"VRMan" <pbatson68@yahoo.com> wrote:
: I noticed this little plugin thingy to the left of my steering wheel just
: under the dash. Is there a cable made that can plug into that and into a
: laptop? Is there then a program for the laptop to read the data from the
: truck? Can you alter stuff in your truck programming with the laptop then?!
: 8^)
: That'd be pretty damn cool being able to monitor your truck with your laptop
: while on trips and such. Hell, I use the laptop for gps/map directions
: anyways!
Yep, that's a OBD-II data port, and yes, you can plug your laptop
into it and get all sorts of info. (the readings from every sensor
in the vehicle, fuel trim, diagnostic trouble codes, etc.) You're
pretty limited in what you can change though. The dealership can do
quite a bit, but there aren't many comsumer products available that do
much more than clear out the trouble codes.
I have the Ease software from http://www.obd2.com, but there are
several other manufacturers of similar software. The software
included the data cable that runs between the OBD-II port and the
serial port on the laptop.
Just as a word of warning, I don't know if things have improved at
all, but on my '96, the on board computer is a bit slow by today's
standards, so if you hammer the throttle, priority is given to
running the engine. Unfortunately, this means that very little
priority is given to the data port, so the connection will often
be dropped as a result. I didn't have a problem with WOT if I worked
up to it, but something like a drag strip launch is guaranteed to
sever the data connection.
---Jon-
.---- Jon Steiger ------ jon@dakota-truck.net or jon@jonsteiger.com ------. | I'm the: AOPA, DoD, EAA, NMA, NRA, SPA, USUA. Rec & UL Pilot - SEL | | 70 Cuda, 90 Dak 'vert, 92 Ram 4x4, 96 Dak, 96 Intruder 1400, 96 FireFly | `------------------------------------------ http://www.jonsteiger.com ----'
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