Unlock the power of your vehicle's diagnostics with Piston, bringing comprehensive OBD2 diagnostics right to your mobile device. If your Check Engine Light (MIL) is on, Piston transforms your phone into a sophisticated car scanner, allowing you to read Diagnostic Trouble Codes (DTCs) and access Freeze Frame data. This invaluable information helps you pinpoint and resolve issues quickly and efficiently.
To get started, you'll need an ELM327-based adapter, available in Bluetooth or WiFi versions, which you connect to your vehicle's OBD2 socket. Piston makes the connection process seamless, with step-by-step instructions accessible from the Home page post-installation or via Settings at any time.
With Piston, you can:
- Read and clear Diagnostic Trouble Codes (DTCs) as defined by the OBD2 standard
- Examine Freeze Frame data, capturing a snapshot of sensor data at the moment the ECU detected a malfunction
- Access real-time data from your vehicle's sensors
- Check the status of Readiness Monitors to ensure your emission control devices are functioning correctly
- Store DTCs in a local history for future reference
- Log in to save DTCs in the cloud for easy access across devices
- View charts of sensor readouts for detailed analysis
- Export real-time sensor data to a file for further examination
- Verify your car's VIN number
- Explore details of your vehicle's ECUs, including the OBD protocol and PIDs number
Some of these advanced features are part of our Premium package, available through a one-time in-app purchase that unlocks all premium functionalities without any recurring subscriptions.
To use Piston as a car scanner, you'll need a separate ELM327-based device, compatible with both OBD-II (also known as OBDII or OBD2) and EOBD standards. All vehicles sold in the USA since 1996 are required to support the OBD2 standard. In the European Union, EOBD has been mandatory for petrol vehicles since 2001 and for diesel vehicles since 2004. For Australia and New Zealand, OBD2 is required for petrol cars made from 2006 and diesel cars from 2007.
Please note that Piston can only access the data your vehicle supports and provides via the OBD2 standard.
For any questions or suggestions, feel free to reach out to us at [email protected].
What's New in the Latest Version 3.8.0
Last updated on Aug 2, 2024
- Support for Android 14
- Improved Sensor Selection Screen
- Support for additional sensors (availability may vary for different vehicles)
