When Things Go Wrong

Digital tech can help to keep your car healthy and safe, too

Most cars sold since the mid-’90s have a connector for OBDII (on-board diagnostics 2.0). You can read the diagnostic data these collect with a hand-held scanner. However, many of these scanners are aimed at professional mechanics with advanced knowledge, so they’re not exactly simple to use.

In addition, while there are some that integrate with a smartphone to analyze and display stats, there are surprisingly few that support iOS. One that does is the Bluedriver ($100), which can read and clear codes, generate repair reports for countless models, and which works seamlessly over Bluetooth.

Another useful maintenance tool is the FOBO Tire sensor set ($229), which uses Bluetooth to transmit info about your tires to an iPhone app. And, in a pinch, we’d definitely recommend the Cobra JumPack (around $100, see left for more). This looks like a conventional battery pack that you can use to charge your iPhone while you’re driving, but it’s so powerful that it can jump-start the battery on most small and medium-size cars, and could really get you out of trouble on a cold winter morning.