Prices are going to depend on which connectors you want and how many.
I can accept checks, money orders and PayPal. Please PM or E-mail me for my payment address. PayPal payments can be sent to jefrysuko@aol.com Edit: NO LONGER FOR SALE
For $23 (including shipping in the contential U.S.) you get this...
Or for $24 (including shipping in the contential U.S.) you get this...
I of course will sell the connectors seperately for those that have more than one fiero etc.
I am calling these the "panel mount" connectors and they are $3 each.
And these are the "portable" connectors and they are $4 each.
I am calling these "diagnostic plugs" or "shorting connectors" and they are $2.50 each. When these are plugged into one of the connectors above it puts the car in diagnostic mode which is where you can set the timing of the car or read the codes through the Service Engine Soon light.
Note: Orders with cables include shipping no matter how many additional connectors are ordered (in the continental U.S. If additionals connectors are ordered without a cable a $2 shipping charge will need to be added. Canadian orders will require an additional $2 charge on all orders for insurance reasons.
I know this is a little more than RacinRob was charging but the extra connectors is what raised the price. It is still less then what some others on here have been charging and is a better product.
The only reason I am making these is because this is a great tool for keeping our 15 year old cars running in top condition. I am not making enough profit on them to really make it worth my while driving to the post office and Raido Shack not to mention the time it actually takes to make them. For this I hope that all of you appreciate the cables and get alot of use out of them.
[This message has been edited by Jefrysuko (edited 04-11-2006).]
In order to use the panel mount connectors you need to drill a 1/4" hole in your trim piece. Make sure that where you drill the hole there is enough room for the connector.
Then you push the wires into the correct pins on the ALDL port. All three wires go on the lower row. Black is ground and goes into the pin closest to the passenger (pin A). Green is the ECM mode selector and is next to black (pin B). Red is the data stream and is one pin away from the driver (pin E).
Some of you probably bought a cable where stranded wire was stranded tinned in order to get it to push into the pins of the ALDL port. I did this for my first cable and didn't like it at all. I also heard many complaints from those that got one of these cables. I tried finding some decent connectors for this application and everything I found was either to big (distorted the pins in the ALDL connector) or required modification of some sort (time consuming). The best thing that I have found is appliance wire. It is solid wire so you don't have to tin the ends, it dosn't stretch out those pins of the ALDL connectors, it is easy to push in and if you mess up an end you can just cut it off and strip off a little more insulation.
Then you just fold the wires to let you put the trim piece back in place and screw it back together.
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09:31 PM
Songman Member
Posts: 12496 From: Nashville, TN Registered: Aug 2000
Is it okay to leave the wires plugged in to the connector all the time, like if you install the plug in? I guess it must be, but I have never heard any discussion on it.
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10:33 PM
sypher1078 Member
Posts: 74 From: rochester,ny,usa Registered: Mar 2002
I know this may be a stupid question, butthen when it comes to Auto repair I'm in that category, what do you connect to the other end to read the codes?
I thought you had to use a resistor between the 2 pins in order for it to spit out the data stream we need. At least thats how my cable works.
OR did u put that in on the other side of the wires???
------------------ 19 Year Old Fierophile. R.I.P.--1986 GT Daily Driver, 4:10s, NX 50 Shot, Borla exhaust, ported manifolds, more goodies --1986 SE V6, Mostly stock W/Integrated rockers and COMING SOON: Intercooled Turbo!!! (possibly) --1984 SE 4.9, IMSA spoiler, Duel exhuast, GT rear bumper, Konis, drop spindles, Rear adjustable perch, Poly total kit, Poly cradle bushings, Big front bar, Added rear bar, 11.25" brakes on all corners w/SS hoses, Fancy wheels wrapped w/soft rubber, and much much more.
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11:51 PM
Feb 23rd, 2003
kgoertz Member
Posts: 24 From: Waterloo, ON, Canada Registered: Feb 2003
Is it okay to leave the wires plugged in to the connector all the time, like if you install the plug in? I guess it must be, but I have never heard any discussion on it.
Yes, you can leave any of this hooked up all the time. If you leave the panel mount or portable connectors pluged into the ALDL connector but the cable not connected it is an open circuit so nothing happens.
If you have the cable pluged in it will simply leave the ECM in ALDL mode which wouldn't hurt it at all.
I know this may be a stupid question, butthen when it comes to Auto repair I'm in that category, what do you connect to the other end to read the codes?
Thanks,
Dan
No stupid questions here Dan. I was going to add this information but didn't get a chance yet.
You need a laptop with an open COM port in order to use this cable. In my case I had no COM ports at all on my laptop but I did have USB ports so I bought a USB to serial link cable for about $25 and it works perfectly.
