Hi all,
I'm a noob here -this is my first Jeep ( though I've driven various ones a fair bit ) and first diesel. We just bought a very clean '06 CRD w/ 40k last weekend to replace a front wheel drive Escape that was having difficulty getting my '23 Carolina Skiff up launching ramps. After reading a few reviews of the CRD, we were a little afraid that it would be too noisy, but that fear vanished when we drove one. Sure, a little noisier than a V-6 gasser, but not bad. I can't believe Car and Driver are such whiners about a little clatter. My wife has thought the Liberty was cute since they came out, so she got a cute 'Ute that gets good mileage and I got a diesel that pulls the boat really well. Everybody wins!
I'm learning a lot from the members of the forum - Thanks! I've already pulled the Viscous Heater relay ( not a lot of call for heat down here in the Florida Keys....) and am planning on inspecting the CAC hoses, cleaning the MAP and am looking at a CCV filter of some sort. More on that in a bit.
I needed to have some trailer work done, so I towed the boat about 20 miles to a yard. My Escape was a V-6 and never really had much problem once I got on the road, but you can feel the torque of the diesel. On the way, I crossed the 7-mile bridge into a 15-20 mph headwind. With the aero drag of the boat and the headwind I was dipping pretty deep into the throttle going up the grade at the center span of the bridge when the CEL came on. The truck continued to operate normally as far as I could tell. I dropped the boat off to have the work done and half a day later the CEL turned off.
Concerned, I needed to know more about the CEL and recognized this as an opportunity to buy a cool tool/toy.
I had already loaded Garmin Mechanic application ( free at the Android Market) on my Motorola Xoom Android tablet, so I ordered anEcoroute HD from Amazon for $87. The alternative seemed to be Torque ( another Android application $4.75 at the Android Market ) and a $49 bluetooth OBDII reader of indeterminate quality. Torque (the free version ) wouldn't run right on my tablet, so the choice was pretty simple, though I may go back for the other OBDII reader to use with my PC. Here's another review of the Ecoroute and the Android software from Cnet that has some pictures.
It would appear that Garmin does not yet have an IOS version of Mechanic, so iPad and iPhone users should hold off or find another option. I have an iPhone, so I'll be doing some reading on this and see what alternatives I can find.
It was easy to hook up, though on all of the cars I tried it on, the OBD port in a fairly convenient location under the dash, but the Ecoroute ends up sticking straight down where the driver's legs and feet would be and there isn't anywhere to tuck the end in range of the 4" wire. The CRD OBDII port is next to the center console, so I was able to get it out of the way but the cable still sticks down and could easily be kicked. Not ideal.
This could be fixed with a short right angle extension cable ( $17 online ) so the cable doesn't stick straight down and you'd have enough cable to find somewhere to stash the bluetooth end of the Ecoroute, which is about the size of a pack of cigarettes sliced in half the long way. Also, it wants the bluetooth pairing code ( 1234 - not in the documentation, BTW ) entered each time I connect. That may not been an issue with a Garmin navigation system, but it looks like something I'll have to do each time I use it with my Android tablet.
The mechanic software can show graphs of speed and fuel consumption, selectable virtual gauges ( RPM, coolant temp, etc. ) skidpad data ( seems like it's taken from the accelerometer on the tablet, not the OBDII interface ), a screen that has shift and redline lights and one for OBDII diagnostics. It can read the codes and reset the CEL.
So far, it works as designed on the two gas cars I've tried it on ( my '97 Honda Civic and a neighbor's BMW 325ci ) and some functions work on my CRD. The real time fuel consumption did not work well on the CRD, showing inconsistent and unlikely numbers ( I doubt I was getting 10 mpg steady state at 45 mph ), but the other, non fuel-related functions seem to work. The MAP showed a peak of 32 psi when accelerating, coolant temp, MAF and RPM worked fine. Once this morning it seemed to stop sending data which required a restart of the car and the application to clear up. I'll update if that keeps happening.
I'd say that if you're getting it to help you save fuel on your CRD, it's not worth it, though it might be on a gas vehicle. However, for all of the other functions AND OBDII codes, I think it was better than a simple code reader for not much more.
My trouble code was a P0299 ( turbo underboost ) and as noted above, I'll be cleaning the MAP and inspecting the CAC hoses. I don't think I have a turbo problem since I can see boost pressure building with just a touch of the throttle, which seems unlikely if the bearings were bad. Without the boat and the headwind I can't stay on the throttle for too long without speeding becoming a factor so I have been unable to replicate the incident. Perhaps this evening when I pick up the boat and take it home.
Anyhow, when I searched LOSTjeeps I found a thread on the Ecoroute HD but I didn't see any conclusions. I thought I'd report back and try to contribute a little knowledge.
The TCM and ECM and most of the time the TCM is content to take second place 
On the 06's the ESP adds to the fun 
