How your car talks

OBD protocols explained

OBD-II, EOBD, JOBD, ISO 9141, KWP2000, J1850 and CAN — what they are and which vehicles use each.

EOBD

Europe ~2001

EOBD

The European version of OBD-II, mandated for petrol cars from 2001 (Euro 3) and diesels from 2003/2004. Uses the same PIDs and DTCs.

European petrol cars 2001+ European diesel cars 2003+

JOBD

Japan ~2000

JOBD

The Japanese variant of OBD-II, introduced for Japanese market cars around 2000.

Japanese domestic market (JDM) cars 2000+

OBD-II CAN (ISO 15765-4)

International ~2008 250 kbps

OBD-II-CAN

Controller Area Network — fast, robust and now the dominant standard. Required on all cars sold in the US since 2008 and EU since ~2004 (diesel)/2007.

Nearly all cars 2008+ Modern Ford, GM, VW, Toyota, BMW, Mercedes, Renault, Peugeot…

OBD-II / EOBD (ISO 9141-2)

International ~1996 10 kbps

OBD-II-ISO-9141

The original OBD-II serial protocol, common on Chrysler and many imports. Slow (10.4 kbps) and widely supported by readers.

Chrysler Dodge Jeep (pre-CAN) European imports (early)

OBD-II KWP2000 (ISO 14230)

International ~2000s 10 kbps

OBD-II-KWP2000

Keyword Protocol 2000, the successor to ISO 9141 used on many 2000s European and Asian cars.

Renault Peugeot (early 2000s) Citroen (early) Hyundai/Kia (some)

OBD-II (SAE J1850 PWM)

North America ~1996 41 kbps

OBD-II-PWM

Pulse Width Modulation, the Ford variant of the J1850 bus used in North American Fords.

Ford (North America) Lincoln Mercury

OBD-II (SAE J1850 VPW)

North America ~1996 10 kbps

OBD-II-VPW

Variable Pulse Width, the General Motors variant of J1850.

GM (Chevrolet, GMC, Buick, Cadillac) Hummer

Which protocol is my car?

As a rule of thumb: any car from 2008 or newer is CAN. European petrol cars from 2001 use EOBD, Japanese cars use JOBD. Use the vehicle compatibility tool to check a specific model, or let the scanner auto-detect.