::Product Reviews > Brockway
Engineering R920 ODB II Code Scanner
If I wanted to find out trouble codes I
would have to do one of two things: bring it to a dealer/shop or
figure it out myself by turning that little screw on the ECU and
counting the blinks. That was before, now it is much easier.
Well, at least for most cars that were made after 1995 or 96.
It seems like the more cool
little tools I get, the easier it is to work on cars. The R920
from Brockway Engineering is no exception. This "tool" is just
as important as my jack and my ½ inch drive, because it will
tell me what is wrong with the car in the first place with no
hassle.
At first glance I really had no idea what was given to me. Then
I saw the ODB II connector and it all fell into place. First I
tried it on my 05 Titan. Everything worked flawlessly. All the
readouts worked and the best part is it matched my interior
lighting. Unfortunately, the unit we got was custom because it
only comes in white, blue, green or red.
I wanted to see how well it reads and how well it clears trouble
codes, so I asked my friend if I can use it on his 98 M3 because
his dreaded check engine light was on. It read the codes with a
few pushes of one of the two buttons and I cleared them with
just as much ease. Next, I wanted to see how useful it is inside
the car while I am driving. For a few days, I left it plugged
into my truck. It was interesting to see the intake air
temperature and the outside temperature because I figured the
when the truck is moving the air gets heated up between 10-13
degrees when it hits the intake air temperature sensor.
Therefore, I was be able to see how much colder the air was with
a cold air intake. I also got to see how the engine coolant
temperature changes with the heater on and off.
Brockway Engineering is also
developing new firmware that would show instant and average
fuel economy so no more calculating at the gas station. It
will work just great on our Nissans but it would not work if
you have a Honda because of the absence of a mass air flow
sensor. When I left the throttle position percentage display
on it kept my lead foot in check because I would try to keep
it under ten percent in attempt to get good gas mileage.
I can see how it can help the weekend mechanic but it
really shines when it gets into the hands of someone who goes to the
track. There is an Acceleration timer module that you can order with
the R920. I am sure you can imagine how that would come in handy, but
your transmission might not like it when you try to get a better 0-60
time by power shifting. You can also buy an external shift light which
is also a must for any track car so you do shift at the perfect time
every time. Another really great thing about it is, if you do not like
mounting the unit on a part of your car as-is, you can get rid of the
shell and integrate it with your dash. Brockway Engineering provides a
template for those who want to tackle such a project.
An alternative to an ODB II reader would be to use your PDA with some
added equipment and software. But personally the R920 is just that
much more practical. It is more cost effective and it looks great. The
only flaw to using the R920 versus a PDA is you actually have to go
online and look up what the trouble code means. That is not much of a
problem because while you're there, you might as well find out how to
fix it.
The unit itself is $199. The shift light is $19 and the Acceleration
Timer is $30. So for just under 250 dollars you get a pretty nice
setup. If you want to use a PDA, you would have to buy a decent one
that supports the software, likely costing at least $300. The software
itself costs a little over $200. After adding up all the numbers, in
the end the R920 really is a great deal.
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