OBD2 reader

Author
Discussion

jimbo4289

Original Poster:

3 posts

52 months

Wednesday 19th February 2020
quotequote all
Hi,

This question has most probably been asked before but I am currently trying to find an OBD2 reader but unsure what to go for.

OBD2 bluetooth reader or traditional machine type?

Would be grateful to hear what people prefer and how people get on with there preferred choice.

Thanks in advance.

donkmeister

8,218 posts

101 months

Wednesday 19th February 2020
quotequote all
Depends what you want to use it for.
I use a Bluetooth one for Tele data for Torque app.
I use a marque-specific one with a cable for anything else.
If doing anything involving writing to EPROM you can royally brick your car, so buying a recognised one from a reputable manufacturer reduces that risk significantly.
If you just want to see your AFR in real time, a £10 eBay jobby is fine.

jimbo4289

Original Poster:

3 posts

52 months

Wednesday 19th February 2020
quotequote all
Cheers mate, I’m just after one to read and delete codes really.

designforlife

3,734 posts

164 months

Wednesday 19th February 2020
quotequote all
the android bluetooth ones are pretty adequate tbh...i keep one in the glovebox.

jimbo4289

Original Poster:

3 posts

52 months

Wednesday 19th February 2020
quotequote all
designforlife said:
the android bluetooth ones are pretty adequate tbh...i keep one in the glovebox.
Do you mind me asking what one you use?

p4cks

6,919 posts

200 months

Wednesday 19th February 2020
quotequote all
Get a £13 eBay cheapy plug in one and keep it in your glove compartment, no fannying on with downloading apps and using phones etc

ETA: £6.59 now ha! https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Car-Fault-Code-Reader-E...

Edited by p4cks on Wednesday 19th February 14:13

designforlife

3,734 posts

164 months

Wednesday 19th February 2020
quotequote all
One very similar to this-

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Torque-ELM-327-Bluetoot...

They are all much of a muchness tbh, some can be a bit temperamental but i would just take a punt in the £5-10 range.

My old one connects well every time but I had to insert some code strings into the torque app to get it to communicate with my Toyota... I bought a newer one as a spare and that was really patchy in connecting... it's all cheap chinese rubbish so YMMV.

The Torque Pro app on android however is great, it's only a couple of quid and you get quite a lot of functionality...it's just finding a cheap and reliable bluetooth reader to pair it with.

Desiderata

2,386 posts

55 months

Wednesday 19th February 2020
quotequote all
I've got a Konnwei bluetooth one permanently plugged into each car and Torque Pro loaded onto my phone.. The dongle thingys were about a fiver each and the TorquePro app was only a couple of quid although Torque Lite has most of the functions and is free.
Pretty basic, but if all you want is to read codes and reset eml, they're absolutely fine.
You've got the added advantage with the Bluetooth ones that you can delete these troublesome codes at the last moment before MOTs etc.