Vehicles nowadays are full of computers that control and monitor most operations. You may know about the data port that repair shops can use to diagnose issues. This port can be used by us, too.

The BlueFire data adapter connects to a different style of this port in large vehicles like trucks and motorhomes, and uses Bluetooth to communicate with an app to display this diagnostic information.

Here’s the adapter next to the case it came in:

Top of the adapter:

The connector on the bottom:

There are two data ports under the dash in our coach; the green one is the modern data port; I’m not sure about the gray one; might be an older port, or something else:

Removing the cap from the port, you can see the connector pins:

The BlueFire adapter plugs in, with a twist to lock it in place; it lights up with various colors and flashing patterns for its status:

The other essential part is the app. It works on Apple iPads and iPhones, and Android devices. It has a dashboard that can be configured; see the BlueFire site for more examples.

Here’s a dashboard layout I used initially on my iPad Pro (I’ve actually been using the BlueFire for months, but just got around to writing about it):

I later changed to a different layout that I got from someone online:

I have my iPad on the dash of our coach on travel days, along with the tire pressure monitor, and my laptop with the map:

I’m still working on improving the dash layout in the app; I’ve added a couple of gauges, but there’s room for more:

Here’s a screenshot for a more clear view:

Sometime I’ll spend more time customizing this further, but it’s a useful tool as-is.