Boost Reading From OBD Port??

[Workinearly]

If the Cobb AP can display boost/vacuum from the OBD port why can't a simple, cheap display/gauge be made to work the same way? I'm new to this so don't be too quick to break out the torches and pitchforks if this subject has been discussed already.

[PhilT]

Greddy Infometer does that and more, not too expensive either.

[Guest *Jedimaster*]

Greddy Infometer does that and more, not too expensive either.

 

What else does it do?

[PhilT]

From the sales blurb

 

Communicates with the factory ECU to read up to 25 Channels Like: Speedometer, RPM, Water Temp, Ignition Timing, Injector Rate, Intake Air Temp, Fuel Temp, Air Flow Voltage, Intake Manifold Press, 02 Sensor Voltage, A/F, Battery Voltage, Throttle Position, WGV, ATF Temp, EGR Temp, Exhaust Temp.

 

http://www.rallysportdirect.com/shop/images/newsdesk/greddyinformeter.jpg

[Guest]

Yes, boost is in ECU. You can read it via OpenPort cable on a PC with openecu.org's software.

 

I am planning a carpc project with all sorts of gauges, including boost, of course. Other stuff, like oil pressure and temperature which are not available in ECU, need to be done via extra sensors and analog-to-digital converters.

[franklin]

I agree. I read my realtime boost today for the first time with my AP. I dont understand why a boost guage need be so expensive either.

[Guest]

I agree. I read my realtime boost today for the first time with my AP. I dont understand why a boost guage need be so expensive either.

 

Because people pay for it. Subaru's OEM is Defi and Defi charges arm and leg, well, because people pay for it. And it comes with extra boost sensor. Indeed puting another sensor on the car where there is already one is kinda silly. If Subaru wanted they could make a gauge that could cost literally $20 and could come standard with the car.

[t0ad]

I had one of these for my old Grand Prix .. Interceptor OBD2 data stream gauge and scan tool by Aeroforce Technology

 

It was a really neat gauge, they had a special revision put out for a group buy on the ClubGP forum. When you fired up the car it displayed the Pontiac logo I wish it worked in the Legacy. Maybe it would if enough people could persuade them *cough*

[Guest *Jedimaster*]

From the sales blurb

 

 

 

http://www.rallysportdirect.com/shop/images/newsdesk/greddyinformeter.jpg

 

Thanks.

[Workinearly]

Thanks for the response. That unit has a lot more features than I need but for the money and sheer simplicity it's just what I want. Are there any competing units?

[leftride]

one note isnt the Greddy unit's boost reading in Bars not PSI....

[Workinearly]

I can live with that.

[700watts]

Now here’s an idea …….Is possible to hack the trip computer or at least the display and get it display Boost and all the other good stuff…with a touch of the button?

[rallispec]

Now here’s an idea …….Is possible to hack the trip computer or at least the display and get it display Boost and all the other good stuff…with a touch of the button?

 

 

anything is possible given enough effort -- I can't see any way in which this would even come close to being easy to do though.

 

However I really like this idea.

[700watts]

anything is possible given enough effort -- I can't see any way in which this would even come close to being easy to do though.

 

However I really like this idea.

 

Do you remember a while back...there was a thread with two EE's that spent a lot of time hacking the car stereo so that the could hook up an amp or mp3 player to it. I bet those guy's could it with ease

They took hacking a stereo to a whole nother level....

[TSiWRX]

Thanks for the response. That unit has a lot more features than I need but for the money and sheer simplicity it's just what I want. Are there any competing units?

 

Brother jholder found this:

 

ThinkGeek :: ScanGauge II Automotive Computer

 

Also, I'm pretty sure that Blitz offers a similar unit to the GReddy Informeter.

 

And, of course, there's the HKS CAMP.....

 

Additionally, other units, such as the Scanmaster3, TXS DTEC, as well as various "turbo-timers" all will have some form of such functions (but whether or not they need to be hard-wired, or if they can read from the OBD-II port, is something that you'll need to look into carefully - similarly, they have many different display capabilities as well...i.e. the Scanmaster3 does quite a bit of stuff, but it doesn't display live boost).

