Canion

[ul9601]

I'm pretty much convinced in buying an used i-miev. the other option is Leaf but it's a bit too long to my liking.
Now it seems like canion is a bit of tricky app to use, so I'm wondering if it would help me in buying an i-miev in terms of assessing battery health or is it more of a tool which allows assessing and diagnosing over a long period of time during ownership of the car.

 

[JoeS]

ul9601, welcome to the forum.

I'm pretty much convinced in buying an used i-miev. the other option is Leaf but it's a bit too long to my liking.
Now it seems like canion is a bit of tricky app to use, so I'm wondering if it would help me in buying an i-miev in terms of assessing battery health or is it more of a tool which allows assessing and diagnosing over a long period of time during ownership of the car.

1. In addition to being shorter than a Leaf, the i-MiEV has more interior cargo volume, a better turning radius, and is simply more fun to drive.
2. The OBDLink LX or MX is usable on any car, so it is not a squandered purchase; however, you do need a bluetooth Android device.
3. The free CaniOn app is invaluable in assessing the electric car's most important asset - its battery: both overall capacity as well as individual cell status. Certainly an excellent tool when purchasing a used i-MiEV, as the only other alternatine (other than a different app) is to go to a dealer and pay $$$ to perform a battery test. Once you get an i-MiEV you'll discover the myriad of useful features this app possesses. For example, I use the trip efficiency readout whenever I know I'll be pushing the car's range limits.

 

[ul9601]

Thanks Joe.
So would you recommend me getting canion (which i installed on my phone as it is free) and OBD interface to make purchasing decision?
What diagnostic functions should I run to test out on the cars and how?
Sorry for the open ended questions but I think it would be best if I know exactly what I'm looking for and how to get there when dealing with an app I'm not familiar with and a car I don't know too much about.
Thanks again.
Sam

 

[JoeS]

Hi Sam,

1. First need to get a genuine OBDLink LX or MX. Careful, because knockoffs don't necessarily work.

2. Download the app onto your phone

3. In North America, the OBDII port is located under the dashboard on the driver's side, a bit to right of the steering column. After plugging it in and turning the car on ("READY") follow the OBDLink instructions for bluetooth pairing it to you phone. You have only a couple of minutes within which to execute this pairing.

4. Once paired, simply open the app (you might have to select the OBDLink after the app opens) and then you can wade through the various screens. I use the basic home screen to show the Ah capacity of the battery. The other screen of interest to you is the bar graph showing all 88 cells and the max/min voltage readings. For a high state of charge I would expect the cells to all be within .005volts of each other, but at a low state of charge that number may increase. In any case, you are looking for Ah capacity that hopefully exceeds 35Ah and all cells at roughly the same voltage level. A problem cell will be evident as it will have a significantly lower voltage level.

Anyone else care to comment?

BTW, since this is an international forum you might update your profile to show us where you are in the world? Instructions here

Good luck!

 

[ul9601]

Thanks Joe - Location updated.
I'm looking at ex-Japan import, not sure if there were any sold officially by the dealers here but will check.
I'm looking at the option of direct import from Japanese auction sites also (there are more later model compared to local market, which is mostly 2009 or 2010), which would not allow canion tests (or anything else first hand)

 

[ul9601]

Are the products sold by scantools on Amazon genuine? The price difference between LX and MX is only 10 bucks, which one is more recommended for i-miev?
cheers

 

[DBMandrake]

Are the products sold by scantools on Amazon genuine? The price difference between LX and MX is only 10 bucks, which one is more recommended for i-miev?
cheers

User "OBDLink" on Amazon is Scantool themselves, so you are buying direct from the supplier via Amazon warehouse.

LX:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00H9S71LW/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

MX+

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07JFRFJG6/ref=psdc_15707381_t1_B00H9S71LW

Do you mean MX or MX+ ?

The LX and MX+ are Bluetooth, the MX is Wifi.

