This page contains a collection of (mostly) external links that were helpful in my exploration of Volvo 850 diagnostics (via OBDII port) or which might be helpful in your exploration...
Matthew's Volvo Site (aka, MVS),
MVS's
Volvo 850, S70, V70, C70 & V70-XC Forum (1992-2000) forum
I first discovered Matthew's Volvo Site and its "850, S70, V70..." forum when researching how to get my 1997 Volvo 850 T5 odometer working again. [The odometer had stopped working years ago, sometime between 2002-12-26 and 2005-12-30 according to my CarFax.] There was some excellent information at Matthew's Volvo Site on how to order an odometer gear and install it. Could see from that initial encounter that there was a great wealth of information on his site and there were a good many knowledgeable, frequent contributors. So it was the first place I turned to when trying to solve the "speedometer not working" problem.
jimmy57's Volvo Scan Tool (VST) instructions to retrieve correct mileage on 1996 850
This info is useful to know before going to your dealer or mechanic who has a Volvo Scan Tool (VST), in case they don't know how to read the mileage via: 800 SERIES / ELECTRICAL / COMBI / PROGRAM COMBI / READ COMBI. This approach works for 1996 and 1997 Volvo 850s with a VDO instrument cluster. It records the mileage seen by that cluster. [The method also works on 1998 S70/V70, since jimmy57 appears to have been testing with one of those.]
It may be possible to use a similar approach, possibly by changing the "800 SERIES" to something else, to read the mileage, etc. on other Volvo models, eg, those that are handled by Vol-FCR: S70/V70, C70, 900, S90/V90, and S40/V40. I have no idea if any of those cases could be handled similarly.
Volvo Repair Manual CD-ROMs / Original Technical Publications,
Original Technical Publications 850 DVD, [Matthew's review of the DVD]
MVS's
"Original Technical Publications" review/comments/questions feedback thread,
my review of the OTP Volvo 850 DVD,
Original Technical Publications store,
<<< [DVDs have been replaced by USB drives]
Volvo 850 Service Manuals USB drive (US$49.95).
<<< [order 850 Portable USB drive]
These are several pages and a .pdf relating to what is probably the ultimate, single Volvo 850 DIY repair resource which is "all in one place" and is accessible even when there is no internet access -- ie, the Original Technical Publications "VOLVO 850 MODELS 1992 TO 1997" (TP-51956) DVD.
The guts of what I'll call the "OTP Volvo 850 DVD" are:
There are Parts Books for: 850 Series (1991-1997), and S70/V70/C70 Series (1996-2000). Actually there are 2 such Parts Books for the non-USA cars and 2 such Parts Books for the USA cars.
There are individual Service Manuals for most any 1996-1997 850 ECU (or system) that you could imagine, both European and USA, with detailed diagnostic trees and with different wiring diagrams specific for each year/model/ECU_or_system/supplier (when appropriate).
There are also some (but precious few) individual Service Manuals that are 1998 S70/V70/C70 specific. Unfortunately '98 S70/V70/C70 coverage is incomplete, but don't despair, many of the '96-'97 850 documents can be used with the '98 S70/V70/C70/XC70 with some success.
My understanding is these are the Volvo Technical Publications that Volvo dealers and authorized independent shops use.
My first evaluation of the DVD was in early 2015-11. I wished I had encountered it several years earlier. It is well worth the US$50 that OTP charges for the Online or Portable USB formats (as of 2020-04-28)!!!
Yes, there's some errors. And, yes, there are missing documents. But it is well worth the money.
Good luck in finding a DVD (via eBay, Amazon, forums, etc), or in finding the DVD's contents online or on a USB drive. On 2018-04-02, FCP Euro seemed to no longer include the DVD in their store. On 2019-03-12, OTP seemed to no longer include the DVD in their store.
Or, better yet, good luck in finding the new OTP Volvo 850 Service Manuals USB drive solution -- which is apparently the OTP Volvo 850 DVD contents in two new formats:
Kudos, OTP. Seems to me the USB and eBook formats would be much more flexible than the previous DVD format.
1997 Volvo 850 Wiring Diagrams (on Wayback Machine)
These crucial wiring diagrams were very useful to me in seeing what is connected to the Volvo 850's OBDII port's pins, in addition to being used in debugging other issues with the car.
If you buy the OTP Volvo 850 DVD (or its OTP Volvo 850 USB or eBook equivalents), you'll not have to download this .pdf collection of 1997 850 diagrams. The "Wiring Diagrams 850 1997 (TP-3917201)" document on the OTP Volvo 850 DVD is superior to this 1997_850_wiring_diagram.pdf download, since: a) the DVD's TP-3917201 displays all the pages in the proper vertical orientation, and b) the DVD's Component list is all there, both the missing #s on the left-hand side of the 1st page of this 1997_850_wiring_diagram.pdf's Component list, and the entire 2nd page which contains Components 10/70 through C/EQ [whereas entire 2nd page is missing from Wayback Machine's 1997_850_wiring_diagram.pdf].
Entire 1995 Volvo 850 Service Manual (downloadable .zip of .pdf files) (on Wayback Machine)
This is an extremely useful manual for 1995, 1996, and 1997 Volvo 850s. Even though it is focused on the 1995 Volvo 850, much of the information is applicable to the 1996 and 1997. I highly recommend it. And I suggest you rename it to 1995_Volvo_850.zip, so you don't forget that it is focused primarily on the 1995 year.
