Honda 150 OBD II Computer

[toyman]

Does the 150 Honda have the same engine computer as the automobile (with different settings) ? Where is the port located ?

[Matt Gurnsey]

The Marine outboard engines are not using the automotive standard. Each marine engine manufacturer is using proprietary software and connectors.

[tpbrady]

Matt,

On the Yamaha Command link while the motor connector is proprietary, I am reasonably sure after spending $100 on the interface cable, that since it is only two wires (blue and white) you could just as easily cut the Yamaha connector off and put on a NMEA 2000 connector using just the two wires. That was all the Maretron cable did. When I connected the other end to my Raymarine Seatalk side, I had to cut off a proprietary connector on one end and install a NMEA 2000 connector. I haven't looked at the Suzuki or Evinrude, both of which are NMEA 2000 compliant, the same situation may exist.

Honda on the other hand is in their own element so to speak.

[Matt Gurnsey]

Evinrude and Suzuki are using NMEA compliant data streams, and offer adapter cables to connect the engine computer to a NMEA2000 network to share the data.

Connecting directly to a NMEA 2000 compliant device, without a network, may not work properly. Cutting off the connectors eliminates the ability of a dealer to connect their computer to the engine for diagnostics. The proprietary software is more robust than just the NMEA2000 data. Removing the connectors may also void the warranty.

The Yamaha was not using NMEA2000 data on their Command Link, and a Maretron adapter from the Command Link Network to the NMEA2000 network is required. The adapter keeps the two netowrks seperate, but allows the NMEA2000 network to "listen" to the Command Link Network data.

The new Yamaha Command Link 2 (or whatever they are calling it) does use a NMEA 2000 backbone from what I've seen.

Keeping on top of the engine networking systems drives our parts people batty, as it's just not something they work with much. Coming from the marine electronics side, I'm more adept at understanding the system, but even I get it wrong once in awhile.

[tpbrady]

Matt,

The Maretron cable is just that a cable with the Yamaha connector on one end and 18 inches later the NMEA 2000 connector. I thought it was something more elaborate when I bought it for $105. It connects to a NMEA 2000 T with terminator which is a part of the NMEA 2000 network. The output from the engine on this cable contains standard NMEA 2000 sentences. The disadvantage of the setup is I can't communicate back with the engine which you can do with the Command Link gauges if they were connected instead. From what I can tell Yamaha has both NMEA 2000 sentences and proprietary data running on the same bus. If all you want to know is oil pressure, coolant temp, rpm, and alternator output the NMEA 2000 output is easy to tie to other devices. I need to check my shop manual, but I believe there is a separate serial connection to the motor's ECM for maintenance and diagnostics.