NISSAN Consult Diagnostic Interface Tool - eBay vs blaZt

[lino]

I was just on the blaZt website checking out their prices:

* RS232 Nissan OBD cable + Datascan USD $95.50

* USB Nissan OBD + Datascan USD $114.50

* Datascan USD $33.50

* USB to RS232 serial converter USD $46

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On eBay a NISSAN Consult Diagnostic Interface Tool sells for $12.99 and looks sturdier than the blaZt.



Also on eBay the USB to RS232 Serial 9Pin Cable Adapter sells for $3.21 shipped.





Questions:

1. Am I missing something here?2. Doesn't the eBay tool appear to be better built than the blaZt?3. Will the blaZt do something better or more than than the eBay tool?

[elwesso]

From what I understand you can not use the USB models with the 94-95 models, but for early cars the USB models work great..

Thats about all the differences I know of. As far as the programming and hardware construction is concerned its all about the same.

[Q451990]

I am told that a there's only one particular serial to USB converter chipset that will work with the serial Consult adapters. I would avoid the serial interface adapter and buy the one that is made with a USB output if you are wanting to use it with a computer that only accepts USB inputs.

For some reason I like the looks of this one, but I don't have any experience with it. Good price though, and he has the "make an offer" option - so you might be able to get it for less. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors...ories

Heath
Modified by Q451990 at 2:26 PM 5/28/2009

[elwesso]

lino you might look into reading some old posts by robert. Theres a thread about the consults that he gives a lot of insight about whats good/bad etc...

He doesnt have a ton of posts (robertsnewQ) so it shouldnt take a while to read them, and youll end up being an ECU and consult master!

[lino]

I'll check it out boss. Thank you.

[mattd1979]

Did you find out anything more about the 2 consult interface? I looked at Roberts posts but the most recent one that he had was back in October of '05 so, I figured that there may be some better units out now with most of the kinks worked out. I was looking on Ebay and I saw the one that you had pictured that looked sturdy. There was about 2 pages of them units. I am a bit leary of them because it says that they are built over seas in China. I don't know how well made they really are.

[lino]

Here is what I found so far:

In this thread:

zer...42666

Robert says:

.... you can use a serial adapter but it must be a good one.

....I've built 12-15 of them so far, and all work great except the one that Heath got.

ozzie! said that PLMS Consult cable worked fine for him.

http://www.plmsdevelopments.com/consult_if.shtml



squeefoo mentions this:

....Hi Pete, Found a USB supplier here in the states that has the correct chip in their adapter.......$17.79 USD!!!! Tried it out yesterday and it works flawlessly.If you could, please let your US customers know about this. Here is the web site:

http://cooldrives.stores.yahoo....html



I still have to read this thread:

zerothread?id=233814

[lino]

Found this so I thought I might as well post it in case anyone wanted to see what the inside looks like:

[mattd1979]

I was wondering if you got any further along with your search for a good interface? I see that the pic that you posted has 2 connectors inside. It seems that there is a connector missing that would connect to the computer side. Where did you find that pic?

[maxnix]

Found this so I thought I might as well post it in case anyone wanted to see what the inside looks like:

Yeah, but does it have the chip necessary for the USB interface? Doesn't appear to.

[sebvox]

I purchased the blazt software but use the ebay interface. It works perfectly.

[mattd1979]

Did you purchase the one pictured above? If so, which seller? I was kinda iffy about most of the units that look similar to the above because they are made in China and I'm not sure of the quality. Also, most of them are not already here, you have to pay extra to have them shipped from overseas.

[lino]

I was wondering if you got any further along with your search for a good interface? I see that the pic that you posted has 2 connectors inside. It seems that there is a connector missing that would connect to the computer side. Where did you find that pic?

I can't seem to find the site where I got that pic from. I've searched for the last 30 mins and no luck. If I find it later on, I'll post the website.

Another product I've been looking at:

http://ecutalk.com/

and the CONSULT that never made it:

http://www.polyradial.com/Consult/nissan.html


Modified by lino at 2:42 PM 7/1/2009

[lino]

Yeah, but does it have the chip necessary for the USB interface? Doesn't appear to.

No USB.

[lino]

I purchased the blazt software but use the ebay interface. It works perfectly.

Can you post a pic of the interface you have if you don't mind.

Thanks

[scotttak]

i am interested in what consult adapter you bought also. i bought a cheap one off ebay and i cant get it to work with a serial to usb adapter. im not sure if its the adapter, or the consult adapter, or my ecu.

[maxnix]

Check see if it has the correct chip to convert to USB output interface.

Look for a thread by slipnfall.
Modified by maxnix at 10:15 PM 7/4/2009

[scotttak]

im pretty sure its compatible, in regards to the chip. its not an ftdi but on sr20forums.com or whatever, it has my chip listed as compatible. im gonna check with a multimeter on monday to see if my consult port is working. would having a daughterboard installed have any effect on the usability of the consult port?