As of 2015-11, this handy collection of service manuals is a notch down on my list of "go-to" 850 reference materials. In the future, I'll probably reference first the OTP Volvo 850 DVD, since that DVD (and its OTP Volvo 850 USB or eBook equivalents) will have a higher probability of including info which is more specific to my year/model. But I might reference this older .zip of (primarily 1995) .pdf Service Manuals, since it has a different way of explaining how to step-wise go through the diagnostics. I find those explanations to be very easy to understand.
You might find the diagnostic explanations in the OTP Volvo 850 DVD / USB / eBooks to be more understandable and/or more useful. Or you might find the diagnostic explanations in this set of (primarily 1995) 850 Service Manuals to be easier to follow. I suggest trying both.
Entire 1995 Volvo 850 Service Manual (online)
This is an online version of the 1995 Volvo 850 Service Manual just mentioned.
I still like the downloadable ".zip of .pdf files" version better, since the .pdf files are formatted so much more readable than the online version. But this online link is included: a) in case you can't or don't want to deal with .zip / .pdf files, and b) you haven't yet bought the OTP Volvo 850 DVD (or its USB or eBook equivalents), and c) because you can explicitly link to the online 1995 Volvo 850 Service Manual's HTML page corresponding to each of the .pdf files.
Ozark Lee's MVS post containing a link to scanned .pdf files of Volvo wiring diagrams
This provides a link to a site which contains scanned .pdf files. It also explains why Volvo wiring diagrams which once existed on MVS are no longer there.
Volvo 850, S70, V70, C70, XC70 Trouble Codes 1995-1998
Those two pages are a useful starting point for understanding the Volvo 850 family DTCs. They help with understanding:
the 3-digit Volvo DTC codes generated by flashing LED tools when communicating with the Motronic 4.3, Electronic Climate Control (ECC) (for 1995-1997 850), and Cruise Control;
the 3-digit Volvo DTCs generated by (some of) the ECUs that use the keyword D3 B0 (KWPD3B0) protocol -- AW 50-42, Motronics 4.4, ABS, COMBI, SRS, ECC (for 1998 S70/V70/XC70), etc;
how some of the industry standard P1234-style OBDII emission diagnostics DTCs that OBDII scanners generate (eg, P0171) relate to the Volvo 3-digit DTCs (eg, EFI-231 or EFI-232).
The MVS list of trouble codes also includes a few links to related MVS threads or posts.
Notes:
Don't be confused by those two MVS pages' use of
A1, A2, A3, A6, A7, B1, B2, B5 for the ECUs.
The A1 thru B5 codes are used with the older
1992-1995 850 under-the-hood A-B diagnostic units,
but have no bearing on our 1996-1997 850 --
which do not have under-the-hood A-B diagnostic units,
but instead use the OBDII diagnostic port.
Also, be sure to check the Motronic 4.3 (or other engine specific
sections) on
page 2 in addition to the generic
A2 Fuel System and A6 Ignition sections on
page 1.
volvopedia.de's Fehlercode-Tabelle (ie, Error Code Table) portal [?is it now on Facebook?]
In 2014-12, while researching an error code that has very little online documentation, I happened upon the German site, www.volvopedia.de, which contained an ultra informative series of Error Code Table oriented pages, the vast bulk of which applied to our 1996-1998 Volvo 850/S70/V70/XC70 trouble codes, and began with that Fehlercode-Tabelle (Error Code Table) link just listed.
You could display that page in Google Chrome (while automatic translation was enabled), then wait for Google Chrome to translate the page. If Chrome failed to translate after 10-15 seconds, then you could attempt the translation again, and the translation would normally work on the second attempt. If you were exploring the Fehlercode-Tabelle page (for our 96-98 850/SVC70), then the focus on that page would have been the "without CAN bus" tables (after the page was translated to English). When you were looking up a specific error code, you could click on its individual DTC link to see an overview of the error condition, its most probable causes, and its failure symptoms. If the page for the individual error did not get translated on the first try, you could wait 10-15 seconds, then attempt again to translate it.
This was a wonderful addition to the 1995 Volvo 850 Service Manual and the 1997 Wiring Diagrams. For a few months, this was my #1 source for our 1996-1998 850/S70/V70/C70/XC70 trouble codes, and my #2 source was the 1995 Volvo 850 Service Manual.
The premier online DIY resources for '96-'98 850/S70/V70 DTC info are:
rkam's post was a treasure chest of Volvo 850 communication protocol details. I found nothing even remotely equivalent on the net. I highly recommended it. Kudos to rkam !!!
Unfortunately, the original forum site has been retired. And there doesn't seem to be a viable record of rkam's post at the Wayback Machine or archive.is.
Its description is retained here simply to acknowledge that this Volvo 850 OBDII portal probably would not even exist had it not been for rkam having published that "Diagnose and communication" goldmine post!!
This post, and actually the entire thread, showed me that the ELM327 can be pushed to establish communication with, then read and reset DTCs in several of the Fiat's various computers, not just to do emissions diagnostics DTC reading/resetting. It triggered me to wonder if the ELM327 could also be pushed to have similar functionality with my Volvo 850.
