I thought I would do a little write up on the Torque OBD2 app for android.

I've had my cell phone mounted to my dash with a proclip mount for a long time now. The phone is always in plain view while driving which makes it easy to see. I've used it to check traffic with google maps, see who's calling when my Bluetooth starts ringing through my stereo, and listen to steaming radio (also through bluetooth).

About a month ago I saw a video about the Torque app. It seemed pretty straight forward and I liked the idea of being able to monitor things outside of the three gauges I already have added (oil temp, oil pressure, water temp).

Here's the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCZyxrS_ixY

Here's a link to PLX: http://www.plxkiwi.com/kiwibluetooth/hardware.html

I ended up downloading the app and then the PLX devices Kiwi Dongle. There are cheaper bluetooth obd 2 dongles out there, but after doing some research the Kiwi seemed to be the most solid with the best customer support. This was a good thing since my first one arrived DOA. I ordered it through amazon.com and simply did my exchange through them.


Even though I never directly emailed PLX about this issue they responded within an hour just from the amazon return. The person I dealt with was knowledgeable, friendly, and did everything he could to make sure I was doing everything I could right. We exchanged emails over the course of 2 days and within that time I received my replacement from amazon.

I was impressed with how invested tech support was even though they knew I was already getting a replacement. They didn't just hope it would work, they took the time to ensure it had the best chance of working. So if you decide to get a bluetooth dongle, i would suggest giving Kiwi a long look.

The second dongle did the trick, from unpacking to seeing information on my phone was under 2 minutes. It's very easy to set up and has a lot of information that you can display.

Did I also mention Torque can read and clear codes? yep, there's an app for that

If you want to check out the software its here: http://www.plxkiwi.com/kiwibluetooth/software.html. There are other apps that will work with the dongle but torque is the most downloaded and highest rated of the bunch.
Here's a screen shot of some of the screens on torque. Every dial, graph, and digital readout can be custom set for info and size.

As with most "universal" obd 2 readers, not everything is going to display, but there are lots of things to choose from right out of the box. There is also suppose to be an update coming that will allow custom PID's.

 

I have to second this. Torque is great. I used the free version on my old hacked htc touch, and put the paid version on my aria. I use the cheap ebay bluetooth dongle and never had an issue with it (so far in 6 months). Though, I believe the kiwi has an off switch so you can leave it plugged in.

Anyway, There is an option already for custom PIDs (settings, scroll all the way to "manage extended PIDS"). Also has the option for alarms.

All in all, if you have a spare android phone (or dont mind dealing with putting it in a little "dock"), save yourself 300 bucks and buy this, as opposed to the msd dashawk or something.

 

Torque is awesome. Just buy a good OBDII dongle though. I made a mistake and bought a cheap one off of ebay. It works on other cars just fine with a horizontal plug, but our RX8's have an angled plug, so mine doesn't seat properly. If it starts to fall out, it can make your car go crazy ( i know from experience! LOL). Needless to say, buy a GOOD dongle and make sure it has a tight fit!

PS: If you are playing your music via bluetooth from your phone, you don't want to run torque at the same time. Your PIDS will not refresh very fast at all if any!

 

So how does it compare with the Innovate Motorsports OT2 and Logworks? Does it log? (I am sorry I didn't watch the vid before - I was on my wife's IPad then.)

 

it has full logging features, and can export to a website of your choosing or email.

 

I use torque with my Android LG phone - Runs sweet and I haven't had any issues at all with it. The data logging is great although I've just upgraded to Android 2.3.3 and I've lost a couple of realtime sensors but gained others so not too worried.

The blue tooth dongle is the Deal Extreme US$50 but it seems to work with torque

All good

 

How fast does it log? When I have four measures being logged on my AP, the timestamps vary from .04 to .09 seconds between rows.

 

thats a sweet video. I was actually considering getting that kiwi device as well but always wondered about the communications latency between the obd2 and phone. Also would be nice to know the sample rate too. Really cant beat the price either way though.

 

WRT to sample rate, the RX-8's CANBUS runs at 500k, but the rate on most OBD2 readers is set to 38k and cannot keep up with all messages. The ELM327 based ones with USB can, just[1] with a bit of reprogramming but then you'd need an android pad and even then most of the OBD programs cannot cope with anything except the default 38k.

