Er... I did, that's why I posted that comment above.

 

So I've had a few tests done now with this setup and it's still a mess.

The BT dongle in the new laptop with the various supplied software packages didn't work reliably. I was sitting in the car and I just had a devil of a time getting the thing to communicate reliably. I tried adding the BT device and it assigned ports but not all of the software packages could handshake.

So I moved on to trying it via my desktop pc and if if I started with a fresh boot no BT dongle installed and let XP discover and install the dongle then let the BT services discover the Elm it would do so every single time. No problem.

Then two or three of the software packages would hook up and show their limited data (demo versions). Hey! I've got it right?

Not so fast. If I exited the software or turned off the car or did just about anything to upset the apple cart I could never get back in and link up with the elm from the software packages.

Windows BT services would see it just fine but I would have to delete the BT device and assigned ports then reboot the PC in order to get this to work again and for how long if it were a full retail version?

That was with the Sable wagon.

With it in the Jag Windows BT services couldn't even find the elm BT device. I guess the Jag has a lot more shielding than the Mercury does. Not surprising.

None of this makes me feel terribly confident about buying a decent $100 software package to use with this hardware.

Any ideas on the port comm failure problem within Windows? When that isn't on the fritz it does look promising but I really have to jump through hoops.

Zero luck with the Jag so far but most of that may be due to the shielding.

My software on my WM6.5 phone also initially hooks up (sitting inside the car) and seems promising with some correct initial data feeds and then after a few minutes it drops the comm link. It did link up with the Jag also breifly.

I see a pattern here ...

It all sounds like the el cheapo elm is el cheapo because it no worko

Unless some break though occurs I think this experiment is over folks.

Brand name elm (preferably from the software vendor) with a USB interface sounds like a lot less trouble.

 

Search out either of the units pictured in this post of mine in another thread. One is bluetooth and the other USB. They both work, first time, every time.

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/s...e3/#post473364

Cheers,

 

Equus - Products - 3100 CanOBD2® Diagnostic Tool

 

Very overpriced. I'd avoid that!!

 

Well with everyone pushing me to get one I did! ELM327 shipped from China for $14. Using with Palmer Performance Engineering software on my wife's laptop. Have the extend pack for Fords. The ELM327 connected and read my 2003 Lincoln LS with I guess 100+ things I can monitor. The built in drag strip is cool and I hope to practice some to figure everything out.

Connected and read my 2005 STR without a problem but with less things I can read since no specific Jaguar software is out there?

Works great but the box connected to the OBD port sticks down too far and is in the way.
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You will like ScanXL....... I use it daily and have found it to be about the most powerful software out there for OBDII work; at least short of factory stuff. It isn't the most user friendly, but once you figger it out and get dashboards designed, it is powerful. It's also much quicker on the draw, so to speak.

Sometime back I posted a pack of the dashboards I've made. Maybe they'll help get you started. They're here:

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/s...84/#post333467

Good luck!

 

You can get cheap OBD extension leads e.g. ebay

 

Steve;
Glad to hear you like the Scan XL. Yes I saw your dashboard posted earlier in this thread and it influenced me to look at the ScanXL stuff. I need to educate myself and have started reading the ScanXL forums. Those guys are so far ahead that I am lost right now!! I have downloaded your dashboards and hope to try them out. I am looking mainly for diagnostic data as there is no usable Jaguar tuning software out there.

JagV8:
I will look for an extension cord as I was driving around for about an hour and it got REAL old fighting the OBD connector with my foot! Also ordered a DC adapter for the laptop as I ran the battery down just as I was practicing my launch for the drag strip. Your constant recommendation to get the ELM327 was certainly correct. Very cheap and it seems only limited by what software you combine with it. One limitation I did find which I don't think will matter is you can get software that can function test the cars sensors and actuators via the OBDII port. The ELM is not a pass thru device so it will not allow this at all.