Also, from that "FiatEcuScan diagnostic software" thread I got the idea of connecting OBDII pin 7 to pin 3 in order to talk to the Motronic 4.3, then decided on a DIP switch based solution to accomplish that pin crossover.
This is the main ELM327 reference. It's for the latest v2.3 chip. I highly recommend it !!! It's both a user manual and a development guide.
This is for their popular ELM327 v1.4b chip. Of all the data sheets listed on Elm Electronics' data sheet page, this one (probably) most closely matches most of the ubiquitous ELM327 v1.5 clones whose logged communication has been submitted to the KWPD3B0 interpreter. It certainly is the ELM Electronics' data sheet that most closely matches my own ELM327 v1.5 USB clone, as well as most closely matches my ScanTool.net OBDLink SX USB cable and OBDLink LX BT (Bluetooth) tool.
ELM327 AT Command (in each version) Table
This is a list of all the ELM327 AT commands, one line per AT command, showing all the versions in which the command is available, and showing the command syntax.
ELM327 AT Commands (version / syntax / description) Table (up thru v2.1)
This is a Wayback Machine snapshot of Elm Electronics' (old) list of all the ELM327 AT commands, one line per AT command, listing the version in which the command was introduced, the command syntax, the description, and the group (eg, General, OBD, ISO, CAN, J1850, J1939, Volts, PPs, Other).
To me, this (circa 2014-03) list is more useful, since it contains the command description. However, it only goes up thru ELM327 v2.1.
ELM327 Programmable Parameters
This is a list of all the ELM327 Programmable Parameter (PP) numbers. It groups the PP by the version in which they were first introduced, listing one PP per line, showing the version in which the PP was introduced, the PP #, and the PP description.
ELM327 – OBD to RS232 Interpreter [newest page]
ELM327 - OBD to RS232 Interpreter (ELM327 v2.1 and ELM327L v2.1) [archived page]
A new ELM327 v2.3 chip became available (sometime in 2020) and an even newer ELM327L v2.3 low voltage capable chip becomes available (in 2021).
The ELM327L v2.1 low voltage capable chip became available (sometime before early-Mar 2015). The ELM327L v2.1 is essentially an ELM327 v2.1 that can operate at lower voltages and has a bigger RS232 transmit buffer.
Those two links -- one new, one old -- are a good starting point for comparing the most recent ELM327 versions with a couple of common, popular, older ELM327 versions -- ELM327 v1.3a and ELM327 v1.4b -- at least one of which is still available from ELM Electronics.
~$18 ELM327 v1.5 (clone) USB cable (requires Silicon Labs CP210x drivers)
~$30-$40 ScanTool.net OBDLink SX USB cable (requires FTDI drivers)
~$50-$60 ScanTool.net OBDLink LX BT (Bluetooth) tool
~$70-$120 ScanTool.net OBDLink MX+ (Bluetooth for iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows) tool
~$22 BAFX Products Bluetooth OBD2 reader
Those are several (KWPD3B0-capable) ELM327-compatible devices that I've used.
The OBDLink SX is the better of the two USB devices for some purposes. It is faster, has a bigger buffer, has a 3-year warranty, has great customer service, is firmware updatable, is more useful for ATMA recording (when firmware version >= v4.0.1), and includes a free, quality, mature OBDII emission diagnostics program (OBDwiz).
The OBDLink LX BT has most of the same benefits of the OBDLink SX, is very convenient, and usually does not require any special drivers (since the drivers in the operating system's Bluetooth stack are normally sufficient).
In late 2018, I bought an OBDLink MX+ tool. It has greater functionality than the OBDLink LX BT, since the MX+ can be used with iOS (ie, iPhones and iPads), in addition to Android and Windows. That could be a SUPER advantage!! Plus, it accesses more protocols, since it can access GM SW-CAN and Ford MS-CAN networks. Furthermore, when used with the OBDLink iOS app or OBDLink Android app, it can perform some (non-Volvo) vendor specific diagnostics!! That's another huge plus for someone that scans their friends' vehicles, or for any family that will have other vehicles (now, or in the next few years) besides our beloved '96-'98 850/S70/V70/C70/XC70. OBDLink MX+ is known to work with: a) Android apps OBDLink and xiaotec "850 OBD-II", b) iOS app OBDLink, and c) volvo850diag v0.9 (on WinXP/Win7/Win10). For an owner of a '96-'97 850 or '97-'98 S70/V70/C70/XC70 that is researching diagnostic scanning tools, **and** who also needs to access the vendor specific diagnostics of other non-Volvo vehicles, or who also needs to diagnose from devices running iOS, I suggest saving your money and patiently waiting till the OBDLink MX+ goes on sale for ~US$70-$80 [typically around a few USA holidays], then start out using OBDLink MX+ with the free OBDLink app (on Android / iOS) or OBDwiz (on Windows), along with US$1.99 xiaotec "850 OBD-II" app (on Android) or the free volvo850diag (on Windows). That seems like a good $72-$82 investment that hopefully will carry you through to the 2025-2030 time frame.
