Test and review of a few OBDII (OBD2) dongles that works with LeafSpy Pro.

[@enigmaEV]

I use the LELink with an iPhone 5 (stays in the car) and iPhone X (stays with me). I plugged it in and LeafSpy connected automatically on both phones. I leave it plugged in all the time and haven't had any issues with it in the month or so that I've been using it.

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Russ Lepage excellent to hear it works well with Apple. You've just earned yourself to being pinning as top comment 👍

[@stevenclarke7777]

@@LemonTeaLeaf LELink costs 23 pounds in UK, equivalent to $46.00 Australian. Yet on Amazon Aust. it costs $109.95. Why are we being overcharged in Australia?

[@claudepena3456]

Thank you for taking the time to do the video. I got the LeLink on Amazon. It connected to LeafSpy pro automatically on my iPhone 7+. It gave me info on my used Leaf that the dealer was avoiding on telling me. Like the SOH. Thanks again

[@madelineb6549]

Thanks for this video, the guy at autozone insisted that an obd2 sensor “didn’t exist” so I’m glad that this video is here for me to watch!

[@youngjohn3842]

The Veepeak OBDCheck BLE will work with LeafSpy Pro on iOS and Android via Bluetooth. It's about $30 on amazon.

[@petervanaggelen3964]

Thanks very much for your excellent review, James. Based on your video I ordered a LElink on Amazon DE, it's on sale right now for 30,21 euro's plus shipping and I look forward to trying it out on my LEAF 2013 before changing over to my new LEAF 2018, which is scheduled to arrive by the end of this month. Your videos convinced me of the usefulness of LEAFspy for the LEAF, apart from them being very informative and full of useful tips about the new LEAF. Keep up the good work!

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Peter van Aggelen awesome news about changing to the Leaf 2018 :) From my last video everyone was asking me which OBD2 actually works with LeafSpy, most of the info was outdated or hard to track down. Glad the suppliers offered the dongles for testing and review. The LELink is really nice and I even had it auto connect when I started the car last time.

[@miamiev7691]

The Vgate I Car2 doesn't work with my 2022 leaf S Plus

[@Milhouse77BS]

The LELink^2 works well with iPhone via low energy Bluetooth so no pairing needed. It also turns itself on and off with the car. That is for the ^2 version. The original LELink stayed on and seemed to get flaky if not unplugged. The new version 2 works great since you don’t have to unplug.

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Yes it the most compatible one I've tested, It seems to auto connect also when I went back to the car. Hopefully, it'll do it again next time.

[@lesjohn2]

I have the VGate dongle and you don't need to unplug the device to get it work when you restart your car you simply push the red button on it and then open leaf spy and it will connect after a few seconds. It works great!

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Ah that makes sense why it has a reset button on the front. Just after pressing it the one I tested didn't seem to work. Thanks for the info Leslie Rolph

[@rudgewickbrown]

I have the iCar one , I leave it in the car and switch it on with the power button on the front (it will go to sleep if its not connected to a phone) works well with iPhone and iPad.

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Nigel Rudgewick-Brown The iCar one is a nice unit once I figured out how to connect. And the lights are more discreet than the LELink

[@stephenlinden8717]

Bought a cheap Wi-Fi one that people said works with leaf spy but I could not get it to work. I have now bought an LELink and that works perfectly so far.

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Stephen Linden yes I think that's why 8/10 suppliers didn't even reply back to me. Good to hear you got it sorted in the end.

[@devopssimon]

The problem with WIFI is that if you also want to use your phone as a hotspot in the car, you will not be able to use the WIFI dongle at the same time. It seems like BluTooth is the way to go. As it happens I ordered the FoSeal after your last video and they were in stock and delivered next day from Amazon. Thank you.

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

That's a good point the iCar has a BT version also. Not sure if it will work but cant see why not.

[@youngjohn3842]

This one lists LeafSpy Pr app on the product page: www.amazon.com/Veepeak-OBDCheck-Bluetooth-Diagnostic-Supports/dp/B073XKQQQW.

[@tucsonor]

I got VGATE, Bluetooth version. Works great. Bought on eBay.

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

tucsonor nice one, I'll add that to the description when I have time with others suggestion.

[@johnjensen3650]

In the Leafspy app there is a help file where they list all known & recommended dongles, and also which ones known to not work.

