Where to get Detroit tuning/diagnostic software & data link?

Detroit Diesel Diagnostic Link v8 & v6 Combo - 12 Month License

 

EBay with laptop about $1600.
It's all old software. But the series 60 has been not available in new trucks since 2011 I think.

 

Well, without getting into any details here you can get your hands on the software for a significantly lower investment if you are familiar with the Cyrillic alphabet and know how to google well.

 

You will need an interface like a Nexiq USB Link and the correct 6 or 9 pin Deutsch connector to communicate with the truck's J1708/J1939 vehicle bus.

***I am not >100%< certain here so someone please chime in if this is incorrect.

USB-Link™ 2: Bluetooth Edition - NEXIQ.com

 

Your older 60 series should use the gray 6 pin connector. The first electronic engines I believe used a 0BD I connector. But it’s still the 1708/J1939 protocol.

This was a time when the government hadn’t made the deisel engine companies follow the same rules the automotive guys. They didn’t have to use standard protocol’s so that the engines could be maintained by anyone (OBD I&II). They all had their own. And they kept it well under a tight hold until big brother came in with the big emissions requirements that enveryone hates and it also required the engine companies to sell their software to the general public, but it didn’t say it had to be affordable.....

Detroit changed software at the 2004-2007 emissions tier to what we know as DDDL (Detroit Deisel Diagnostic Link . It’s to version 8. But that doesn’t matter to you because last I knew it won’t connect to your older engine. You need “Diagnostic Link”for Detroit Engines. This version wasn’t readily available to the plublic in its time.

 

I remember the Grey detriot ports on the century, probably part of Dalhmer (Mercedes) back in the day (Spelling) out of Germany.

Software like that was tightly controlled for trucks after 1998, in the past you could get a copy from any shop to your laptop and connect to the truck to adjust the governor etc. (Just make sure you readjusted it back when visiting HQ etc) But after a period of time control of that tightened up very bigly. (I hate to use that word but it's easier than typing the two words)

On my Tahoe I have the OBD2 and use a 2018 version of a reader that is capable of anything, including ABS data, live engine data as you are driving and codes etc to that truck. It only cost 40 dollars and frankly has saved me hundreds of unnecessary diagnostics for every little yellow light on my engine. Which was usually clearing out the carbon that accumulated via misfires. It's a really good reader. And you can even do a little editing.

Company drivers for obvious reasons are generally locked out of being able to get into the engine too much via computer. And frankly that's a shame. And shows lack of trust, training etc. Whats that new code now? Why did it die? Dunno.

And people think we are stupid as a industry. In the past when engines died we had a really good clue as to why it did. The computer stuff make it worse. (In some ways better it's amazing.)