In 2019-01, I bought a BAFX Bluetooth tool, since several people had recommended it as a good, affordable Bluetooth tool. It works well with "Bluetooth USB WIFI Terminal" Android app and "ELM327 Identifier" Android app. It works reasonably well with volvo850diag (on Windows) and xiaotec "850 OBD-II" app (on Android). Functionally, it appears to have capabilities very similar to my ELM327 v1.5 USB clone. The BAFX Bluetooth tool -- in combination with both the xiaotec "850 OBD-II" Android app and the "Torque Free" Android app -- would be an adequate starting out diagnostic combo for someone that only had $25 to their name, yet needed to diagnose their '97 850. If those had been available to me in mid-2012, most of this Volvo 850 portal would not exist.
Free Daaren Fonloil / applagapp ELM327 Identifier Android app on Google Play
This Android app will very quickly reveal your (purported) ELM327-compatible tool's actual capabilities. I love it. It's very easy to use, and has a top notch user interface. It only takes a few seconds from the time "ELM327 Identifier" connects to your device until the visual overview updates. Its overview page visually imparts to you which official ELM327 version your ELM327-compatible device resembles the most.
Its command details pages show you a (by and large) alphabetical list of ELM327 commands -- the green ones, with an "OK" at the end of the line, are the ones your device supports; the red ones, with a "KO" (ie, not OK) at the end of the line, are the ones that your device does not support.
If you want to save the results, you can press the Results button and it records the command details pages in a log file, ELM327_Identifier_log0.txt, from which you can check (at some later time) what commands your ELM327 device handles.There's excellent instructions on the app's Google Play web page (for those that want or need a little guidance to get initially connected).
How easy can it get?
Just remember that "ELM327 Identifier" indicates:
a) supported commands via "OK", and
b) unsupported commands via "KO".
or is **not fully** KWPD3B0-capable:
Silicon Labs' CP210x USB to UART Bridge VCP Drivers
This page has a DOWNLOADS link which when clicked displays more links to free, downloadable Silicon Labs CP210x VCP drivers for various operating systems:
Some ELM327 based devices use the Silicon Labs driver. My ELM327 v1.5 USB clone cable does. I've successfully used the driver from the CP210x_VCP_Win_XP_S2K3_Vista_7.exe (v6.5.3) setup package on WinXP, and it worked fine. I've also used the CP210xVCPInstaller_x86.exe installer from the CP210x_VCP_Windows.zip (both v6.6.1 and v6.7) setup zip on a couple of WinXP systems and on one Win7 system. Those two later versions work fine also.
Future Technology Devices International's Drivers page
The FTDI Drivers page has links to free, downloadable FTDI VCP and D2XX drivers for various operating systems:
Select either VCP drivers or D2XX drivers, then on the newly displayed page, select your operating system. For some operating systems (eg, WinXP, Win7, Win8.1, Win10), it doesn't matter whether you select VCP or D2XX, since both of them are included in the same combined, CDM, driver package.
Some ELM327-compatible products use the FTDI drivers. For example, my ScanTool.net OBDLink SX USB cable uses FTDI drivers.
Even if your ELM327-compatible device doesn't use FTDI drivers, if you have a VAG/COM KKL USB cable, maybe it uses the FTDI drivers.
FTDI CDM driver v2.12.28 for Win7 thru Win10
zip of setup executable
FTDI CDM driver v2.12.06 for Win7 thru Win10
setup executable
These were FTDI's releases (as of 2017-08-30 and 2015-07-28, respectively) of their CDM driver package for Win7 and later versions of MS Windows. It combines their VCP driver and their D2XX driver in the same installation package. Both the 32-bit and 64-bit versions are included in that single download.
It is a later version of the "CDM 2.08.24 WHQL Certified.zip" driver that was required originally for my VAG/COM KKL FTDI cable. That earlier version operated just fine for me.
For versions earlier than the latest version of this Windows-oriented FTDI CDM driver, you could also try one of these 32-bit or 64-bit .zip packages for:
If you have Win7 thru Win10, I suggest you first try the latest driver available from FTDI. If the latest version does not work, then you might try one of the older versions listed in this section.
optional ~$14 VAG/COM KKL FTDI USB cable -- top view and 16-pin J1962 view
That cable can be used by Brick-Diag Free v0.0.6.6. It can also be used by many versions of Vol-FCR software. For example, it is a perfect match for my Vol-FCR v1.7.3 FTDI Demo software.
I've used that cable successfully with the following FTDI driver versions off and on for several years:
This has links to the Vol-FCR Demo software.
Vol-FCR Demo does not use the ELM327 cable.
Vol-FCR requires a VAG/COM KKL cable or a serial cable. You'll probably need to click down thru several pages (of the Vol-FCR Demo link) to find the software that matches your particular kind of cable. In my case I eventually clicked a Vol-FCR for FTDI Demo link and (in 2012-06) downloaded Vol-FCR v1.7.3 for FTDI Demo. There might be a later version now.
Obtaining Vol-FCR Demo is not necessary for communicating with the Volvo 850 / S70 / V70 / XC70 using the ELM327. This link is included here if you decide to not use an ELM327 and use Vol-FCR instead. In that case, you'll need the appropriate Vol-FCR Demo to test if your VAG/COM KKL FTDI or serial cable will work with the full-blown Vol-FCR program.
The Vol-FCR Full Version price was ~US$126 (as of 2022-09-05).
Be aware that the cheapest, blue VAG/COM KKL cables on eBay that are not also labeled with "FTDI" might be CH340 chip based and may not work with Vol-FCR FTDI Demo.
