# OBD2 Scanner Software Options???



## SPL Tech (Mar 21, 2016)

I got one of those $20 wireless OBD2 plugs from eBay that interface with your laptop. I was using ForScan with my girlfriend's car and it works great! But ForScan doesent work with Nissan, so I am wondering that is the best software option. I am just playing with it for fun so I am not going to pay money for something. Ideas? I have an NV200 van.


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## jdg (Aug 27, 2009)

What is your girlfriends car and what Nissan are you trying to use it on?

And "one of those $20 wireless OBD2 plugs from eBay" doesn't narrow it down by much.


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## SPL Tech (Mar 21, 2016)

jdg said:


> What is your girlfriends car and what Nissan are you trying to use it on?
> 
> And "one of those $20 wireless OBD2 plugs from eBay" doesn't narrow it down by much.


NV200 SV. I don't remember the scanner name, but they are all the same. All OBD scanners do the exact same thing regardless of brand. They all read all sensor data from all modules on all vehicles and transmit it to a laptop. It's up to the software on the laptop to interpret the data.


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## jdg (Aug 27, 2009)

SPL Tech said:


> NV200 SV. I don't remember the scanner name, but they are all the same. All OBD scanners do the exact same thing regardless of brand. They all read all sensor data from all modules on all vehicles and transmit it to a laptop. It's up to the software on the laptop to interpret the data.


No, no they don't. Why do I know this? Because I design and built these things from scratch, circuit boards, programmed MCU's, write the software, etc.etc.etc.

Cheap eBay scanners come in 3 versions.
Ones that work on everything...have CAN bus transceivers. Cheap.
Ones that working on almost everything...don't have CAN bus transceivers. Cheaper.
Ones that don't work at all...crap shoot as to what they've got inside, maybe a rock. Cheapest.

So, again, what kind of car does your girlfriend have?
What care are you trying to use it on?
And which one of those OBD2 scanners did you buy?


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## SPL Tech (Mar 21, 2016)

jdg said:


> No, no they don't. Why do I know this? Because I design and built these things from scratch, circuit boards, programmed MCU's, write the software, etc.etc.etc.
> 
> Cheap eBay scanners come in 3 versions.
> Ones that work on everything...have CAN bus transceivers. Cheap.
> ...


THis is what I have:

Wireless ELM327 OBD2 OBDII Bluetooth Car Auto Scan Scanner Torque Android New | eBay

My GF has a Ford C-Max Hybrid. It worked fine with the car and it read all modules and over 300 sensors in the vehicle when using ForScan software. The vehicle I am using it on is an NV200 SV, as I've said previously.


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## jdg (Aug 27, 2009)

I've got 3 of those.
1 doesn't work at all, never did...don't have the ambition to try and fix it either. The 2nd has an older version of the software AND hardware which will not and can not support CAN vehicles due to pieces/parts (eg. CAN bus transceivers) that are not on the circuit board. And the 3rd works as advertised.
All 3 of them said the same thing in the ebay ads...same as your link above.

What year is the C-Max? Possible that your scanner does NOT support CAN and that particular vehicle is NOT CAN bus, therefore won't work, and your NV200 SV is CAN bus....hence why it'll work on the C-Max and not on the NV200.

Look at the OBD diag connector. Figure out which pins are present (and are NOT present). Google it and figure out which vehicle supports which protocol. Only certain pins are available with certain protocols.


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## SPL Tech (Mar 21, 2016)

jdg said:


> Look at the OBD diag connector. Figure out which pins are present (and are NOT present). Google it and figure out which vehicle supports which protocol. Only certain pins are available with certain protocols.


What does it matter? Either it works or it doesent. No need to overthink this. My question is what software program should I use on my laptop. If I install it and it cant communicate with my device, so be it, I'll find out. No need to overthink this and drag it out, all I am looking for is a software recommendation. It worked remarkably easy and well with the Ford. I connected to it on wifi, opened the program and boom, instant data. Easy as pie.


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## jdg (Aug 27, 2009)

Well, either you didn't read or you're not getting the point. Yes, this stuff should be plug-n-play, but it's not always.

Not every vehicle talks the same language/protocol.
Not every OBD scanner is able to talk every language/protocol.
That's why it matters.
If your OBD scanner won't talk the same protocol as the vehicle, whatever software you're running will sit there and spin it's wheels and get nowhere.
So, yes it matters which pins are physically in the OBD socket of the vehicle in question because each different protocol uses a different set of pins to do the talking. It matters which version of the OBD scanner you have (whether or not it's advertised as being able to access every car or not, mainly because it's eBay, and yes, I've been hosed as well). And it matter which software you run. If the software doesn't know to search for a particular protocol, it won't, hence, you won't connect to OBD.

As for me, I use stuff I've written myself for my own home made scanners, my own software for those eBay scanners, both on the PC and on Android phones.
On the PC side, I don't use any commercial software or freeware. It's all my own stuff. On the Android phone, if I'm not using my own stuff, I'm using "Torque Light".

What year is that C-Max and the NV200?


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## SPL Tech (Mar 21, 2016)

Both 2013.


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## jdg (Aug 27, 2009)

Ok, then they _SHOULD_ both be CAN bus vehicles, meaning if it works on one, it should work on the other. But that's not always the case.
Next question is, do the pins in the OBD connectors match up between the two vehicles? Meaning if there's a pin in position #1 on one vehicle, there should be one in position #1 on the other vehicle.
Yours should both have pins in positions #4,#5,#6,#14,#16. I'm guessing since it works on the C-Max, it does. I'm also guessing since it doesn't work in the NV200, one or more of those pins is not there.
What country are both of these vehicles in? Some European stuff is a bit odd as far as OBD stuff goes.


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