Road Report- Agilis, OBD and sumo springs

[mkguitar]

2006 Pleasure Way Lexor on a 2005 Chev 3500
Returned from a 7700 mile trip and a couple of thoughts:

1.) I use a bluetooth odb dongle with a switched extension. OBDfusion app on an old dedicated Iphone.

main display RPM, tranny temp, engine temp, instant MPG trip MPG

tranny temps stayed well within range. ambients temps from 40's to 100º+

van has a fan kit which I see comes on at about 220º and will quickly pull temps down below 200º usual cruising temps at about 206º

Useful, reassuring- I no longer have to stare at it anticipating disaster


2.) Michelin Agilis tires - 2+ years old and 24,000 miles. continued great results for ride quality, handling and noise- superb shedding of water in heavy rain- I notice in rain that the water coming off the tires is more controlled and I'm not creating 2 rooster tails for other drivers to enjoy & and less crud on the back of the van


3.) Sumos rear and bumpstops front. much better control of swaying due to crosswinds or swaying on twistie roads, a more positive feel.
Increased comfort for passengers or dog in the rear on humps and bumps- less bounce


4.) and kudos to gas buddy app for helping us plan fuel stops- showing how fuel prices can change from State to State or Province to Province and that sometimes that 20 minutes off course to save 1¢ a gallon doesn't make sense
-but sometimes 10 minutes off course can save $25 on a tank


( most of our stops were costco gas)



google maps still works better for us than waze ( also google) or apple maps

with good real time display of traffic slow down/congestion on routes with options to divert


mike

[Thevon]

Hi Mike...what is a bluetooth odb dongle with a switched extension. OBDfusion app on an old dedicated Iphone? I have a 2006 190P and seems the info you list is critical to know when under way. Thanks, Greg.

[mkguitar]

on some vehicles the OBD port is "always on" this can drain the battery on a parked vehicle ( over time)


also the ODB port location in some vehicles puts an OBD reader in the way of my boot going for the parking brake pedal


so I got an extension with a switch- (this one is no longer available, but there are others)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1


and I use this dongle:


https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1



As we do, old phones become obsoleted.

I use one old iPhone in the van which has the OBDFusion app on it



and it could be a spare if I ever drop mine in the river


While I find OBDFusion very useful and have even used it to reset trouble lights on rentals cars, it doesn't do everything.


One forum member had ABS & stabiltrak lights come on after a dyno smog test and couldn't reset those with the app.

On my prius it will tell me the only general condition of the battery- but I need a specialized app to see the condition of each cell in the battery


but it works dandy in the van


mike