Notices

Just got my Bluetooth ODBKey yesterday and had Carman up and running in minutes. Very cool.

Does anyone happen to know if the OBD-II port provides constant or only ignition switched power or is this make dependent? I noticed that the blue light on my ODBKey continued to flash after I shut my car off. I had intended to keep the dongle semi-permanently installed and it will be a bit of a hassle if I have to remove it every time to make sure my battery doesn't drain. Perhaps the ODBKey has some internal battery?

I've also emailed the manufacturer regarding this issue.

The OBD-II spec says the power comes from the battery, not accessory so it is always on. The best such adapters can do is sleep if there is no bus activity (usually the lines will be pulled to an active voltage). If it is well designed, it will draw less than your instrument cluster or radio, only a few mA.