Brick-Diag screen snapshots overview.
You can drill down and/or use the arrow keys to see the other pages in gallery.volvo-welt.de/v/daniel2345/:
and to see the pages in gallery.volvo-welt.de/v/daniel2345/05.07.2009-0.0.0.32/:
I found the Kombi-Service and Kombi-Parameter screens especially helpful in understanding the ECU 51 B9 data. Also, the Kombi-FC screen helped a little bit.
The following translations of some terms on Brick-Diag's Kombi screens are useful for us English speakers with little knowledge of German:
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For the Kombi-FC screen:
German English
--------------------------- ------------------------
Fehlercode Error Code (ie, DTC)
auswählen select
vorheriger previous
nächster next
lesen read
löschen clear
Kraftstoffniveausensor Fuel level sensor
Signal ist Signal
zu niedrig too low
For the Kombi-Service screen:
German English
--------------------------- ------------------------
Service lesen Service read
Service setzen Service set
Serviceleuchte zurücksetzen Service light reset
seit Service since Service
Zeit (Monate) Time (Months)
Motorbetrieb (h) Engine operation (hours)
For the Kombi-Parameter screen:
German English
--------------------------- ------------------------
Parameter lesen Parameter read
Parameter setzen Parameter set
Gesamt-Km Total Km
Ladedruck-Anzeige Boost pressure-Display
Drehzahl # of revolutions
Ländercode Country code
Geschw.-Warnung Speed Warning
Reifen Tires
Brick-Diag Instructions (in German) Registration / Login required for this page
If you translate this with Google Translate, from German to your language, you can get a good idea of Brick-Diag's capabilities, both for Brick-Diag Full and Brick-Diag Free. It's the most important "readme first" file for Brick-Diag.
The tables of Brick-Diag capabilities even holds important clues in determining what year / model / ECU the ELM327 would probably be able to communicate with using the keyword D3 B0 protocol -- besides just the '96-'97 Volvo 850 ECUs.
Brick-Diag does not work with an ELM327. It works with cables like those used with Vol-FCR. It is mentioned on this site because even its Brick-Diag Free variant: a) provides a legally free alternative for reading/clearing DTCs for SRS, ABS, COMBI, transmission, etc, and b) provides a mechanism (when paired with a special cable that switches pin 7 to pin 3) to read the Motronic 4.3 DTCs (ie, the 3-digit Volvo codes), thereby eliminating that need for a flashing LED tool, and c) operates on a greater number of Volvo cars, not just the 850 (and early S70/V70) family.
daniel2345's 2009-05-24 intro to Brick-Diag Login required
An introduction to Brick-Diag by its author. It's also good to understand Brick-Diag capabilities.
However, it's somewhat outdated since Brick-Diag development seems to be stagnated, and the hope of buying Brick-Diag Full seems to have been put on hold for the indefinite future. You'll have to read more in that and other OBD2 threads at volvo-forum.de to see what I'm talking about.
daniel2345 2009-07-05 post explaining some COMBI parameters, etc Login required
This post helped me in understanding the COMBI parameters, even though those parameters are not viewable in Brick-Diag Free.
"What about Brick-Diag? Isn't it affordable GUI software that can communicate with 1996-1997 Volvo 850 cars?" question & answer in Volvo 850 OBDII FAQ.
That answer is my synopsis of Brick-Diag Free Beta v0.0.6.6.
How to download Brick-Diag Free Beta v0.0.6.6 for English speakers
That post has a very short answer and a medium length answer to the question of how to download Brick-Diag Free Beta v0.0.6.6.
It will basically direct you to:
Also included in that post are: a little bit of initial setup info, a partial, minimal explanation of the wait times and some roadblocks that will likely be encountered, and a short list of some important posts or threads to view (if possible) while you're waiting on your registration to complete.
Note:
For a longer, more detailed answer to downloading
Brick-Diag Free Beta v0.0.6.6, refer to the
"How do I download and install Brick-Diag Free?" question
and answer in
Volvo 850 OBDII FAQ.
Realterm v2.0.0.70
Realterm came recommended by rkam, the author of the
"Diagnose and communication" 2009-05-19 post
(my KWPD3B0 Rosetta stone).
At some time in the past, the official Realterm site at SourceForge described Realterm as "a terminal program specially designed for capturing, controlling and debugging binary and other difficult data streams. It is far better for debugging comms than Hyperterminal..."
It can be used both: a) with ELM327 devices, by using its ANSI mode, or b) with VAG/COM KKL type devices, by using a variety of its binary or hex oriented modes.
I have extensive experience using it on WinXP, Win7, and Win10, and the Realterm documentation says it also can be used for Win8 and Win8.1.
Realterm, so far, is the most promising terminal emulator I've encountered to help semi-automate a complete Volvo 850 / S70 / V70 / XC70 scan. It has a rich feature set. It can be used interactively, like STNterm, Hyperterminal, "OBD Now Terminal", putty, etc. But it also has an ActiveX API, which can be driven by batch (eg, WinXP CMD), by Perl, by HTML augmented with Javascript (using Internet Explorer), etc.
Realterm's most useful facility is its "PutString" mechanism. PutString is a simple, easy-to-understand way to send a string, without introducing the side effects that accompany Realterm's "Send File" mechanism.
