Need Advice for OBDII on 2005 Dodge Ram Cummins Diesel

IssaquahWA1979 · 10-07-2009, 03:57 AM

New to the forum and did some searching without much luck on what I was looking for so if this has been covered I sincerely apologize...

I have a 2005 Dodge Ram with the Cummins Turbo Diesel I am in the process of building my RamPC and would like to add OBDII functionality specifically getting engine parameters not on the current gauge display. I am looking for any advice or feedback on which OBDII module to use and which software would suit this application the best.

I appreciate the feedback!

Vitaliy · 10-07-2009, 02:31 PM

You can use any of the scan tools in the MP3Car store: ElmScan 5 USB, ElmScan 5 Compact, or OBDLink.

If you don't care about upgradeability or enhanced features, I would go with the ElmScan 5 Compact.

DashCommand is the popular choice for digital dashboards.

Another alternative is TouchScan.

michbound · 10-08-2009, 08:56 AM

Also take a look at the OBDPros scantool, this scantool supports all the OBD II protocols, is firmware upgradable and with the separate OBD II cable can be routed for placement anywhere within the truck

One additional advantage is that it will power off when your RAMPC is off so you will not be drawing any power when not in use without having to unplug it.

Thanks
Paul
OBDPros scantool

Vitaliy · 10-09-2009, 01:01 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by michbound

Also take a look at the OBDPros scantool, this scantool supports all the OBD II protocols, is firmware upgradable and with the separate OBD II cable can be routed for placement anywhere within the truck

One additional advantage is that it will power off when your RAMPC is off so you will not be drawing any power when not in use without having to unplug it.

Thanks
Paul
OBDPros scantool

Paul, it's good to hear from you again. Can you answer two questions for me?

- If OBDPros is upgradeable, how come the updates are not on your website?
- Your tools ship with a rebranded version of the open source ScanTool.net software, but you don't provide the source code. Would you be so kind as to post the source code here?

Vitaliy

IssaquahWA1979 · 10-09-2009, 03:33 AM

Thanks guys I will give those a look... Can any of these actually set options in the ECM/PCM? Last time I took the truck in for a reflash they defaulted my high idle to off and need to turn it back on can any of these do that?

obdiinut · 10-09-2009, 06:49 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by Vitaliy

Paul, it's good to hear from you again. Can you answer two questions for me?

- If OBDPros is upgradeable, how come the updates are not on your website?

Vitaliy

You must simply be trolling at this point. I can attest to the fact that I got an upgrade to add a feature I had requested and it worked great, looks like you asked this previously and got an answer

http://www.mp3car.com/vbulletin/engi...adapter-3.html

Vitaliy · 10-10-2009, 03:42 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by IssaquahWA1979

Thanks guys I will give those a look... Can any of these actually set options in the ECM/PCM? Last time I took the truck in for a reflash they defaulted my high idle to off and need to turn it back on can any of these do that?

Unfortunately, none of the generic OBD tools can do this. I would take the truck back to the dealer and ask them to turn it back on.

Vitaliy

Vitaliy · 10-10-2009, 04:14 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by obdiinut

You must simply be trolling at this point. I can attest to the fact that I got an upgrade to add a feature I had requested and it worked great, looks like you asked this previously and got an answer

obdiinut, it's very noble of you to rush to Paul's defense, but you should carefully look at the facts before declaring someone a troll. Yes, I did ask the question about the firmware before, and Paul told me the following:

Quote:

1. The latest version of the firmware is already on the device so the firmware upgrade would not do much :-)

2. No point in giving our competition an advanced insight on how we have implemented the firmware upgrade process

3. To ensure some degree of confidentiality even when we release new firmware our plan is to release it to only our customers via a secured section on our site rather than post it for the public.

This was four months ago, and:

1. There were no new updates since the 1.3 release (which is many months old).
2. ScanTool.net added update capability to the OBDLink scan tools, so point #2 is now irrelevant.
3. Updates for OBDLink CI and OBDLink are available as a public download.

So my question still stands: since Paul considers the upgrade capability to be one of the key selling points of his scan tool, and it's no longer exclusive to OBDPros, how come there are no downloadable updates on the obdpros website? It's a fair question that any OBDPros user should ask.

Second, Paul promised to provide the source code for the modified version of the ScanTool.net software, as required by the GPL. However, it is not available from the OBDPros website (why not?), and they canceled our last order, so we cannot verify that they included the source on the CD. May be time to contact the folks at the Free Software Foundation...

Vitaliy

michbound · 10-10-2009, 12:29 PM

Vitaliy,

You missed your calling as a Fox News reporter

1. Our OBDPro code is stable enough that we do not have to release frequent upgrades to fix trivial bugs unlike some of our competitors - if any customer wants to see what our upgrade looks like they can always PM me or contact me via our web site and I will send them a link to the upgrade

#2 is still very relevant as our upgrade file is a single file unlike how you have multiple files and it also allows you to upgrade without needing the .net framework so IMHO a much better experience

3. The source code to the OBDPro scanner is included on our CD as required by GPL, if anyone besides you wants to see it on our website I will post a link on our website. I will check with mp3car if I am allowed to link it to here... If you would like I can also email you the source code, please send me your email address

When did you order our scantool? Please send me the details of your order and I will look into what happened on Monday or go ahead and place another order and I will personally ship it- we would love for you to have our scantool so you can spread some more FUD :-)

Thanks
Paul

Vitaliy · 10-10-2009, 03:05 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by michbound

Vitaliy,
You missed your calling as a Fox News reporter

Perhaps.

Quote:

1. Our OBDPro code is stable enough that we do not have to release frequent upgrades to fix trivial bugs unlike some of our competitors - if any customer wants to see what our upgrade looks like they can always PM me or contact me via our web site and I will send them a link to the upgrade

I take it that by "some of our competitors" you mean ScanTool.net (nobody else offers firmware updates). I suggest you download the update, and take a look at the change log. There are several new features, among them additional commands that enable enhanced diagnostics not possible with other ELM327 compatible scan tools.

By the way, I am your customer -- we bought our first OBDPros in 2007.

So will you send me a link to the upgrade?

Quote:

#2 is still very relevant as our upgrade file is a single file unlike how you have multiple files and it also allows you to upgrade without needing the .net framework so IMHO a much better experience

Microsoft released .NET 2.0 five years ago, and most people have it installed already. Moreover, the diagnostic software you sell on your site requires it as well. I'm guessing the real reason you are reluctant to post the updater on your site, is its weak encryption algorithm.

Quote:

3. The source code to the OBDPro scanner is included on our CD as required by GPL, if anyone besides you wants to see it on our website I will post a link on our website. I will check with mp3car if I am allowed to link it to here... If you would like I can also email you the source code, please send me your email address

Yes, a link on your website would be great. If you prefer to send it via email, my email is vitaliy@scantool.net (but you knew that already).

Quote:

When did you order our scantool? Please send me the details of your order and I will look into what happened on Monday or go ahead and place another order and I will personally ship it- we would love for you to have our scantool so you can spread some more FUD :-)

Paul, I never said that we placed our order on Monday.. but I understand why you like to play dumb.

Send my regards to Jay,

Vitaliy

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