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Hi John Jensen you mean this one? www.electricvehiclewiki.com/Leaf_Spy_Pro The issue I had was a lot of the dongles are discontinued or difficult to track down.

[@johnjensen3650]

Lemon-Tea Leaf i use Leafspy pro in the ios version, and by pressing the 4 small bars in top right corner, brings a “about/help” message in bottom right corner, by pressing this you get to the help file, where you can choose between Wifi help, application help, change history, and done. There is also an email you can send a command to get the complete help as a pdf file. ( 42 pages)

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Thanks for the tip it'll be some charge time reading at the next CHAdeMO stop :D

[@RWBHere]

Thanks James. They all have their merits, butit's fair to say that price will drive many people's decision about which one to buy. Can't see Apple giving you an iPhone or iPad for a review, but you never know.... why not try them, to see what happens?

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

I'm sure I could borrow an iPhone from someone but seems like a lot of viewers comment already say they work with LeafSpy Pro... then again a free iPhone would be nice :D

[@hasseleh61]

Hi James, I got LeLink for my Leaf's testing, thank you for your considerations, useful for my choice...

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Giacomo Franceschetti the LELink I would consider one of the best for Leaf Spy and is the one I use now.

[@whlphil]

The Carista available on Amazon also works fine for me, I have a it coupled to iPhone X.

[@TheNichols]

I purchased the VGate iCar Pro BLE 4.0 Bluetooth obd2 dongle and it works with my 2021 Nissan Leaf SL Plus but will not reconnect unless I unplug it and insert it again. Once it times out and goes to sleep, it will not connect again. I have tried every OBD2 app that I can try (I think) and none have successfully connected to it. LeafSpy does connect though.

[@TheGeoffnut]

Another useful video, will look at getting an OBD2, dongle and Leaf Spy. Pity you have to leave the little cover off!

[@stephenlinden8717]

Geoff Nuttall I got an extension cable but the cover won't fit over the dongle. It is a little annoying

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Stephen Linden definitely annoying. I was hoping the extension would help close it off also.

[@TheGeoffnut]

Does the dongle make any changes or is it just diagnostic? Just read somewhere that it messed up somebody settings.

[@stephenlinden8717]

Geoff Nuttall there are a couple of settings you can change like door locking and light operation when windscreen wipers are going (but that doesn't appear to have worked on mine) so you have to do something, it won't change anything by itself.

[@ReformedBaptistChurchDC]

Can they diagnose charge port errors? My Chademo didn't work on the only station near me.

[@jayjo8002]

Hey James, thanks for your reviews! One question is left: where can I buy your nice LEAF cap? :) Thx

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

It was a gift from Nissan factory so I dont think they made any for sale sorry :(

[@007jerkins]

Just a word of caution - I followed your link and ordered a Foseal unit from the Amazon Marketplace seller ELDAR - when it arrived it was a cheap clone instead of a genuine Foseal. Returned it to the Polish supplier, got a refund authorised quite quickly, but it didn't include the £4.15 postage I paid to return it - I had to complain to Amazon to get that back (I presume they gave the supplier a kick). I've just ordered a LELink unit - we'll see how I get on with that one...

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Sorry to hear that David Jenkins, when I bought it before it was sold out it was an amazon prime item, looks like some suppliers are selling clones on the back of the high demand from new Leafs. I'll be taking the link off my video now. You won't be disappointed with the LELink. Thanks for informing me about this.

[@007jerkins]

My LELink has arrived and I can confirm that it works very well - so well that I've just purchased Leaf Spy Pro!

[@TheGeoffnut]

Do you have any photos or video of what the OBD2 dongle looks like when it is plugged into the port and what any extension looks like. Does it get in the way of your right knee?

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Hi Geoff Nuttall in one of my prevous video I show where the port is on the European model of the Leaf 2018 I've never had any issue with the way its plugged into the port with my legs and I leave it plugged in all the time without the extension cable now. The cable is good if you want to mount it a bit higher but you'll have to use 3M tape and hook to hold it in place I had it dangling for a while but it tends to get undone. Here the video of how it looks. kzbin.info/www/bejne/nIDHhYeQaLKHeK8

[@MrSnowMen]

Great video, Was wondering if the Vgate red button on the front was a power switch? Do all ODB wifi devices lack password protection?

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

seems that way for the lack of password. But you can't access the car detail until you turn it on. Also the timer before you have to reset it to connect means no one will jump onto that wifi. I tried the button but nothing happened then found out later its a reset button, maybe like a pc you need to hold for 4 seconds?