Realterm also has a capture file facility, it has two "Send ASCII" buttons which can be programmed to send specific strings, and it allows manual input into its display window like any classical terminal emulator should.
The source to Realterm (and its underlying APRO communication foundation) is available, so you can debug or customize that if you need to.
By far and away the best place on this site to see the concrete usefulness of Realterm for a Volvo 850 user is to download the volvo850diag distribution, peruse its readme_volvo850diag.txt file, then follow the instructions in the distribution's "local" volvo850diag.html file (or its "online" volvo850diag.html documentation) in the sections: "Intro to volvo850diag", "Requirements", and "First Time Use".
The volvo850diag.zip distribution uses PutString as the primary communication mechanism. So it runs about as quick as it can [in its present "brain dead" condition of not interpreting any responses]. It is reliable, and its HTML user interface disables buttons when it is inappropriate to use them. The GUI is intuitive enough so you shouldn't need to reference the instructions often after the initial setup.
The entire list of ELM327 Commands to Scan Volvo 850 and S70/V70/C70/XC70 (from the '96-'98 years) -- both OBDII emission diagnostic commands and keyword D3 B0 protocol requests to COMBI, ABS, SRS, M44, etc -- can be sent successfully all in one fell swoop using volvo850diag's "Full Scan All ECUs" button. Or the "Read All DTCs" button can be used to just scan the DTCs (for OBDII emission diagnostic, COMBI, SRS, ABS, Transmission, Power Seats, Motronic 4.4, MSA 15.7, Immobilizer, etc) and read the Vehicle Mileage. Or you can use volvo850diag with Realterm and the ELM327 to communicate with only 1 or 2 ECUs per session.
However, in all three cases, you'll have to interpret that info with a subsequent interpreter step.
All of the volvo850diag source is available in the distribution.jonesrh's intro to terminal emulators for ELM327 devices
jonesrh's introduction to ELM327 terminal emulators that can satisfy the "terminal emulator" requirement to read the mileage from a '96-'98 Volvo 850/S70/V70/C70/XC70.
This is probably the best place to begin the exploration for ELM327 terminal emulators that must use the ISO 9141-2 protocol, yet still be able to be used with the Volvo vendor-specific KWPD3B0 protocol (which is somewhat like ISO 9141-2).
ELM Electronics list of terminal emulators for ELM ICs
ELM's list of terminal emulators includes some for Mac, Win95, Win98, WinXP, Vista, Win7, Win8, Win8.1, Win10, WinCE, and Palm. It includes some terminal emulators that I didn't mention elsewhere on this site.
Hyper terminal equivalent in windows 8
This is a series of answers to the question "Are there Hyperterminal equivalents in Win8?". The following terminal emulators were suggested for Win8: PuTTY, Realterm, TeraTerm, Termite, HTerm, Parallax Serial Terminal, Bray++'s Terminal, HyperTerminal Private Edition (by Hilgraeve Inc).
Wikipedia's "List of terminal emulators"
This Wikipedia page might also point you to some other serial terminal emulators that would be useful for the Volvo 850 communication.
ELM Electronics list of OBD software for ELM ICs
This is ELM Electronics' long list of OBDII software that works with ELM327 compatible devices -- both full-fledged OBDII software and ELM327-compatible terminal emulators. It lists (and briefly describes) a bunch of software programs for Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, iOS, and Android, as well as a few programs for various phones, Arduino, Raspberry Pi, etc.
~$10 OBDII Y splitter/extender cable
(1 J1962 male OBDII to 2 J1962 female OBD2), eg,
jonesrh's OBDII Y cable in 850,
jonesrh's OBDII Y cable in S70 (w/ two ELM327-compatible devices attached).
This is an optional piece of equipment for some 850 / SVC70 DIY-ers.
An OBDII Y splitter is necessary for:
using ATMA to passively record communication of another ELM327 device (in one continuous ATMA session).
An OBDII extender is useful for:
allowing your ELM327-compatible tool's lights to be visible on an 850 (if you have bought an ELM327 tools whose lights face the dash when plugged in to the 850's OBDII port),
allowing an ELM327 Bluetooth tool in an 850 -- but *not* in a S70 -- to communicate more reliably to the laptop / tablet / phone that's driving the communication, and
allowing a firmer fit to an 850's or S70/V70/C70/XC70's OBDII port -- eg, due to OBDII Y cable being a rubber like substance vs. most ELM327 tools being hard plastics that sometimes don't fit quite right with the car's OBDII port -- such that the firmer fit enables more reliable communication with the car.
This was the sturdiest piece of diagnostic equipment that I bought. Nowadays, eBay has a lot of what looks like the same sturdy, OBDII Y splitter/extender cables for only $9 (about half price of the $19 that I paid in 2012, when they were rare). I'd strongly suggest you contact the seller and verify that both the male and female connectors are a rubber-like compound instead of hard plastic!
Ben850's Sure-fire OBD I style LED Flash code Reader,
jreed's tool for
ECC climate control temp sensor measurements made easier,
jonesrh's flashing LED tool (for Motronic 4.3, ECC, Cruise Control, etc)
[do not flash pin 7].
