OBD scanners - What do you monitor?

[Brett L.]

I recently received my ScanTool OBDLink LX and have been messing around with the different parameters that you can monitor. I have an older tablet that I plan on dedicating to this task to monitor things like battery voltage, trans temp, etc. For those of you that use Torque Pro, OBDLink, etc., what do you monitor when off-roading? Really curious to hear what parameters others are keeping an eye on.

 

[RoarinRow]

I monitor current mpg, ave mpg, air intake temperature, and horsepower. Stuff my 2002 rig doesn’t have by default.

 

[1Louder]

If you tow a trailer.. transmission temp.

 

[Dilldog]

Things that I would monitor would be coolant temp, oil temp, oil pressure, trans temp (I say coolant temp and oil pressure as most dash mounted gauges dont give you an actual number, just a hi, low, normal). Those would be the biggies, if you are able to another few good things to monitor would be engine load percentage (not sure if many if any light duty ECMs calculate this), throttle position (really only useful if you can also get engine load percentage, otherwise its only useful for troubleshooting issues), transmission line pressure (only useful if you know what the specs are, it can indicate low fluid, poor fluid pickup, or filtration issues) and fuel pressure. With those and a little education you can tell if an issue is happening or about to long before a sensor sets a code.

 

[drrobinson]

Coolant temp, trans temp, tire pressures.

 

[USStrongman]

My JKU comes with the EVIC system which measures just about everything, but I do use my JScan app on my phone when pulling a trailer so everything is at a glance without cycling through the EVIC on the dash. Trans and engine temps in the summer with or without a trailer.

 

[USStrongman]

And while I was searching I ran cross this nugget I didnt know existed.

Extended EVIC hidden menu (MOPAR) - mr-fix.info

Extended EVIC hidden menu access oil pressure, throttle position, battery voltage, digital speed readout and more in Electronic Vehicle Information Center.

mr-fix.info

 

[MazeVX]

Trans temp, oil temp, coolant temp and dpf temperature.

 

[ryanorr280]

I watch trans temp, coolant temp, voltage, and tire pressure.

Bought mine just for trans temp since Toyota didn’t put a gauge in it

 

[The Captain]

I have an Ultragauge and use it to monitor, Fuel Level Litres /Fuel Level Average Litres per 100km/Distasnce to Empty/Engine Temp/Intake Temp/Trans Temp/Torque Converter Temp