I have both an LX and an MX+, both will work fine with Canion. The MX+ is the newest model and has faster hardware and I suspect will be supported for longer with firmware updates than the older LX so if the difference is $10 I would probably get the MX+. (I see there is a deal for the MX+ at the moment)

By the way, it seems to be much cheaper to buy from the US rather than your local Amazon, at least here in the UK, so try to find the same item in the Amazon US store. Current prices are $49.95 US for the LX and $59.95 for the MX+.

I would avoid the MX as Wifi OBD dongles whilst in theory giving a more reliable connection, mean that you can't simultaneously have your device connected to normal wifi, and not as much software supports Wifi based OBD dongles. For maximum compatibility with software you want a Bluetooth version.

PS Moderators: I had to put the Amazon links in code blocks because apparently this forum modifies Amazon links ???!

If I added them as normal links it was modifying them so that the link I clicked on was going to the Amazon UK listing (much more expensive) instead of the US listings that I was trying to link to. Pretty poor that the forum software is tampering with links that users put in their posts... :roll:

PS ul9601: Just noticed you are in Auckland New Zealand.... I've been in the UK for the last 10 years but I hail from Whangarei. Are there many i-Miev's / Ion / C-Zero in NZ or are they very rare like they are here in the UK ?

 

[ul9601]

Hi Mandrake,
I thought I recognised your handle - you are on FCF and XM forum, aren't you?
It must have been MX+, my mistake.
I think I was looking at on US Amazon site - I don't think there is local Amazon presence here in NZ (maybe there is a local portal but not physical warehouse and whatnot)
I'm sure there are more of these i-mievs and PSA clones in the UK than here in NZ. Currently there are 7 on Trademe (there are 734 Leafs fyi and no PSA variants)
I just ran the NZTA data base, I found 31 i-mievs, 2010 - 2015 models. Looks like 10 of them are NZ New, which may only mean it was imported new from Japan and doesn't necessarily mean it was officially distributed by the dealers.
Cheers,
Sam

 

[JoeS]

I should have checked the OBDLink website, as it looks as though they now have the following configurations:

OBDLink SX USB
OBDLink LX Bluetooth
OBDLink MX Bluetooth
OBDLink MX WiFi
OBDLink MX+ Bluetooth

CaniOn works with the Bluetooth versions. I agree with DBMandrake and I'd also now be inclined to buy the latest MX+ Bluetooth version.

 

[DBMandrake]

I should have checked the OBDLink website, as it looks as though they now have the following configurations:

OBDLink SX USB
OBDLink LX Bluetooth
OBDLink MX Bluetooth
OBDLink MX WiFi
OBDLink MX+ Bluetooth

CaniOn works with the Bluetooth versions. I agree with DBMandrake and I'd also now be inclined to buy the latest MX+ Bluetooth version.

I believe Canion does work with the WiFi version as well (check in the settings and release notes...) however for best compatibility with a wide range of software I would recommend the Bluetooth version.

One other thing I forgot to mention is that the LX is only compatible with Windows and Android, it cannot be used on iOS devices. The MX+ is supposedly iOS compatible as well. Although there is no version of Canion for iOS, using the adaptor on iOS on some other car with other software might be useful to you in the future. The MX+ is the most feature rich and compatible version of their adaptors.

 

[ul9601]

cool - just ordered MX+.

 

[JoeS]

Problem:
I am trying to test my original 2012 iMiEV SE, which I had sold to a friend. When I take the OBDLink LX out of my own i-MiEV and plug it into this car it pairs up fine, displays the new VIN, and all the readings seem to display properly except for the Ah, which displays the number from the car previously tested.

This does not happen when I switch between my two existing 2012 SE Premiums, as doing that properly displays each car's Ah.

Any suggestions?

Sorry, I don't remember if we've discussed this before, as all I recall is there being a problem reading that function on a 2016 i-MiEV.