The program decodes the data stream from the ECM and can tell you not only the codes but all the sensor data and the learning curves of the ECM. I will provide some more information on this later today.
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[This message has been edited by Jefrysuko (edited 03-07-2003).]
I thought you had to use a resistor between the 2 pins in order for it to spit out the data stream we need. At least thats how my cable works.
OR did u put that in on the other side of the wires???
That resistor is in the cable where the com connector is. I did it this way so that you can leave the panel mount connectors or portable connectors pluged into the ECM at all times and not have the ECM in ALDL mode.
So when you plug the cable into the connector I provide it will put the ECM in ALDL mode and start streaming data.
I am also going to offer a plug that you can use to short out those two pins and use to read the codes or set your timing without having to remove the trim piece to get to the ALDL connector. I just forgot to buy the connectors yesterday.
Excellent. I was just about to build a cable, but I'd much prefer to just buy one.
I assume that the cables have the necessary resistors/transistor already in place so the output is standard RS232.
Does anyone know if there would be any customs issues shipping one to Canada?
Kevin
Yep, cables are all built and the only thing for the end user to do is install the panel mount connector (or use a portable), plug the cable into an available COM port and download the software.
I have never shipped to Canada. I don't know what is involved in that but I will ask at my post office the next time I am there.
I am sorry I did not include information about the software previously. For those of you that havn't heard of WinALDL before this should clear things up.
The cable I am making is not of my own design. It was designed to work with a program called WinALDL. Jonas Bylund and Ken Kelly are who can be credited for writing the program. Thankfully they made it free and added support for our Fieros. You can download the software from Jonas website at http://w1.601.telia.com/~u60113744/software/winaldl/winaldl.htm
The only requirements to use my cable and run the software are "A PC with a serial rs232 port running a Win32 enviroment. ( Windows 95/ 98/ ME or Windows NT / 2000 / XP )" as listed on Jonahs website.
For those of you wanting to try and make a cable on your own there is also information on how to do this on his website. I will warn you though, I have repaired more failed attemps of others to build a cable than I have actually sold of my own cable.
I will add screen shots of the software later today when I have a chance.
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10:31 AM
DanFiero Member
Posts: 2815 From: Cedar Rapids, Iowa Registered: Jul 2002
Dan asked about the Palm Pilot and yes this cable could be used with a handheld device but noone has written the software yet.
Someone wrote software for a different style of cable recently and I am going to try and get ahold of him to offer my assistance if he would be willing to write the software for this cable.
If anyone else knows how to write programs for the Palm OS I would be willing to help any way I can.
that just gave me a great idea for a cheap security system. Cut the wire for the fuel pump, create the same type of headphone-like port and wire it to the cut wire, then just create a jack which when plugged in compeltes the circuit. If you're in a rough area, or leaving the car outside for the night, just remove the jack, and no fuel pump=no steal.
That is a good idea. One key thing for a security system like that is to not tell anyone about it though. To a thief it will just look like a headphone jack and hopefully they won't think twice about it. A good thief always knows to look for random switches though which is what most people use.
Just a suggestion for you. Make sure you wire this up before the relay because those plugs don't handle much current. Also if you plan on using a cable with the plug already attached like I did for my cables get the cheaper versions. Those seem to have thicker wire inside.
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01:14 PM
Puck Member
Posts: 1501 From: Greenville, IL Registered: Dec 2000
How can something be new AND improved. Obviously if it is new it has just come out and has never been made before and if it is improved it has been out but made better HMMMMM lol
free bump for you i guess
Adam
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01:48 PM
Raydar Member
Posts: 40925 From: Carrollton GA. Out in the... country. Registered: Oct 1999
I'll take one. I need the COM cable, the "portable" jack, and two "panel" jacks. If I can still add without a calculator that's $30. Right? Does that include shipping? (Sorry if you already said that. I'm "remoted in" to my home PC and the screen refresh is slooooww.)
Shoot me your addy, and I'll send you a check. Thanks!
------------------ Raydar
88 3.4 coupe. In progress. Out of my mind. Back in 30 minutes.
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02:31 PM
kgoertz Member
Posts: 24 From: Waterloo, ON, Canada Registered: Feb 2003
Do you happen to know if these cables would work for all GM OBD-1 cars? More specifically the LQ1(3.4L DOHC)? If they do, there is a HUGE market for these cables... Also, would the cable work with a program called FreeScan? Ive played with both WinALDL and FreeScan and FreeScan is by far the more appealing program. Id assume the cable just converts the signal for the program to read. Thanks.
