Shopping for an OBD-II reader, some say OBDII and some say OBD-II C.A.N. What is the C.A.N.?

Question

Shopping for an OBD-II reader, some say OBDII and some say OBD-II C.A.N. What is the C.A.N.?

Answer 1

C.A.N.  Control area network. Many new vehicles are using can for communication between there many computers. There are different versions of can as well with different levels of prioritizing information sent and received. i.e. a brake issue will over ride data transmitting from lets say a faulty cruise control. It is supper fast data transfer and can send and receive on the same wire just like thew internet..

Answer 2

C.A.N. stands for "controller area network" and it is a term used to state what kind of multiplexing or inter-module communication a car uses. can is a high speed loop system used on many new cars. if your buying a scan tool go for one that will do all three speeds and both configurations, not the c.a.n scanner as it would limit the types of vehicles you could perform scans on