Frequently Asked Questions

By far the best time to have this conversation with your teen is before they actually get their license. Studies show a much higher teen acceptance rate when the rules and limitations of the PTDC are set early, and that the teen understands their driving privileges depend on meeting their obligations in that agreement.

Trying to create a PTDC or introduce the CarChip Pro after the teen has been driving for several months or years generally receives greater push-back by the teen, and is harder to implement.

The exception is if the teen has had an accident, received a traffic ticket, or has had driving privileges revoked for some other reason. In these cases the PTDC (along with any other remedial training mandated) can be used as an additional tool to help the teen begin driving again.

No. You have a responsibility to monitor your teen's driving for unsafe or reckless driving behavior, and the CarChip Pro allows you to do this - while at the same time helping your teen maintain privacy.

The CarChip Pro does NOT include GPS location information, and data is downloaded once a week for review (or at any schedule you choose). These reviews give you a perfect opportunity to talk with your teen about their driving, answer any questions, and remind them that you car about their safety.

And when you can't be there on every trip they make, the CarChip Pro is actively helping your teen remain safe by providing audible feedback if there is excessive speeding, jack-rabbit starts, and aggressive braking.

Maybe. On the other hand, having the CarChip Pro installed gives your child a very valid "excuse" to use with their friends when it comes to peer-pressure relating to horseplay and high-speed driving. Your teen can "blame" the CarChip Pro for having to drive more safely, and at the same time know that their parents are just looking out for their safety. Besides, being teased is nothing compared to an expensive - or deadly - car accident due to speeding or horseplay with the family car.

The CarChip Pro provides positive real-time feedback to the driver in the form of audible "beeps" when certain thresholds are exceeded - like maximum speed, acceleration rate, and sudden or aggressive braking. These reminders will help your teen driver understand their driving boundries, and help build confidence over time. The included reporting software allows your teen to see driving reports that allows them to review their driving behaviors and discuss them with you.

This depends on your goals, and the limits you established with your Parent-Teen Driving Contract. Generally you want to set the maximum speed to the top-speed you want your teen to remain below. Additional settings like acceleration rates and braking rates can be adjusted from the default factory settings to improve safety and fuel efficiency.

No tools or automotive expertise are required. Just plug the CarChip Pro into the OBDII port (easily found under the dashboard or steering wheel on most 1996 and newer vehicles) and you're ready to roll. Once you locate the OBDII port, installation usually takes less than 10 seconds. Once installed you'll hear a single "beep" so you know it's ready to go. Now CarChip Pro is ready to read and store the data from your car's on-board computers, continuously logging driving and engine performance.

Depending on how many engine parameters you are monitoring, the CarChip Pro can store up to 300 hours of driving data. When the CarChip Pro's memory gets full, it will simply start overwriting the oldest data with new data so you will always have the most recent data stored. If you need to store more data, there is a version of the CarChip Pro with twice the memory. If you think you need this, please contact us for details.

No. The CarChip Pro is a passive data logging device that uses the standard diagnostic port to read data from the diagnostic computer (the same port your mechanic uses to diagnose the "check engine" light), it doesn't modify your vehicle's performance in any way. It does provide active feedback and guidance to the driver in the form of audible "beeps" when thresholds you have pre-set are exceeded - like maximum speed, acceleration rate, and sudden or aggressive braking.

Downloading the data from the CarChip Pro to your PC only takes a few seconds. You must have the CarChip software installed and running on your computer, you remove the CarChip Pro from your vehicle, then connect the CarChip Pro to your computer using the included USB cable.

Once connected, you will be able to download the data to your computer, and will have the option to clear the memory on the CarChip Pro, view reports, or adjust settings like max speed, alarm volume, or engine parameters to log.

Sure. But you'll know the CarChip Pro was unplugged because the device records the date and time every time it is plugged in or unplugged. You'll be able to tell that the Chip was unplugged, and ask your teen why the device was removed. If you have created a Parent-Teen Driving Contract that stated that the device not be tampered with, then it should remain plugged in at all times when your teen is driving.