The Connected Car from Alarm.com allows for enhanced awareness of any automobile with an OBD-II port, which is about every car made after 1996.
Once connected, it gives the end user information on a variety of points including:
- Gas Gauge level
- Car Battery Level
- Car Location
- Engine Status (on/off)
- Unexpected movement alert (security, towing)
- On board diagnostics and errors.
- MPG and distance travelled
- Alerts on Sudden Breaking, Acceleration, and speeding.
I have been using the Connected Car in my own car for a few weeks now and from my experience the device handles as I would expect it to.
The gauge levels at glance (Gas, battery, engine status) are accurate and up to date. Great when I am in a morning rush, did I get gas yesterday or do I need to leave earlier then expected? Its great to have that data on my phone so I don’t have to worry too much about it.
The various push notifications, hard breaking, acceleration, etc. occur pretty close to real time as well, sending push notifications to my phone within a few seconds of the actual event. While I personally don’t need to know that I have a lead foot, the sudden acceleration and speeding alerts are great for parents with new drivers who want to keep track of their driving habits (and location).
The car location feature is accurate as well. I drive a very bland, grey car that I am constantly losing in the parking lot (they all look the same!) The great thing about the connected car is I can easily see where I am and my location to the cars last location. Which is great for those of us who forget where we parked.
The error codes thrown by your cars computer are pushed in a timely manner however they don’t have a lot of information initially. The app threw an error code for my car shortly after gassing up but no information was provided, only the number.
However, clicking the error code prompts an internet search to determine the cause of the code, which in my case was a small leak in the evaporative system, I hadn’t tightened the gas cap all the way down. Easy fix. For me, this might be the most useful feature the Connected Car has to offer, but your mileage may vary.
The installation itself will require a bit of forethought. While the module is relatively small, 1.8 x 2.6 x 1.1”, depending on the location of your car’s OBD-II port, may get it in the way of driving. You will want to check the location of your OBD-II port to know for sure.
If it does pose a risk, is in the way, or in my case requires me to remove a dash panel to get at it, you have the option of using an OBD-II extension cable to run the module to a more convenient location. Alarm.com makes their own, ADC-OBDII-EXT-L and ADC-OBDII-EXT-R in left and right variants but any extension cable should suffice.
More on the Connected Car and getting it setup through Surety can be found below: