Scan Gauge

[Soeley]

I decided to treat my self to a Scan Gauge II, only cost me £18 (mind you I did have £100 Amazon vouchers from work, and couldn't think what else to spend them on)

First dilemma was where to mount it?

or

or

Nah, none of the above. So I decided to.....

Finished view

When I get around to it I will make some infill pieces at the ends, to hopefully finish it off and hide the wire.

It just slots in there nicely and only needed a strip of rubber to make it fit snugly.

When it comes round to MOT/Service time it'll just pop out. I'd be interested to see where others have fitted them.

[johnan]

I have a Scangauge mounted as in your first picture and it has been there for 4 or 5 years, working perfectly and the digital display is fully visible in all lighting conditions.

My IQ has the TNS so it couldn't fit in the centre binnacle as yours, although that is where I had a Scangauge fitted to my Aygo when I had it, some years ago.

I just unplug mine from the OBD socket and temporarily poke the plug and wire behind a footwell panel, so they can have access to the socket if they need it, when it is service time. I leave the display unit in place though it is easily removeable if required.

I have found it to be a useful piece of kit.

John

[bobkneale]

I have also mounted mine as in your first picture. to right of dash (and steering wheel) just over the vent, it was put there because it was an easy place to fit it, plus I can reach the all the buttons on it without leaning forward at all. The cable runs mostly hidden down the side under rubber door seal to where it is plugged in. Only took 2 min to fit it and it could be fully removed in 60 seconds if needed.

I am truly impressed by all your efforts to mount it in the centre by removing all the dash to do so etc,,,

Positive Regards, Bob.

[bobkneale]

I have now just purchased a scan gauge E to link together with my scan gauge II, has anyone else tried this ?

I will then be able to display more info without scrolling through screens on the one gauge.

And does anyone know do they need to be both set up as separate units ? or when they are linked together does one transfer its settings to the other ?

[Soeley]

I am going to have to Google that now, not heard of that before?

[johnan]

If you link them with the ethernet cable and set them both to read instantaneous mpg, for example, then if they are sharing information, such as calibration details, then they will both show the same reading.

If they are not talking to each other the readings will be different, which means the E gauge will need to be calibrated separately.

I presume!

John

[bobkneale]

I am going to have to Google that now, not heard of that before?

I have asked scan gauge manufactures in USA the relevant questions, they do sell both units IE Scan gauge II and scan gauge E as a package both together with a link cable to join them together.

I will see what their response is.

[johnan]

UKOBD, who sell them in the UK, include the link cable if you buy just the Scangauge E, so they must assume most people will have a Scangauge2 already.

It would be a good thing not to have to go through the calibration procedure again, for the fuel and distance readout accuracy.

John

[johnan]

I contacted the UK suppliers, about data sharing and calibration.

The answer is that both need to be calibrated separately.Though they work together they do not share data.

So if you use the Scangauge2 (already claibrated) for fuel and distance readouts, and the new one for other information you will not have to calibrate the new one.

John

[bobkneale]

I contacted the UK suppliers, about data sharing and calibration.

The answer is that both need to be calibrated separately.Though they work together they do not share data.

So if you use the Scangauge2 (already claibrated) for fuel and distance readouts, and the new one for other information you will not have to calibrate the new one.

John

Thanks John for finding out for me, I have not had a response yet from USA scan gauge with same questions.

[bobkneale]

Re Using scan gauge II and scan gauge E together at the same time:

E mail response below (to a list of questions I asked them) from scan gauge USA below:

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You will need to enter the set up information on the ScanGaugeE. Personally, I would use the ScanGaugeE to monitor the MPG and the average as you will be able to view the graph as well. Then use the ScanGaugeII for any temperatures, XGauges or any other trip values you would like to monitor. You can either purchase a y-cable or daisy the units together; either set up will work. Make sure that you vehicle does not use the ISO protocol. If your vehicle uses the ISO protocol, it will not communicate with two devices at one time. To check the protocol your vehicle uses select MORE>MORE>MODE on the ScanGaugeII.

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I might be wrong but regards to ISO protocol in E mail comment above, I "think" the UK IQ is CAN 11bit (500kb) protocol so I should be OK ?

Positive Regards, Bob.

[johnan]

I expect the protocol will be OK but if in doubt use the method suggested in the e-mail to verify.

If David is about he will know!

The e-mail seems to imply that you can enter the same calibration information into the "E" as you put into the Scangauge2 to calibrate the fuel and distance functions, which would save going through that process again.

I wonder if it is possible to interrogate the "2" to give the parameter values used for calibration, which could be then fed into the "E", as I certainly don't have a note of them!

The "y" splitter sounds like a plan but I don't know where you could get one of those, I may ask the UK suppliers if they sell them.

John

[craggle]

Just out of interest, What do these things do to justify the expense?

Seems an expensive way to get a MPG readout or does it do more than that?

Craig.

[johnan]

They are not cheap, but as an engineer like you Craig, and a builder of kit cars like yourself I am used to being able to keep an eye on the important engine parameters such as cooling and Battery charge (not oil pressure though) and many other things as well as accurate fuel consumption.

In 1980 I built a car that I used every day as my commuter vehicle which I used until 2005 and not to be able to keep a eye on what the engine was up to would have been a no no, so I feel a bit uninformed using a car without some sort of engine monitoring, apart from the idiot lights.

Of course a Scangauge is not needed, but I like it and it is a gadget, so it must be good!

It is also very easy to fit, just plug and go, which helps.(apart from fuel readouts which need calibration)

John

[craggle]

Okay, So it's more than a fancy MPG gauge.

I do miss the temperature gauge, must admit and a volt meter would be good, Especially when I'm sitting there with the heater on, lights on and the engine stopped. I know it's meant to do this as part of the eco stop start system but I always wonder, will it start again, Thankfully it hasn't failed yet. :)

Always confused by that cool light on the dashboard too, It goes out way too fast. My car is cool all the time, it has a spoiler. :D

Craig.

[bobkneale]

I have bought a Y splitter (from E bay) for the OBD port as well as a "link cable" from scan gauge UK supplier so I have both options available to connect them up together. John is right scan gauge is not needed unless you are a engineer that is suitably intrested in gadgets and experimenting with technology,

I have justified it to myself as an "experiment" to learn more about OBD port functionality plus experiment with options to improve MPG as well as a diognostic tool to read and clear potential fault codes etc,,,,

I also like to know what is going on re engine temp / voltage / throttle position etc, etc, I have built a few of my own cars in the past in the days before computer controls so I also guess it's about time I started to learn more about the computer control systems as they are not going to go away and are here to stay, so I want to gain further knowlage and understanding about all the potential functionalities as I can see that increasing my MPG may well be linked to the way the engine management system works.

I am not expecting to get all my money back for the total investment, of buying both the scan gauges just perhaps some learnings / experience and possibly better MPG in the end.

We will see !

[bobkneale]

FYI:

I now have scan gauge II plus scan gauge E both working OK together on my IQ

Scan gauge E is used for fuel economy readouts and a economy graph readout, it fits neatly just behind the steering wheel in front of dashboard that is not obscured at all.

Scan gauge II is used for all other functions

They both work fine connected via a "Y" connector to OBD port, all connections including OBD port are now hidden and out of the way under the plastic cover where the drivers knee airbag is.

After initial set ups were completed Calibration for Scan gauge E is only needed at each petrol fill up.