with a mini CD which is actually a mini CD-R that whomever is selling this included whatever the original documentation was on this burnable disc. It includes some Windows programs that are at best sketchy. It needs key generators or paid licenses (from the official sites) for the programs to work properly. For now we will ignore this, but if anyone is planning to use (or using) a laptop with bluetooth, you are better off using legal programs, like the open source OpenOBD (available for Windows and Linux here: http://sourceforge.net/projects/openobd/ ) which states it works with ELM237 devices. If you have a garage/shop with a desktop PC, you should be able to just get a simple USB based bluetooth adapter (like this one: http://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-USB-Micro-Adapter-Dongle/dp/B001EBE1LI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1353108550&sr=8-2&keywords=usb+bluetooth ), and be able to connect to any vehicle in the shop where the scanner is plugged in (within 20-30 feet or so).

 First I will state the instructions needed to get this working for me since it is a bit annoying getting everything talking to each other, but worth it once it is.

1) Plug in scanner device; I knew that code readers tend to work best if you plug it in, then turn key to ON/ACC (but do not start the vehicle right now), so I did this. (After everything was working I was able to start the vehicles and get good readings through the torque app).

 2) Enable bluetooth, scan, pair with code 6789; I enabled bluetooth on my tablet, pressed scan and found the device listed as "CHX". When I attempted to pair, it stated "try codes 1234 or 0000" yet every time I did this (either code) it refused to pair over and over. Finally I went inside and I put the included mini-CD in my PC. I looked at all the (VERY POOR and bad English) documentation, and one line in one file I found said "pairing code: 6789". When I went back out and used that code, it paired first try (said "paired but not connected" but I hoped that was up to the program/app, and I was right).

3) Open Torque app I knew I needed an app to read it properly so I had previously installed the Torque Lite (free) app from 1mobile (also available on Google Play store, but my tablet cannot use the Google store or apps). After I ordered the device but before it arrived, I played around and learned a little about the app and its settings so I would hopefully be ready when the scanner got here (I was right, it did help).

 4) Tell Torque which bluetooth device to use In the Torque app, I had to open the options and find the setting for "Bluetooth Preferences - Device" and chose the CHX which I had already paired. After that the app started reading, the green lights started flashing on this device, I added the gauges and items I wanted in the app (long hold on the main screen, then Add Widget) and it all works nicely. Different vehicles will have different information it passes along via OBDII, typically older vehicles with fewer sensors have less to display/read, and newer vehicles will have a lot more information.

 I used this on 2 different vehicles without a problem (once I figured everything out):

1) 2004 Dodge Durango (Limited, 5.7L Hemi). Torque allowed me access to at least 2 dozen different "gauges" or widgets, including any active or previous codes (it had none).

2) 2000 Nissan Frontier. The Torque app pulled a code from the Nissan (P0235 knock sensor), and it also has the option to clear it after it is fixed (I ordered the part today to replace the sensor first). The number of widgets available here was about half as many as the Durango, but still enough to get some information on how the engine is running.

Second, I figured I would place some of the information from the text files, exactly how they appear on the mini-CD. The main file is "softwareinstruction.txt"
 -----
we suggest that you can use "scantool_net113win",if you think that this software isn't easy to use, you can free to choose following software:EasyOBDII,OBD2Spy,ScanMaster-ELM.But them require lisence. Bluetooth pairing code for: 6789
-----
Once I found this, it helped with pairing my tablet to the device... and yes I am a guy and rarely get directions first.

There are also these folders:
 EasyOBDII
OBD2Spy
ScanMaster-ELM
scantool_net113win
USB Driver (likely for Windows 2000 and older computers since they would need a USB based bluetooth adapter like the one linked above)

Overall it would have been nice to have a simple piece of paper with the pairing code and the documentation with better info, but for cheap stuff from the orient, this has come to be expected.

VIN Decoding

As time goes on, more people want to know exactly what options came with their specific vehicle. This seems to especially be so for classic, sports car and even truck fanatics.
The first one I am going to put together is my own vehicle, a 2nd generation Dodge Durango (2004-2009).