I can see for a commercial shop where time is money you would want that to quickly decide what the problem is.
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Er... it WILL allow it, you do not need a "pass thru" (J2534) device. But you do need special software that for our cars probably doesn't exist for the elm.

 

You can glean some good information from the Palmer Performance Forums, but by and large those are the tuner types that really use Palmer software for more for whiz-bang CarPC dashboards and the like. Not very many users there are the 'diagnostic type' like me, and you it appears.

I meant to mention the DLC extension thing. I have several extensions I got from OBD2Cables.com. Some 5 ft., some 10 ft., some with a right angle connector at the car end. VERY, VERY handy. Even have a "Y" cable for connecting two different devices to the car.

If you get fluent with ScanXL, you might think about moving up the the MongoosePro JLR interface. I works great with ScanXL, and the 'response timeout' can be set much lower with it. That can make the ScanXL software work much faster than the ELM can.

Edit: Forgot to mention, the 12v power for the laptop is a good idea if you think you will be using it on the road quite a bit. Datalogging does keep the processor humping. You will exhaust the laptop battery much faster than normal. With a good battery in my machine I get two hours normal operation; on the fly with ScanXL I only get about 45 min.

Good luck! Give us a report how it works for you.

Cheers,

 

xjrguy;
MongoosePro JLR looks to be pro level stuff. Finally something aimed at Jaguar cars.

They show a plug in device (MongoosePro) very similar to my ELM327? Do you just buy their software for $599 and use it with the ELM327?

Maybe too much for a DIY at this time!

Just ordered a right angle 100Cm long OBD II extension cord. A nice Chinese made unit for about $7 on EBay. That should let me setup the ELM327 and the laptop better in the passenger seat while driving. I can see this thing getting pretty additive!!
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Well your el cheapo ELM327 worked better than mine. Congratulations on your gamble.

Does anyone have a decent recommendation for a quality version of this hardware that's not really expensive?

 

Generally they "just work" so I think you were unlucky. At the price on ebay I'd just buy another, from a different seller. Get the cheapest.

In case you got BT rather than USB then there are more things you're relying on working. I went for USB as it's faster, cheaper & more likely to work.

 

I'm gonna have to tussle with you on this one, John. I thought Bluetooth would be slower too, turns out I was wrong. I had the USB ELM327, and then decided to get the Bluetooth one also so I could quickly kill check engine lights. The used car guy is forever wanting that done, especially after they pressure wash engines. All they have to do is have the car in the building or right outside the glass and I can turn it off wirelessly.

Turned out that the bluetooth version is just as fast as the USB version. I can tell because I know how low I can take the response timeout setting on the various engine systems. They respond just the same, sure surprised me. The MongoosePro is much faster, of course, but for most things, either of the ELM devices suit me just fine. The Bluetooth is just quicker and less hassle.

Staatsof......you could try one of these, it doesn't break the bank.

Scan Tool Red Obdlink SX OBD II 2 Scanner Free Software | eBay

My two cents!

 

Well if you want Palmer has a low cost ELM327? It's $44 about the same as the one posted.

I think I would follow JagV8's advice and just get another cheapy. Will your original seller just send you another one? I have ordered a lot from Chinese EBay people and the rare times I get something bad. They just send another one if I complain.
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I'm using the USB ones at high speed, they'll do about 1MB/sec and many PIDs - limited by what the ecu is willing/able to do

For a typical S-Type using OBD software not going over CAN it won't matter BT or USB. But BT is still more likely to have problems which is what I like to avoid in a cheap bit of kit.

 

Does any of the ELM327 software allow reading the enhanced data from other modules in a Jaguar? Basically beyond OBDII?

I've had the BT ELM327 but I've been using it for fast diagnostics with my iPhone using FuzzyCar.

 

The elm could do quite a bit (not reflash) but you'd need software that no-one has written. To find the PIDs etc you could join etools but you won't like the price!!