[@MrSnowMen]

Thanks for the update

[@peterkronegger6970]

The dongle goes do sleep after a while of none usage - with the button you can wake it up again.

[@lesjohn2]

I have VGate and it acts like a power switch because it wont work unless you push it although according to what I've read it isn't an on/off switch it just acts like an on switch because the unit powers down when you switch the car off.

[@plaw9999]

I read somewhere that using the dongle invalidates the warranty. Did you check with Nissan James, or is it a load of rubbish?

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

As long as you dont damage the pins and pull it out before taking it into the garage I'm sure you'll have nothing to worry about. but if you are worried I wouldn't recommend it.

[@dotdot7020]

Great video, I just bought the Lelink from ksolutions. I haven’t even bough the leaf yet lol, I’m looking at a 2017 model here in California. Would you know if the S model has a heat pump? Thank you Sir!

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

From memory, I'm sure all Leaf model after 2013 had heat pumps. all 30+40kwh has heat pumps for sure.

[@Alex1611AD]

Hi, sir. Have you touched on the 2019 Leaf on this channel? I'm really wondering whether to wait or not

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Alex Cryshan 1611 I've not talked about the 2019 leaf yet. As it doesn't seem to be a lot of info about it and its not 2out until late 2019. The real question is do you really want to do 250+ miles on your car a lot without worrying about charging speed? if the answer is no then the Leaf 2018 is a great car for now. I suspect the 2019 leaf will be more expensive so you'll have to take that into consideration.

[@williamlorimer060867]

Another thing on my shopping list

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

williamlorimer060867 it's a great weekend toy if your into stats or wBt to know exactly how much power you have.

[@beardy_scot]

Hi James, I've got the iCar dongle in my 24kWh LEAF which I use with my Samsung or Nexus tablet. Originally had the WiFi model, as I'd seen reviews stating this was better then the Bluetooth but in hindsight this was for iPhones (who have issues with BT). I returned the WiFi quickly as I had a few (minor) problems - when I first got in the car, I was still connected to my home WiFi so would have to manually change the network. I also wanted to use the tablet in my car on the dash as nice big extra display, but also wanted to install Android Auto which which need to use my mobile hot-spot - this way the internet was still over WiFi and I can connect to the dongle via BT. You going to EVolution on Saturday?

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Ross Macdougall from the comment, it seems like BT is the better way to go if you need to tether your internet. I'm off to Nottingham meeting a view EV YT folks just bad timing else I would have been down. :(

[@beardy_scot]

Lemon-Tea Leaf I'll catch you at one of the Scottish EV Driver meet ups I'm sure (in Edinburgh, which is why I missed Binny McBinface), or if you and Jamie aye up to any hijincks in your new LEAFs. Ever have success with the "universal" Tesla tethered Type 2 units? I know you tried with no joy but there's definitely a Zoe driver who uses them. 😁

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Yes Jamie said maybe have a meet in Dundee for the new charging hub. No not had a chance to test out the tesla charger point. I'll need to give it a go at some point :D

[@Muhammed.Akbulut]

Hello. Can these obds change the language?

[@Muhammed.Akbulut]

i have konnwei dongle. Obd is working leaf spy is open but language dont change with leaf spy with konnwei

[@jamiemcmu]

Do you still have to buy Leafspy pro as well as dongle?

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Jamie McMurtrie Yes you need to pay for LeafSpy Pro I think you can test with the free one on android but I heard that its not compatible with the Leaf 2018.

[@brunopedrosa1316]

Hi James, I brought the vGate but I’m struggling to get it working. I’ve paired the device with the phone with no problem but I can’t get any information on LeafSpyPro. The right bottom square is always yellow, indicating no communication with the OBD. Do you have any idea of what could be wrong? Thanks.

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

If I remember correctly I think you have to link it via leaf spy Pro and not via the phone settings.

[@LemonTeaLeaf]

Just checked. Click on the top right 3 dashes and you should see a button at the bottom saying select OBD ii

[@tommac5411]

Great Glaswegian accent.

[@ShaneQ17]

Love how ev drivers think they are experts in battery management and manufacturers don’t tell you how to look after the battery people don’t want to worry about looking after a battery they just want to charge and go

[@anthonycraig274]

Vgate iCar 2 has too many steps.