Molly Wood
MACHINE LEARNING

EVEN with their high-tech gadgets and computerized machinery, most cars still do a pretty poor job of providing helpful information about things like mechanical problems and fuel use — and of connecting to the devices we use the most, our phones.

Improvements are on the horizon. Wireless connections are available in some new models, which could lead to more helpful tools. But even for many older models, there is an easy way to get better information about your car, including fuel usage, diagnostics and data about your driving habits.

I tried out two new devices that can connect almost any car, back to the 1996 model year, to a smartphone. Mojio, released in October, and Automatic, released last year, both use apps to offer a surprising, interesting and occasionally overwhelming look inside your car.

Neither offers entertainment, multimedia or navigation elements, but both can give you useful information about your car, especially if there are mechanical problems. Of the two devices, on the basis of cost and simplicity, Automatic is the one I'd recommend.

The devices take advantage of a standard port that federal law has required every car since 1996 to have: the onboard diagnostics, or OBD-II, port.

The port is most often used by mechanics and dealers. It outputs a standardized set of information about a car, like codes that indicate mechanical problems. It also uses sensors throughout the vehicle to gather data on power, emissions, fuel use and more.

Many consumer devices already use this port, including some that offer driving tips to help save gas or that can block cellphone signals inside the car to make driving safer.

And a growing number of them integrate with your smartphone in some way.

Mojio has grand ambitions to become an app store for cars. The company's $150 device, which plugs into the port and uses Bluetooth to connect with a smartphone app, has both GPS and a 3G cellular connection, so it's online practically everywhere. The device includes a free year of service; after that, it's $5 a month.

The service does basic monitoring out of the box, including translating diagnostic codes and tracking trip mileage and fuel efficiency. It can also remind you where you parked and can tell you whether the car has been towed or stolen.

And the app provides contextual information while you drive, like where you can find parking. When you approach to your destination, you'll see a pop-up in the app offering nearby gas stations or parking.

The app can also, with just a tap, send a text message to friends whose contact information you add to the app. The text lets them know if you're on your way, with updates on your route so you can avoid texting while driving.

Mojio hopes app developers will jump on its platform and add features like parking payments and integration with smart home devices — such as a feature that could turn on the lights in your home when you pull into the driveway.

For all of Mojio's potential, though, it feels unfinished. Its app is available only for iOS, so Android, Windows Phone and BlackBerry users are out of luck.

It's also bare-bones and often puts the burden on the user to figure out what to do — even when installing the device. There are no instructions on where to find your OBD-II port, for example — and how many people are familiar with that?

By contrast, Automatic's app shows you a diagram of common locations of the port in vehicles, putting emphasis on the three likeliest options.

And when my Mojio device failed to connect to my phone, there was no indication of how I might try to reconnect or why it failed.

The Mojio app interface is a little clunky, too. The app tries to organize every event on your calendar into a "trip," even if it's a birthday or something without a location. And for navigation, you must switch to the Google Maps app.

Worse, Mojio is downright distracting while you're driving. The app requires you to look at it, to some extent, while you're moving; otherwise you won't see things like pop-ups that direct you to parking. Moreover, the directions are tiny, the parking signs aren't tappable and looking at them for any length of time could cause swerving or worse.

And although Mojio offers some neat features, paying $5 a month seems like a stretch, considering that other apps can do most of its tricks (other than telling me if my car is being towed). Google Now can tell me where I'm parked, Glympse can let people know I'm on my way home, and several apps can help me find parking nearby.

Sure, those apps are not organized into one interface as they are with Mojio, but those apps are free, not $60 a year.

Automatic keeps it simpler: The device costs $99 and focuses primarily on improving things like fuel economy, tracking driving habits and providing car diagnostics — with no monthly fee. Setup is straightforward and took just a few seconds, and its app is available for Android and iOS.

In terms of the data it provides, Automatic is a little like a wearable activity tracker. There's information that's interesting to look at, like how far a trip was and how much gas you used. But unless you drive for a living or are focused on minimizing your fuel use, it's not always obvious what to do with all that information.

You also get a driver score for good behavior, like avoiding speeding, rapid acceleration and hard braking. That sounds like a buzz kill for those who like to drive for sport, but it's helpful if there's a teenager in the house or if you've had a lot of speeding tickets. And both Mojio and Automatic would come in handy if you had a mechanical problem and needed a quick diagnosis.

Automatic also offers some free features that make it attractive to parents. One called License Plus coaches people through hours of driving practice to improve their overall skills and responses. Parents can also track their children's driving habits through a web-based version of the Automatic software.

I wouldn't pay a monthly fee for those features, but I could imagine Automatic being useful for parents and daily drivers. It's still a long way from a truly connected car, but at $99, it's an easy and inexpensive place to start.