Pinout for 20-pin to OBD2 lead?

Anyone have a diagram showing which pins of the 20-pin diagnostic connector connect to the 16-pin OBD2 type? I already have an OBD2 to PC interface & cable. Vehicle is an E36 1999 323i.

Cheers, JB

Reply to
JB
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The pinout for the 16 pin connector is here:

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The pinout for the BMW 20 pin connector is here:
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My Chilton manual says that all OBD II compliant BMW's also have an OBD II

16 pin connector under the instrument cluster just outboard of the clutch pedal.

Reply to
Jack

Many thanks for the info.

JB

Reply to
JB

The OBD II specification says there must be a data port along the bottom edge of the dashboard. Assuming you have a left hand drive car, look along the bottom of the dash where your left leg rests while you are driving. You should find the data port, or a cover that has the data port behind it.

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

Unfortunately not on a UK vehicle.

Thanks anyway.

JB

Reply to
JB

Dude, Left Hand Drive is a USA vehicle.

Look along the bottom of the dash where you keep your left foot. I think you can narrow the search to the area above the clutch pedal, and I KNOW you can narrow it to between the steering column and the door pillar.

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

As I said, not on a UK vehicle. (I have just *triple* checked!). There is no

16-pin OBD2 port fitted anywhere on this vehicle. thanks for the info though. As far as I know, only E46 onwards had the 16-pin socket.

JB

Reply to
JB

UK is not part of the discussion here.

OBD II is at least a USA convention, if you have a USA car, it is OBD II compliant. If it is OBD II compliant, it must (that's M-U-S-T) have a data port along the bottom edge of the dashboard.

OBD II is REQUIRED from 1996 ( which includes E36 cars) onwards for USA vehicles. At least one of the specifications of OBD II is that there be a easily accessable data port, and the location of the data port is the same -- within a couple of inches -- for all cars and trucks offered for sale in the USA from the 1996 model year. You said your car is a '99, therefore it has to have the data port on the bottom of the dash board in the vicinity of the steering column and the door pillar.

According to my Bentley manual, the data port is behind a cover along the bottom edge of the dashboard with the letters OBD molded into it. This cover is located on a line above the foot rest for your left foot, which is a bit to the left of the clutch pedal.

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

Jeff,

The part that you missed when you stated that "UK is not part of the discussi>

Reply to
Psycho

In the post he said at least twice that the car is not UK. I stated that if he had a Left Hand Drive car (USA spec), it would have a data port along the bottom edge of the dash. He Replied, it is not a UK car.

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

In all fairness Jeff, I think I could have made my case a bit clearer. It

*IS* a UK car. What I ws trying to say was that although I have a 20-pin diagnostics connector in the engine bay, there is *no* OBD2 16-pin ocnnector in our UK E36 vehicles, even though you got it (both?) in the US. All I was after is the pinout for the wiring of a 16-pin to 20 pin adaptor lead so I could make one myself as I already have a 16-pin OBD2 interface and cable. Sorry if I confused the issue. JB
Reply to
JB

Yes, we have both. One of the specs of OBD II is that the diagnostic port be located in the same place on all vehicles. I don't know where the connector is on a RHD car, but it surprises me that the OBD II spec is different outside of the USA. One of the primary reasons for OBD II was that consumers were being hosed by mechanics that claimed it was hard to diagnose the complicated computer in their cars and trucks. The OBD I system made this claim true to a certain degree because the diagnostic port could be anywhere, any shape, and have any number of pin outs. Sometimes all of this stuff was different among different models from the same car maker. OBD II removes this claim from the arsenal of price gouging reasons that mechanics seem to come up with.

I'm not going to press this issue any more. It just seems odd to me that you have an OBD II car that hasn't got OBD II stuff in it.

I can tell you what is on the 20-pin connector, but it's from a USA car, and for all I know, your car is different ...

I have a Bentley Service Manual that covers the entire production run of the E36 cars. It is for the USA version though, perhaps you should visit your local bookstore to see if they have one for you guys that still toil under the skirts of the queen. If you tell me, again, which engine you have, I can dig out the Data Port pin outs and post them. There are several versions of the pin outs, and the engine family and year will help me help you.

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

On Wed, 25 Jan 2006 17:15:30 -0800, "Jeff Strickland" waffled on about something:

What years would you class as OBD II vehicles? I have a '94 and '96 E36, and neither have an OBD II socket in either front footwell (I know, I've had the dash in enough pieces!)

Dodgy.

Reply to
Dodgy

According to the Bentley manual, and the OBD II spec, OBD II is required on all cars and trucks offered for sale in the '96 model year. Some manufacturers elected to apply the spec in the '95 model year, but not BMW, they opted to apply the OBD II to '96 cars.

Your OBD II car is a 323 or 328 (if a 3 Series), and the 323 wasn't one of the choices until the '98 model year.

I haven't got an OBD II car, so I can only spout the theory, but I haven't got any factual experience that backs the theory up. Having said that, if the OBD II spec calls for X,Y & Z, I have no doubt that all of X, Y & Z are in place.

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

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