For anyone interested in the OBD-II HONDA Interface module for the Honda HDS. HDS (Honda & Acura Diagnostic System). HONDA/ACURA from year 1992 to 2009. The HIM comes with Honda diagnostic software for a PC.
The software is designed for a touch-screen or Mouse and includes an OSK (on screen keyboard). I have tried it on Win-XP to Win 7 32 bit and 64 bit and now Win 8 and Win 8.1 64. The HIM device was only available to the HONDA dealers and is AFAIKT the only OBD-II unit that can show all of the Honda propriety system information and control all calibration and diagnostics functions through the OBD-II port. Even the (expensive) Auto Enginuity OBD-II ScanTool with the HONDA add on software module cannot do the functions or vehicle system setup-up and component diagnostics of the Honda unit.
It’s been said that these units (this one from Hong Kong ) are a knockoff of the original RERADYNE unit however I have my doubts, especially when you see what’s in these, how well they are made and the fact that internal Firmware would have to be reversed engineered to get these units to function. The Honda device costs over a thousand dollars to purchase from official outlets, however this unit cost me $168 delivered to my door (price is now around $180 delivered). It payed for itself the first time I had a problem from an apparent electrical glitch that had caused an ABS sensor to go out of calibration. The Honda workshop manuals (which use the HIM in most of the repair and testing procedures) and the HIM with the
supplied Honda software pointed to that as the most likely cause of the problem. There were special instructions in the Honds Workshop manual to recalibrate the sensor using the HIM which worked as described. Without the HIM the dealer cost would have started at around $160 and gone up from there.
The information available on all vehicle systems and the diagnostics you can carry out is amazing, however if these advanced features are used without a full understanding of what you are doing you can easily cause damage to the vehicle. IMHO this is the real Honda unit, I purchased another recently in case one fails or they become impossible to get. When you consider how complex a modern vehicle has become and the strange but simple problems you can encounter as they age, any of which can stop the car from running, it’s becomes cheap insurance, especially if you’re a Car DIY type and plan on keeping the vehicle for a long time.
The second unit is a slightly later REV and has a single board with larger SM Micros. Both work and look exactly the same as the Honda Workshop manual states.
The software is designed for a touch-screen or Mouse and includes an OSK (on screen keyboard). I have tried it on Win-XP to Win 7 32 bit and 64 bit and now Win 8 and Win 8.1 64. The HIM device was only available to the HONDA dealers and is AFAIKT the only OBD-II unit that can show all of the Honda propriety system information and control all calibration and diagnostics functions through the OBD-II port. Even the (expensive) Auto Enginuity OBD-II ScanTool with the HONDA add on software module cannot do the functions or vehicle system setup-up and component diagnostics of the Honda unit.
It’s been said that these units (this one from Hong Kong ) are a knockoff of the original RERADYNE unit however I have my doubts, especially when you see what’s in these, how well they are made and the fact that internal Firmware would have to be reversed engineered to get these units to function. The Honda device costs over a thousand dollars to purchase from official outlets, however this unit cost me $168 delivered to my door (price is now around $180 delivered). It payed for itself the first time I had a problem from an apparent electrical glitch that had caused an ABS sensor to go out of calibration. The Honda workshop manuals (which use the HIM in most of the repair and testing procedures) and the HIM with the
supplied Honda software pointed to that as the most likely cause of the problem. There were special instructions in the Honds Workshop manual to recalibrate the sensor using the HIM which worked as described. Without the HIM the dealer cost would have started at around $160 and gone up from there.
The information available on all vehicle systems and the diagnostics you can carry out is amazing, however if these advanced features are used without a full understanding of what you are doing you can easily cause damage to the vehicle. IMHO this is the real Honda unit, I purchased another recently in case one fails or they become impossible to get. When you consider how complex a modern vehicle has become and the strange but simple problems you can encounter as they age, any of which can stop the car from running, it’s becomes cheap insurance, especially if you’re a Car DIY type and plan on keeping the vehicle for a long time.
The second unit is a slightly later REV and has a single board with larger SM Micros. Both work and look exactly the same as the Honda Workshop manual states.
OBD-II HONDA Interface Modules
2nd Unit - later Rev
