Dumb Question Thread - no flaming or sarcasm allowed
Hello everyone, I was checking out Android OBD Torque app. & wonder how accurate this could be. Especially temp. gauge. Scan codes & myriad other things. 4.95 + cost of adapter. Seems too good to be true. Any thoughts?
As for what works and doesn't? Well...
Works - Anything that the car would be able to tell you if it had a gauge of its own, such as voltage, temperatures, codes, rpms, speed, will all be accurate. It is reading directly from the OBD connection on the car, so it is always getting accurate readings (But remember not all items are actively monitored by the ECU, so its the cars fault in some cases)
Doesn't Work Perfectly - When it comes to things such as: Horsepower readings, torque readings, 1/4 mile times (in some cases), and other things of that nature, they will not be accurate. That is because those things are just 'calculations' being made. (1/4 mile times should be moderately accurate, though). There is nothing that can determine hp/tq, only a dyno can do such a thing.
From what you have described, I would recommend going for it. Hell, just for reading codes it is worth the cost of the dongle and app. Hope that helps.
DUMB QUESTION - Spring Cleaning Under the Hood.
MY rx8 is a 2005, and under the hood still has most of the OEM parts aside from battery, terminals, and intake.
You can imagine that a lot of the pieces are dirty and or have a bit of rust on them (Things that come to mind first are the alternator metal cover and strut bar). It's a used car is the point.
Anyways, I see pics of people who have just gorgeous and pristine equipment under the hood. Granted it's because most parts and new and have not seen winter, what is the best way for me to do a good cleaning under the hood? I'm sure you dont just grab a windex multi-surface bottle and go to town.
Is there any possibility/strategy of making whats underneath look new/like-new again?
MY rx8 is a 2005, and under the hood still has most of the OEM parts aside from battery, terminals, and intake.
You can imagine that a lot of the pieces are dirty and or have a bit of rust on them (Things that come to mind first are the alternator metal cover and strut bar). It's a used car is the point.
Anyways, I see pics of people who have just gorgeous and pristine equipment under the hood. Granted it's because most parts and new and have not seen winter, what is the best way for me to do a good cleaning under the hood? I'm sure you dont just grab a windex multi-surface bottle and go to town.
Is there any possibility/strategy of making whats underneath look new/like-new again?
It works great. I have quite a few friends who use it with a Bluetooth dongle and love it.
As for what works and doesn't? Well...
Works - Anything that the car would be able to tell you if it had a gauge of its own, such as voltage, temperatures, codes, rpms, speed, will all be accurate. It is reading directly from the OBD connection on the car, so it is always getting accurate readings (But remember not all items are actively monitored by the ECU, so its the cars fault in some cases)
Doesn't Work Perfectly - When it comes to things such as: Horsepower readings, torque readings, 1/4 mile times (in some cases), and other things of that nature, they will not be accurate. That is because those things are just 'calculations' being made. (1/4 mile times should be moderately accurate, though). There is nothing that can determine hp/tq, only a dyno can do such a thing.
From what you have described, I would recommend going for it. Hell, just for reading codes it is worth the cost of the dongle and app. Hope that helps.
As for what works and doesn't? Well...
Works - Anything that the car would be able to tell you if it had a gauge of its own, such as voltage, temperatures, codes, rpms, speed, will all be accurate. It is reading directly from the OBD connection on the car, so it is always getting accurate readings (But remember not all items are actively monitored by the ECU, so its the cars fault in some cases)
Doesn't Work Perfectly - When it comes to things such as: Horsepower readings, torque readings, 1/4 mile times (in some cases), and other things of that nature, they will not be accurate. That is because those things are just 'calculations' being made. (1/4 mile times should be moderately accurate, though). There is nothing that can determine hp/tq, only a dyno can do such a thing.
From what you have described, I would recommend going for it. Hell, just for reading codes it is worth the cost of the dongle and app. Hope that helps.
Ok .. I have a Cobb AP but I've been interested in trying this out as well.