Do you happen to know if these cables would work for all GM OBD-1 cars? More specifically the LQ1(3.4L DOHC)? If they do, there is a HUGE market for these cables... Also, would the cable work with a program called FreeScan? Ive played with both WinALDL and FreeScan and FreeScan is by far the more appealing program. Id assume the cable just converts the signal for the program to read. Thanks.
Dave
WOW, I don't exactly have all the answers for you on this one. Theoretically this cable should work with all OBD-1 cars. The problem is the software. WinAldl has support for our Fieros both with the L44 V6 and the LR8 4-cyl. The LQ1 unfortunately isn't supported by WinALDL but I would bet that if you did try it that you would get some accurate data out if it. I do agree with you that FreeScan appears to be more user friendly and useful but unfortunately our Fieros arn't supported. For that reason alone I havn't ever used it.
I was going to tell you that I had no way of testing to see if my cable would work with FreeScan because I didn't have access to any cars that it supported. Then I noticed that the LHO 3.1L is supported and I have access to one of them but it would take a little while until I can get to the car. Even if my cable dosn't work I am sure that I could make one that does. I will have to look a little farther into it and get back to you. If you happen to know any LQ1 guys in central Illinois that would allow me to do some testing with their cars it would help me out.
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10:09 PM
PFF
System Bot
Feb 27th, 2003
dykz34 Member
Posts: 23 From: Maple Grove, MN Registered: Feb 2003
Hmm, I cant really think of anyone in IL... but I could probably find out. Have you compared your cable to a FreeScan cable at all? Im curious what the differences (if any) are. Im half way tempted to purchase a cable from you, test it, and pray that it works. But, if it doesnt work, Im stuck with a $25 cable that does me no good. Although, Im sure I could sell it to someone on here for $20 or so. Were the prices you have advertised shipped or no? I may just get one for sciences' sake. Thanks.
EDIT: Just saw that the prices are shipped.
[This message has been edited by dykz34 (edited 02-27-2003).]
Have you compared your cable to a FreeScan cable at all? Im curious what the differences (if any) are.
Yeah, mine is different than what is recomended to use for FreeScan. They like to use microprocessors to do the same thing that mine with a transistor and 3 resistors does. After looking into it I am wondering if mine is going to be able to handle the faster baud rate of your ECU.
There is a design for one with an additional transistor and a diode which is supposed to work. I think the additional components might give it a faster refresh rate which can handle the faster ECU's but i'm not sure. I do have an electrical engineer friend who I have talked to about these cables from time to time and I plan on asking him about this. Hopefully he can shed some light on this for me. If I had a signal generator and a O-scope I could have all this figured out by now but it looks like I am just going to have to go by trial and error.
Give me a few weeks and I am sure that I can have something figured out.
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03:10 PM
dykz34 Member
Posts: 23 From: Maple Grove, MN Registered: Feb 2003
Ya, I figured the ECMs were different. If they werent, my ECM would be listed as WinALDL capable. That would be great if you figured out how to make a cable for the LQ1. Im pretty sure there are a dozen or more people that would buy them. Thanks for your input.
Please PM me your mailing address. I will take one cable for $23 and three of the "panel mount" connectors for $3 ea.
My zip is 52804-2353 for shipping cost.
Thanks,
------------------ Fred Bartemeyer Chairman Heartland Fieros http://www.heartlandfieros.com 86 GT 4spd 26k miles 87 GT 5spd. Blue 37k miles 88 Silver T-Top Formula 268,000 miles 87 GT 5 spd Annette's Sunshine Driver 88 GT 5 spd Annette's Daily Driver
First of all I got my PayPal account set up today. I should be able to accept payments under jefrysuko@aol.com. I have 5 cables made up right now and plenty of time to make more so I should be able to turn around any orders rather quickly.
Secondly I have had several people asking about the shorting connectors. Unfortunately Raido Shack has raised their prices on these things and I wasn't real happy about it. I have been trying to find a cheaper source but havn't had any luck. I am going to have to charge $2.50 each for one of these which I think is way to much. I made these for a few people who wanted them though.
As you can see all it does is short the A and B terminals when you plug it into the panel mount connector. This puts your car into diagnostic mode where you can set the timing of the car or read the codes through the service engine soon light.
Finally, I have posted infrmation about the WinALDL program itself to another thread. The screenshots I promised are posted to this thread as this one already has enough pictures. The thread can be found here.
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[This message has been edited by Jefrysuko to update link (edited 03-04-2003).]
[This message has been edited by Jefrysuko (edited 10-08-2004).]
Also, would the cable work with a program called FreeScan? Ive played with both WinALDL and FreeScan and FreeScan is by far the more appealing program. Id assume the cable just converts the signal for the program to read. Thanks.
Thanks.