[Infinitiguy19]

im pretty sure its compatible, in regards to the chip. its not an ftdi but on sr20forums.com or whatever, it has my chip listed as compatible. im gonna check with a multimeter on monday to see if my consult port is working. would having a daughterboard installed have any effect on the usability of the consult port?

There might be a problem with communication between the ECU and the Laptop because of the daughterboard.

i am interested in what consult adapter you bought also. i bought a cheap one off ebay and i cant get it to work with a serial to usb adapter. im not sure if its the adapter, or the consult adapter, or my ecu.

Was this Consult adapter made by E-Mance?

What software have you tried to connect with the ECU?

Does the computer see the USB to Serial adapter?

[Maverick7687]

I got the one from eBay for my 240sx and 300zx. I went to RadioCrack and bought a serial-to-USB cable and it works perfectly.

[scotttak]

i tried calumsult, nissan data scan, obd scantech, ecutalk, and tecu. i can't get any of them to detect the ecu. my laptop does see the usb serial adapter. its not an emance consult adapter. its one of those chinese made ones like in the picture on the first post.

[lino]

ECUTalk sells both USB and Serial cables: http://www.ecutalk.com/

They have a USB Driver Installation section here:http://www.ecutalk.com/interface.aspx

Recently on eBay they bundled the serial cable with a USB to RS232 cable converter which I would think they would have tested before pairing them up.



That same USB to RS232 cable converter is available on eBay:

http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R4...ories



*eBay listing says: Cable length from tip to tip is 50 inches long.

[scotttak]

thats the exact usb converter i have. so it must not be that

[lino]

Have you had the dealer connect a Consult to make sure there isn't a problem with your car's connector?

One dealer that connected the Consult to my car couldn't get it to work. Later that day I went to another dealer and it worked perfectly. I have heard of other member's having trouble too and having to swap ECUs to get it to work.

[96'er]

Which of these cables will work with the ODB II port for the 1996 and later vehicles?

[scotttak]

i actually got it to work on vista, but not on xp. i hear people have problems with vista, but not with xp, but my situation is vice versa. lol.

[NewKleer]

1. Am I missing something here?2. Doesn't the eBay tool appear to be better built than the blaZt?3. Will the blaZt do something better or more than than the eBay tool?

1. yes, shipping cost. blazt is $15USD, wouldnt be surprised if you're ebay chinese one was $20-30 to make up the difference to the $40 or whatever the others sell for. plms is also another $20 or something with fees and shipping. ecutalk listed price is inclusive of postage and everything (and AUD so about 80% in USD due to exchange rate)

2. bigger/less convenient, moulded (not genuine) consult connectors, circuit big enough to be hand soldered (more likely to have errors/issues than machine soldered), and maybe the biggest thing no one realises - the body of their box sticks out from the consult port and digs holes in ur knee. they also dont test the cables at manufacture/assembly, and most ebay resellers dont tes them either (they sometimes arrive dead or not wired right). pretty sure all ecutalk/blazt/plms ones are tested after being made so much lower defect rate

3. if they all work then they all have the same purpose/funtionality, theyre all made for same software etc to do same thing.

in the end, if u cant afford an ecutalk/plms/blazt one id roll the dice with one of the chinese ones, assuming you dont want to use it too often and can otherwise deal with the box sticking out of the consult port area (or if ur lucky, your consult port isnt attached to fuse box so you can do something about it). if it happens to not work it may take a while for it to be returned and u sent another etc, but it is definitely the cheapest route to go. the first one i bought blew a capacitor and started smoking as soon as i turned it on, but ive read of many people who have used them fine (and circuit itself looks ok).

ive briefly used the 'ch430/hl-340/r430' or whatever that green usb/serial converter is known as, and it seemed to work fine. didnt use it long enough to see if it worked consistently/for hours, but i think it would be fine to use. note the one listed with ecutalk (as pictured above) is quite short cable, about 1-2ft or something, definitel not as long as the one pictured after it. im not sure if they are then different cables and have different internals etc. search for a111 usb on ebay is the one with the ecutalk.
Modified by NewKleer at 10:57 AM 7/19/2009

[bloodspread]

I have a cheap ebay one, it works and came out to a little higher than $30 shipped. my only complaint is that its bulky as hell but I dont really care

[scotttak]

yeah i eventually got it to work on a vista machine. weird that i couldnt get it to work on an xp machine...

[andkorn]

As far as USB-Serial adapters go, make sure you buy a good one. Another thing is that the COM port can be different from computer to computer for the USB serial adapter.

Go to Device Manager (Control Panel->System->Hardware Tab) and locate your USB-Serial adapter. It will tell you which COM port it is. Mine was COM5. Set the right COM port in your Consult software.

I am using a Dynex USB->Serial adapter I got from BestBuy (it uses a Prolific PL2303 chip inside) and it works great with the blaZt cable and ECUTalk and Datascan. Again, make sure your COM port is correct!