Thankfully, using the iCarSoft i909 does provide me with the Ah number, but I would like to confirm it using CaniOn.

I'm presently on CaniOn v.150

 

[TobyGadd]

I'm using caniOn to help diagnose a slow-heating issue, but I could use some help understanding the "Heater Temp History" panel. Specifically, what is the difference between the two lines (yellow and blue) in the history graph? I assume that there are two different temperature sensors--but where in the car are they located?

Thanks!

 

[DBMandrake]

They are flow and return sensors for the glycol “coolant” loop used by the heater.

Not sure where the sensors physically are but one measures the flow temperature going into the heater matrix and the other measures the return flow temperature from the heater matrix which will of course be a lower reading after some heat is lost into the cabin by the matrix.

 

[njh]

Hi!

I have just started using canIon with my recently purchased Peugeot Ion.
I am really impressed by the app - it has so many features.

However I have experienced a couple of issues:

- I wasn't able to install from Google Play store because it said it wasn't compatible with my OS
- The OS sometimes tells me that the canIon app isn't responding
- It seems to keep loosing my settings and I have to keep re-configuring it

Has anyone else experienced this?
Happy to make a donation to the authors, if they are still working on it.


Thanks!

nick.


Connection: Bluetooth OBDLink MX+
Phone: Nokia G110
Android Version: 13

 

[JoeS]

...I have just started using canIon with my recently purchased Peugeot Ion.
I am really impressed by the app - it has so many features.
However I have experienced a couple of issues:
- I wasn't able to install from Google Play store because it said it wasn't compatible with my OS
- The OS sometimes tells me that the canIon app isn't responding
- It seems to keep loosing my settings and I have to keep re-configuring it
Has anyone else experienced this?
Happy to make a donation to the authors, if they are still working on it.

Connection: Bluetooth OBDLink MX+
Phone: Nokia G110
Android Version: 13

Hi Nick, and welcome to the forum.

My Android tablet and OS are about 10 years old, so I'm clueless as I only use that tablet for CaniOn.

You might try contacting the authors , Martin and Xavier, to see if they're still supporting this free app -

https://canion.soft112.com

 

[JoeS]

Sadly, I'm afraid that my Android tablet and entire collection of tablet and OBDII adapters (including a custom cable for my old TeslaMS85) and four dongles (including a recently-purchased brand-new never-used OBDLink MX+) which I've carried in a pouch in my i-MiEV driver's side door pocket for over ten years has gone walkabout.:-(

I have to start from scratch and need to buy an Android tablet and OBDLink MX+ (to also use on my KonaEV and my iOS devices).

QUESTION: Since Android's OS is now up to 13, can someone verify that CaniOn still works with that latest version, or should I buy v.12 or even v.11? Presumably any-old tablet with bluetooth and WiFi will work, or do I need some minimum memory?

TIA

 

[MickeyS70]

QUESTION: Since Android's OS is now up to 13, can someone verify that CaniOn still works with that latest version, or should I buy v.12 or even v.11? Presumably any-old tablet with bluetooth and WiFi will work, or do I need some minimum memory?

Not sure as I run it on an old phone but CanIon is actually no longer available in the Google Play store possibly due to compatibility issues?

 

[PV1]

Version 152 (appears to be the last version) opens on my Galaxy Fold running Android 14. It seems to respond to input just fine, though I haven't tested it while connected to the car yet. I previously used it with my cars on an older version of Android (12 if I remember correctly) on this same device successfully.

I can also confirm it's no longer in the Play Store. It is still available for download from here: https://apkpure.net/canion/emobility.canion

You may have to enable Developer Options on your device and allow sideloading to install it. I feel this site is reputable, and I have used them in the past without issue, but sideload apps at your own risk.

 

[PV1]

I also messaged the developers to see if they have any updates on the status of the project. They are both members here but haven't been active for a while.

Joe, sorry to hear about your collection going missing. Hopefully you find everything.