Where is the best place to buy these blue tooth dongle things that connect to the OBDII plug?
eBay?
Amazon?
Canadian Tire?
Where is the best place to buy these blue tooth dongle things that connect to the OBDII plug?
eBay?
Amazon?
Canadian Tire?
You shouldn't have to spend over $20 to get a decent one. There are plenty for around that $20 mark that will work fine, seeing as your phone/other end of the connection be close by.
Here is one that I am personally thinking of ordering, though there are more low profile ones if you search eBay. It has great feeback, and one customers comments even stated it worked with the Torque App first time trying it out. That just goes to show you don't need to spend money on something so simple. Places will try and convince you differently, but don't listen to them.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/EXCEL-V1-5-S...9b6ad8&vxp=mtr
Last edited by FungsterRacing; Jan 28, 2013 at 11:46 AM.
As I said in my above post, as long as you don't go for the cheapest one you can find, you should be fine. Even the cheap ones will work, but they may not last.
Again, you shouldn't have to spend much more than $20, shipping included, for a good dongle. (I put up a link to one that has good feedback)
Many people will say differently, that you need the bigger, more expensive ones because they work best, but the reality is that they all do the exact same thing. The cheaper ones may not have as good of a transmission distance, but you won't be more than a meter or two away from the dongle, and even the cheap ones should work up to 5 meters at a minimum.
Last edited by FungsterRacing; Jan 28, 2013 at 11:43 AM.
There are dozens of options out there. Largely, the only difference is going to be price. You can get them for as cheap as $15ish and as much as $130ish.
The times that there WILL be differences is that the higher priced ones often have a better data transfer rate, and generally better quality control.
There are some horror stories out there of "this one bricked my ECU" or "that one let someone hack into my car", but every single story like this I found has been hearsay. No first hand accounts. All just "I hear someone had this problem".
So no proof of problems specifically, but to be on the safe side when I got mine I went for the top end and paid the $130 for the OBD+Key from OBDKey :: Wired and Wireless Automotive (OBD) Scan Tools (looks like the price is up a bit on exchange rate) This one has lasted over 4 years, and I have it plugged into one of my cars pretty much all the time, so the lifespan is certainly fine.
I DO definitely recommend the bluetooth dongle + Torque combination. I use it ALL the time. Tablet stand mounted to the passenger seat floor bolt connected to the OBD, it gives you your choice of gauges to monitor, several at a time, just a few, a whole screen of them, etc... The AccessPORT updates it's data by far more frequently, but you only get 1 data feed at a time.
The tablet also gives me navigation, tunes, weather, etc...
Here is what my setup looks like in my MSM (although fewer wires now). Same thing for the 8 really, just no pics for that.
I typically just have water temp, air intake temp (for the MSM being boosted), MAF, and O2 voltage (Torque doesn't have AFRs or lamba). Lower gauge count improves update speed.
The times that there WILL be differences is that the higher priced ones often have a better data transfer rate, and generally better quality control.
There are some horror stories out there of "this one bricked my ECU" or "that one let someone hack into my car", but every single story like this I found has been hearsay. No first hand accounts. All just "I hear someone had this problem".
So no proof of problems specifically, but to be on the safe side when I got mine I went for the top end and paid the $130 for the OBD+Key from OBDKey :: Wired and Wireless Automotive (OBD) Scan Tools (looks like the price is up a bit on exchange rate) This one has lasted over 4 years, and I have it plugged into one of my cars pretty much all the time, so the lifespan is certainly fine.
I DO definitely recommend the bluetooth dongle + Torque combination. I use it ALL the time. Tablet stand mounted to the passenger seat floor bolt connected to the OBD, it gives you your choice of gauges to monitor, several at a time, just a few, a whole screen of them, etc... The AccessPORT updates it's data by far more frequently, but you only get 1 data feed at a time.
The tablet also gives me navigation, tunes, weather, etc...
Here is what my setup looks like in my MSM (although fewer wires now). Same thing for the 8 really, just no pics for that.