 

But before you act on any of these, I would highly recommend that you at least try-out the various free (i.e. ecuEdit, ecuExplorer, etc.) as well as marketed (i.e. digiMoto, DeltaDash, etc.) datalogging/road-dyno programs, particularly if you already have a OBD-II cable available (for all you AccessPORT owners), and, of course a lap-top. While some of these programs do not feature "digital dashes," many others do, and you may eventually come to either appreciate features/readouts that are currenlty only available for display through the dataloggers (i.e. live knock-correction readings, IAM, etc.) and cannot be had through the "square gauge" devices like the Informeter, etc.

[neonwannabe]

subscribed

[Workinearly]

Brother jholder found this:

 

ThinkGeek :: ScanGauge II Automotive Computer

 

Also, I'm pretty sure that Blitz offers a similar unit to the GReddy Informeter.

 

And, of course, there's the HKS CAMP.....

 

Additionally, other units, such as the Scanmaster3, TXS DTEC, as well as various "turbo-timers" all will have some form of such functions (but whether or not they need to be hard-wired, or if they can read from the OBD-II port, is something that you'll need to look into carefully - similarly, they have many different display capabilities as well...i.e. the Scanmaster3 does quite a bit of stuff, but it doesn't display live boost).

 

But before you act on any of these, I would highly recommend that you at least try-out the various free (i.e. ecuEdit, ecuExplorer, etc.) as well as marketed (i.e. digiMoto, DeltaDash, etc.) datalogging/road-dyno programs, particularly if you already have a OBD-II cable available (for all you AccessPORT owners), and, of course a lap-top. While some of these programs do not feature "digital dashes," many others do, and you may eventually come to either appreciate features/readouts that are currenlty only available for display through the dataloggers (i.e. live knock-correction readings, IAM, etc.) and cannot be had through the "square gauge" devices like the Informeter, etc.

 

 

 

Thanks for the info. Can a PDA or a handheld computer be used instead of a laptop with this software?

[wire_bug]

Hey guys - as a new owner of an 06 OBP LGT Wagon (and new to the board:icon_mrgr) and as an electrical engineer by day, this could be a fun little project for me to start playing with. Someday, I'll buy the Cobb AP and the Stage1 map, but for now, can anyone provide a specification of the said "OBD-II" cable?

[TSiWRX]

Thanks for the info. Can a PDA or a handheld computer be used instead of a laptop with this software?

 

I am uncertain of whether or not any of the free dataloggers can be supported on a PDA/handheld.....I know the question popped-up at one point on the Tari (ecuExplorer) site, but the final result was unconfirmed. If brother FCar is reading, maybe he can chime-in?

 

As for pay-software, the only one that I can recall, off the top of my head, that supports such mobility is the digiMoto system, however, I would encourage you to contact their maker ( another LGT brother had contacted them before, on another issue, and they were very professional and responsive ) to see exactly what parameters are read and displayed ( i.e. if you're specifically after boost readings, you're gonna be pissed if, going with the PDA/handheld version, somehow, you can't display boost! ).

 

...but for now, can anyone provide a specification of the said "OBD-II" cable?

 

There is an "OpenPort 1.2" cable, available at Tactrix, which, as with the AccessPORT cable, allows for end-user reflashes/access to the ECU.

 

If you are only looking to datalog, any "generic" OBD-II -to- USB or OBD-II -to- Serial cable can be used (based on what's needed to hook up to your computer, on the other end - the Tactrix OpenPort 1.2, for example, is configured for newer laptops, and is a direct OBD-II -to- USB interface, it's just slightly too short to "wire permanently" in our LGTs, though, so I have a USB-extension cable set-up so that it crosses over to my passenger's seat), I would recommend that you log-on to the various vendor/software Forums to verify compatibility - Tari Racing is a good link to start with, and Calvin provides you with a good list of sources to pursue in his "stickied" "OBD-II Cable" reference post.

[wire_bug]

I would recommend that you log-on to the various vendor/software Forums to verify compatibility - Tari Racing is a good link to start with, and Calvin provides you with a good list of sources to pursue in his "stickied" "OBD-II Cable" reference post.

 

Don't you just love newbies that don't search before they post?

Thanks for the pointer - exactly what I was looking for.

[TSiWRX]

^ LOL, everyone's a newbie at some point. No problem.