(I've spent waaaay too long looking into the RX-8's CANBUS).

Druid

[1] The ELM327 has a limit of 500k, the USB interface allows much higher but you run into issues with specifying the higher speeds. The bus should be at most 70% utilised however so slightly less than 500k should still work.

 

I just found the app last nite. played with it all day today at school. It looks cool, can display similar things as the COBB AP (minus tuning of course) for $5 + whatever dongle you go with

 

dash command is also out for android. i havent played with it much yet

 

Kiwi PLX sampling rate = 10,000 Hz regardless

 

In our vehicles the adapter can easily become lose as stated priorly, easy fix, just put a piece of paper in when you insert it, I use one of those oil reminder stickers, clings nicely to the plastic as intended. I've seen someone else take a lighter to there's to shape it some, worked but I'm not a fan of burnt plastic. A zip tie will also fit around it in our car. Hope I helped someone less creative than myself.

 

yes Torque is AWESOME! I use it EVERY DAY. Don't forget to add these external PIDs so you can see MAF Voltage, real time tire pressure and temp

pid: 221177
name: MAF Voltage
sName : MAFv
Min: 0.0
Max: 5.0
Scale x1
Unit: Volts
Equation: ((A*256)+B)/3700
Header: 7E0

Must Have TPMS Installed For These
pid: 22C901
name: Tire 1 Pressure
sName: T1Press
Min: 0
Max: 50
Scale: x1
Unit: psi
Equation: ((A * 1373) / 1000) * 0.145037738
Header: 751

pid: 22C901
name: Tire 2 Pressure
sName: T2Press
Min: 0
Max: 50
Scale: x1
Unit: psi
Equation: ((B * 1373) / 1000) * 0.145037738
Header: 751

pid: 22C901
name: Tire 3 Pressure
sName: T3Press
Min: 0
Max: 50
Scale: x1
Unit: psi
Equation: ((C * 1373) / 1000) * 0.145037738
Header: 751

pid: 22C901
name: Tire 4 Pressure
sName: T4Press
Min: 0
Max: 50
Scale: x1
Unit: psi
Equation: ((D * 1373) / 1000) * 0.145037738
Header: 751

pid: 22C902
name: Tire 1 Temp
sName: T1Temp
Min: 0
Max: 200
Scale: x1
Unit: F
Equation: (9/5 * (A - 50)) + 32
Header: 751

pid: 22C902
name: Tire 2 Temp
sName: T2Temp
Min: 0
Max: 200
Scale: x1
Unit: F
Equation: (9/5 * (B - 50)) + 32
Header: 751

pid: 22C902
name: Tire 3 Temp
sName: T3Temp
Min: 0
Max: 200
Scale: x1
Unit: F
Equation: (9/5 * (C - 50)) + 32
Header: 751

pid: 22C902
name: Tire 4 Temp
sName: T4Temp
Min: 0
Max: 200
Scale: x1
Unit: F
Equation: (9/5 * (D - 50)) + 32
Header: 751

 

guys what other apps can I use to do some logging via my elm 257 wifi using some Iphone app?

would like to log my track sessions(20-30min each). what are the sample rates that you can log with these wifi obd readers?

this is the reader I have:

specs:

This WIFI interface support all OBDII Protocls.
This WIFI OBD interface are fully compatible with many software, such as engine running parameters monitoring, DTC reading and clearing, MPG meter, etc.
SSID: OBD Device, IP/Port: 192.168.0.10:35000, Antenna: Internal, Wifi Standard: 802.11a/b/g. Please do not change the SSID of the device.
Power Consumption: 0.75 Watts, Operating Temperature: -15 to 100 Celsius, Size: 15x13x4cm
Package including: 1x OBD2 WIFI Diagnostic Reader Scanner, 1x CD

 

I perfer to use the Piston app (how ironic) when using my ELM-327. I chose the app because it's 2 clicks to start using it when getting in the car. Dont want to be fidling with the Torque app forever. Also, Piston seems less buggy and a little smoother operating. Just my .02.

 

I have torque pro, and I noticed the vacuum/boost data was active, the vacuum gives me a generous 21in/hg, my guage gives me 17-18. However to my surprise when I went into boost the guage shows boost! 10psi on guage and 10psi on display. I am scratching my head as to how it's doing this, I didn't realize you can calculate boost!

 

what setting pid are you using?