I typically just have water temp, air intake temp (for the MSM being boosted), MAF, and O2 voltage (Torque doesn't have AFRs or lamba). Lower gauge count improves update speed.
Just saw your post. And there is no best for the RX8 specifically, basically all of them do the exact same thing - Send the OBD information to another device via a Bluetooth connection.
As I said in my above post, as long as you don't go for the cheapest one you can find, you should be fine. Even the cheap ones will work, but they may not last.
Again, you shouldn't have to spend much more than $20, shipping included, for a good dongle. (I put up a link to one that has good feedback)
Many people will say differently, that you need the bigger, more expensive ones because they work best, but the reality is that they all do the exact same thing. The cheaper ones may not have as good of a transmission distance, but you won't be more than a meter or two away from the dongle, and even the cheap ones should work up to 5 meters at a minimum.
As I said in my above post, as long as you don't go for the cheapest one you can find, you should be fine. Even the cheap ones will work, but they may not last.
Again, you shouldn't have to spend much more than $20, shipping included, for a good dongle. (I put up a link to one that has good feedback)
Many people will say differently, that you need the bigger, more expensive ones because they work best, but the reality is that they all do the exact same thing. The cheaper ones may not have as good of a transmission distance, but you won't be more than a meter or two away from the dongle, and even the cheap ones should work up to 5 meters at a minimum.
Registered User
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 6
Likes: 0
From: FL
Dumb question: (but actually asking...)
Does it matter if I mix 5w20 with 5w30 or 10w30? Like I grabbed a quart, was like oh I need a top off and then was like oh **** that's not exactly what I put in the first time....no big deal right??
Does it matter if I mix 5w20 with 5w30 or 10w30? Like I grabbed a quart, was like oh I need a top off and then was like oh **** that's not exactly what I put in the first time....no big deal right??
All motor oils are 100% compatible with all other motor oils.
There are some purists that point out that some oils have differing additive packages that may not play nice with other additives, but I have never heard of a problem there.
As noted in my new owner's thread, it's not really the brand, weight, or type of oil that is the issue. It's that you need as clean and fresh of oil as possible. Higher weights are a bit better for bearings, some brands and types deal with the heat better, but largely, regular changes for fresh oil is by far the most important thing.
There are some purists that point out that some oils have differing additive packages that may not play nice with other additives, but I have never heard of a problem there.
As noted in my new owner's thread, it's not really the brand, weight, or type of oil that is the issue. It's that you need as clean and fresh of oil as possible. Higher weights are a bit better for bearings, some brands and types deal with the heat better, but largely, regular changes for fresh oil is by far the most important thing.
Topping off with a different viscosity is no big deal. Personally I just wouldn't go from one extreme to the other, but I've had to mix 5w20 and 5w30 before.
Now regular and synthetic... big no no there
Registered User
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 6
Likes: 0
From: FL
Great. Thanks RIWWP
Yeah I keep within the brand at least, just curious. One of those, "this shouldn't matter according to my logic" questions, but then I think "what if I'm really wrong here and gravity doesn't exist?!?!"
Yeah I keep within the brand at least, just curious. One of those, "this shouldn't matter according to my logic" questions, but then I think "what if I'm really wrong here and gravity doesn't exist?!?!"
A catalyst is for emissions control. So if you live in an area that have the 'smoke' test or whatever you call it (emissions testing), then you better get the catalyst. Luckily where I register my vehicles, there is no emissions so I can go straight through all the way back
I believe my cat is failing and am planning on getting a replacement. Race Roots offers something new called a "High flow cat" which I have been looking at, but this is still indicated as a mid-pipe. That confuses me a bit I guess because I thought that those were 2 different things (like magnaflows are high flow cats, aka catalytic converters, and then theres midpipes which are not. Am I mis-reading it in the vendor section?).
In California, I was reading my smog test results, there are some counties (ike Riverside/Moreno Valley, according to the DMV) that aren't as strict as if you would have a test in Los Angeles or SanDiego.