Those pages might help you create your own flashing LED tool to read and clear DTCs for ECUs which use other pins besides pin 7 of the OBDII port:
Of course, the Motronic 4.3 DTCs can effectively be read and cleared using common OBDII scanners which do use pin 7 to perform the OBDII emissions diagnostics. However, you can sometimes see more specific Motronic 4.3 DTCs via pin 3. For example, with the DTCs available from pin 3, you might see that a (pin 7 identified) P0133 code is due to 435 (front O2 sensor) vs. 436 (rear O2 sensor), without having to guess which O2 sensor is the supposed culprit. And there are some other things you can do via pin 3 besides reading and clearing the emissions diagnostic DTCs. So sometimes pin 3 access via a flashing LED tool might be useful for a Motronic 4.3.
Remember that the 3-digit Volvo DTCs aren't the same as the
industry standard OBDII emission diagnostic DTCs, but there
is generally a (close to) one-to-one correspondence.
To see the Volvo 3-digit DTCs, you might use one of the
following:
a)
OTP Volvo 850 USB or eBooks,
b)
OTP Volvo 850 DVD,
c) MVS's list of
Volvo 850, S70, V70, C70, XC70 Trouble Codes 1995-1998,
d)
1995 Volvo 850 Service Manual (online),
e)
1995 Volvo 850 Service Manual
(downloadable .zip of .pdf files),
f) jonesrh's
list of known KWPD3B0 DTCs for 96-98 850/SVC70, or
g) volvopedia.de
Fehlercode-Tabelle (ie, Error Code Table)
(if you can find it).
jonesrh's
in-line 8-pole DIP switch OBDII extension cable (top view),
jonesrh's
in-line 8-pole DIP switch OBDII extension cable (side view).
As mentioned above, I got the idea of connecting OBDII pin 7 to pin 3 from the "FiatEcuScan diagnostic software" thread. However, I didn't trust the idea of tying all the pins together that could possibly be talked to. That seemed to invite failure.
So I adapted that idea, cut a 3 foot 16-pin to 16-pin OBDII extension cable in half, spliced in an 8-pole DIP switch (mounted inside a small Radio Shack box), and rewired such that pin 7 on one end of the modified extension cable could be switched to one of the following pins on the OBDII port end:
and all other pins were routed straight-thru.
My ultimate goals were to:
Plug a flashing LED tool (eg, mine and others') into the modified extension cable in order to: a) eliminate the need to plug the flashing LED tool's round paperclip leads directly into the car's OBDII port's pins, thereby lessening the possibility of damaging the car's OBDII port connectors, and b) allow easier plugging/unplugging, since the end of the extension cable is closer to my hands.
Plug an unmodified VAG/COM KKL USB cable into the modified extension cable to allow programs such as Brick-Diag Free v0.0.6.6, MotronicSuite, VolvoDIAG, KWP71Diag, etc to communicate via pin 3 with certain engine ECUs (eg, Motronic 4.3) that use KWP71, and to allow Brick-Diag Full (if it were available) to communicate via pin 6 or pin 13 (if either of those options are actually implemented by Brick-Diag Full).
Allow a straight-thru, transparent connection -- using either an unmodified ELM327 cable or an unmodified VAG/COM KKL USB cable -- for any program which uses the OBDII port's pins 5 (or 4), 7, and 16 for ISO9141-2 based communication for OBDII emission diagnostics or for Volvo KWPD3B0 communication. This includes at least the cases of:
Plug an unmodified VAG/COM/ KKL USB cable into the modified extension cable to allow the Vol-FCR Full, Vol-FCR Demo, or Brick-Diag Free v0.0.6.6 programs to communicate using KWPD3B0.
Plug an unmodified ELM327 cable into the modified extension cable to allow:
OBDII emission diagnostic programs like TouchScan, OBDWiz, Torque, etc to use the legally mandated OBDII protocols, and/or
volvo850diag to communicate via both the KWPD3B0 and/or OBDII protocols, and/or
interactive use of terminal emulators to issue ELM327 commands, KWPD3B0 requests, and/or OBDII requests.
In case 1, the multi-purpose lead of the flashing LED tool -- ie, the lead intended to plug into pins 3, 6, 7, 13, etc -- is plugged into pin 7 of one end of the extension cable, the other end of the extension cable is plugged into the OBDII port, then the DIP switches are used to switch that multi-purpose lead to:
In case 2, the VAG/COM KKL USB cable is simply plugged into one end of the modified extension cable, the other end of the extension cable is plugged into the OBDII port, then the DIP switches are used to switch pin 7 to pin 1, 3, 6, 9, 12, or 13, as appropriate for your car.
In case 3a, the VAG/COM KKL USB cable is simply plugged into one end of the modified extension cable, the other end of the extension cable is plugged into the OBDII port, then only the pin 7 DIP switch is turned on.
In case 3b, the ELM327 cable/device is plugged into one end of the modified extension cable, the other end of the extension cable is plugged into the OBDII port, then only the pin 7 DIP switch is turned on.
MotronicSuite User Manual at archive.org.
The original "MotronicSuite User Manual" at "http://trionic.mobixs.eu/Motronic/M4.3/MotronicSuite user manual.pdf" is no longer available. In fact, the entire trionic.mobixs.eu site seems to be Not Available.
Dilemma's detailed description of the Motronic 4.3 ECU used in Volvo 850 T5(R).
Dilemma's detailed description of the Motronic 4.4 ECU used in Volvo 850 T5(R) and S70 T5(R).