I started with the base VIN of mine, compared to other Chrysler decoders and extrapolated more as I went along.

1D4HD38NX4FXXXXXX - starting VIN, last 6 X'd out for security

Dodge Durango VIN Decoding:

Digit:

1st Country of Origin

• 1 - USA
• 2 - Canada
• 3 - Mexico
• 4 - US Diamond star motors (typically motor homes)
• J - Japan (shouldn't see this)

2nd Brand

• D - Dodge
• C - Chrysler

3rd Vehicle type

• 4 - Passenger (private) vehicle
• Other digits may show here if it was a fleet, corporate or non-standard Durango

4th Gross Vehicle Weight Rating

• H - signifies GVWR of 6,001 to 7,000 lbs. which all Durangos should fall under.
• Only a V6 ST model may have "G" which is 5,001 to 6,000 lbs.
• Another possibility is that this was used for axle ratios and not GVWR, in which case H = 3.92

5th Body style

• D - 4 door
• there may be other letters here, please let me know if yours is different and the extra info to go along with it such as 2 or 3 rows of seats, ST, SLT, Limited, etc... there may be more that is not shared here.

6th Series

• 3 - ST
• 4 - SLT
• 5 - Limited
• This may also signify the engine and not the series or have more options such as "4.7L ST", "4.7L SLT", I am waiting for more information before finalizing this section.

7th Unknown, possibly drive train

• 8 - 4x2?

8th Engine

• N - 4.7L V8, 289 cid
• M - 3.7L V6
• P - 5.7L Hemi V8 318 cid

9th Check digit, see bottom of this post for more information

10th Model year
This covers all Chrysler products at least since 1990 or earlier.

• R - 1994
• S - 1995
• and so on to Y - 2000 (as in Y2K)
• 1 - 2001
• 2- 2002
• and so on, (4 - 2004, 9 - 2009)
• A - 2010

11th Assembly Plant

• A	Auburn Hills
  F	Newark
  G	Saltillo
  J	St. Louis North
  K	Pillette
  M	Lago Alberto Assembly
  S	Dodge City (Warren Plant)

12 to 17th digit is the specific serial number. Anytime your model differs from the above list, it is best to contact Chrysler corporate with your VIN to get an exact build sheet.

Every now and then a VIN does not follow the normal convention mentioned above, such as the 8th digit has been found to contain the digit for the V6 yet the vehicle has the 4.7L V8. As vehicles are rolled off the line, if the V6 was not up to specs, they may have made a last minute decision to replace it with the 4.7L. Another possibility is the V6 engine blew with low miles and the dealership or mechanic shop replaced it with the 4.7L at that time.




Position 9 is from a Check Digit calculation:

The United States of America and Canada require that the 9th position of the
Vehicle Identification Number is to be used as a check digit to provide a means
for verifying the accuracy of the VIN transcription. It is calculated by using
the other 16 characters of the VIN to generate a single digit number.

1. A numerical value is assigned to letters in the VIN. I, O and Q are not
   allowed so their positions are skipped. A=1, B=2, C=3, D=4, E=5, F=6, G=7,
   H=8, J=1, K=2, L=3, M=4, N=5, P=7, R=9, S=2, T=3, U=4, V=5, W=6, X=7, Y=8,
   Z=9


2. A weight factor is assigned to all positions of the VIN, except of course
   to the 9th position (the check digit itself), as follows: 1=8, 2=7, 3=6, 4=5,
   5=4, 6=3, 7=2, 8=10, 10=9, 11=8, 12=7, 13=6, 14=5, 15=4, 16=3, 17=2



3. The numerical values of the letters in the VIN are multiplied by their assigned
   weight factor.


4. The resulting products from step 3 are added up.


5. The sum of the products is divided by 11.
   
   
   
   • The numerical remainder (0 through 9) is the check digit.
   
   
   • If the remainder is 10, the check digit is the letter X.
   
   
   • So the 9th position of the VIN will be a number 0-9 or the letter X.