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Wanted to review the BlueDriver data tool I just bought from Lemur (on Amazon). If you have an iOS device and a 1996+ Ford Truck (except for the 7.3L PSD), you need this.
Yes, you can get 100's of Chinese-made devices that connect to the TorquePro app for Android for MUCH less (about $25 vs. $99), but is $75 worth switching your phone? Android users would probably say "yes", and I respect that. This device is built by a small Canadian firm that hacked the SAE protocols for OBD-II and coded an elegant app to match. The only reason you should buy this is if you love your iphone and do not see yourself switching to Android soon.
The interface is intuitive. The app is easy to navigate, and can log data while you drive. After you arrive safely, just email the spreadsheet to yourself. Then, you can compare data without having to glance while driving at your phone. If you want, you can make this your tachometer. My truck doesn't have a factory tach, so it was a joy to watch this data stream to my phone!
The kicker: If you have a BT-enabled head unit like mine, you can continue to listen to your podcast or music while recording BlueDriver data. That's right- the iphone can do simultaneous BT functions! Just don't try and multi-task switch the app if you're logging, because it will re-start your data log if you toggle the apps.
Bottom Line: This app is easy to clear codes and read log driving data. On my '96 F-150, 300 I-6, M5ODR2 truck, it gave me:
Calculated Engine Load (%)
Engine Coolant temperature (C and F)
Short Term Fuel Trim Bank (%)
Long Term Fuel Trim Bank (%)
Engine Speed (RPM)
Vehicle Speed (KPH and MPH)
Timing Advance for #1 Cylinder (degrees)
Air Intake Temperature (C and F)
Mass Airflow Sensor Rate (g/s and lb/min)
Absolute Throttle Position (%)
This is excellent data- sure beats "seat of the pants" testing!
Again, this is a small company that actually responds to your emails. I asked them today about the "calculated engine load" parameter, and they sent back a sheet from the OBD-II guidance explaining exactly how they created that column. The data analysis is up to you, but let me tell you- this beats everything I've done before to gather data.
Yes it's expensive but yet you won't get this data from anything else out there (yet). You can just leave it plugged in to your OBD-II port and let it hang out. It will NOT drain your battery, or even fire up until you fire up the app on your phone. Please, don't drive distracted- this app gives you everything you need on a spreadsheet after you arrived safely!
I've been looking for data like this as long as I can remember. I can't embed a spreadsheet in this post, but if you PM me I'll send you an example of the spreadsheet the BlueDriver generates while you're driving.
I gave away my OBD-II scanner because it could never do with the the BlueDriver does, and I can actually analyze data now!
Anyways, this makes feelbetter about selling my '95 for a truck with OBD-II. That's not a reason to ditch your '95 and earlier, just a scratch for the data-itch that hasn't been available to date!
The 7.3L PowerStroke Diesel will ONLY read engine speed (RPM). I hooked it up to our drill rig (CPT/Hogentogler for you fellow coneheads!) and it gave me a set of fairly bogus data. Only engine speed was useful. DON'T buy this if you have the diesel.