MotronicSuite v1.1.8 installation package at archive.org,
Directory listing of trionic.mobixs.eu/Motronic/ files archived at archive.org,
Directory listing of trionic.mobixs.eu/ archived at archive.is,
trionic.mobixs.eu/ home page circa 2013-02-13 archived at archive.is.
Various other MotronicSuite downloads, documents, or links -- most (if not all) of which were originally available from the http://trionic.mobixs.eu/ site.
Note:
The MotronicSuite installation package contains its source
code.
Dilemma's "MotronicSuite" thread
click 2012 or 2013, select page
Dilemma's earlier "MOTRONIC 4.3 Volvo T5/R binary files" thread
only 1st page available
Those two threads were for those that wanted to dig deeper into the MotronicSuite performance enhancing software.
However, the original forum site has been retired. There's a few pages of the original two threads that were recorded at the Wayback Machine. The first link above allows accessing 6 of the first thread's pages recorded by the Wayback Machine. The second link above allows access only to the initial page of the second thread.
There's also a github project involving MotronicSuite.
Conversion factors for M4.3 Login required
That post contains a link to download Motronic 4.3 conversion factors.
Tuners Rejoice! Free Tuning For M4.4!
On Matthew's Volvo Site, mercuric mentioned this tuner's thread. It's quite interesting for those that are willing to experiment with modifications to the Motronic ECUs.
It seems like I read in this thread (or elsewhere) that MotronicSuite development seems to be stagnant as of summer 2013 (or before), and that TunerPro is the Volvo 850 family software of choice for tuning. Apparently the contributors on this thread are delving very deep into the intrails of the Motronic ECUs and understand them quite well.
Enter at your own risk.
Motronic 4.4 Wiki
Volvospeed's
Motronic 4.3/4.4 Programming thread
Volvospeed's
Motronic 4.4 Overview thread
Some more links containing Motronic 4.3 / 4.4 details.
mercuric's post describing OBDII differences between Motronic 4.3 and Motronic 4.4
In that post, search for "OBD-II differences between M43 and M44 for those of us with 96+ cars in emission inspection jurisdictions", read that paragraph and the following scrollable box's info.
rkam's
volvodiag-19-08-2010.zip
contained 2010-08-19 VolvoDIAG.exe
[vanished]
Dilemma's
Volvodiag.rar
mods for 2009-09-28 VolvoDIAG.exe with sources
[vanished]
rkam's VolvoDIAG.exe seemed to be a C++ program -- evolved possibly from SanderQV's KWP71Diag -- which could be used as a test program to communicate with the Motronic 4.3 and Motronic 4.4 ECUs.
The first link (originally) was to the newest VolvoDIAG.exe that I could find. The second link (originally) included an older VolvoDIAG.exe executable, but its sources were included.
I tried to evaluate those 2009-09-28 sources [the latest ones I could locate] when initially delving into the Volvo 850 communication, but couldn't figure out how to utilize it in a timely manner.
At one time I thought other folks might use that C++ source to development a program which talked with all of the Volvo 850's KWPD3B0-conversant ECUs, as well as talk with the Motronic 4.3 ECU using the KWP71 protocol. But now, with a) the vanishing act of forum.ecuproject.com, b) the lack of its appropriate backups at the Wayback Machine or archive.is, along with c) the D2 and KWP71 capability available in the jonesrh-enhanced freediag fork (first released in 2017-12), the need for those old rkam and Dilemma programs is drastically diminished.
The two links above are retained simply to acknowledge that there was some source code available from rkam and Dilemma that did demonstrate how the M43 and/or M44 could communicate via the KWP71 protocol.
Wikipedia's
Volvo 850 page
Wikipedia's
Volvo Modular engine page
These are simply some pages of Volvo history that are sometimes referenced.
Here's somewhat more general purpose links that might come in handy...
Volkswagen Group of America K-line Communication Description
This will download the file: "1278519259-K-line communication description_V3 0.pdf". It is one of the more useful explanations of the ISO9141 slow init -- that begins at 5 baud and transitions into 10400 baud -- that I've encountered. The pertinent info for us is on the top of p2 (of its 5 pages). For our Volvo 1996-1997 850 and 1998 S70/V70/XC70 purposes, just substitute:
ECU 01, 11, 29, 2D, 2E, 2F, 41, 51, 58, 6E, 7A, etc (as a physical address replacement) for the emission diagnostic functional address 33,
keywords D3 B0 for the 08 08 or 94 94 emission diagnostic keywords,
complement of B0 (ie, 4F), instead of the complement of 08 or 94, and
complement of ECU 01 (FE), 11 (EE), 29 (D6), 2D (D2), 2E (D1), 2F (D0), 41 (BE), 51 (AE), 58 (A7), 6E (91), 7A (85), etc, instead of the complement of 33.
It also has some good comparison of the ISO9141-2 and 14230 init sequences, and essential info to know how to handle error conditions, if you're developing a general purpose OBDII scanner.
Evo ECU Wiki's OBD-II ISO 14230-2 Protocol Specification's - Response Failure Codes summary section
This page's "Response Failure Codes" section has a nice list of possible error subcodes for 7F errors.
Wikipedia's "OBD-II_PIDs" article
This is a pretty good overview of OBDII. There's several easy to read tables, one of which contains a list of the Mode 01 PIDs along with those PIDs' essential details.
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