I'm probably out $150-300 on labor just rolling this into a shop to do the exact same tests (then add on parts/labor) and I enjoy DIY so I'm thinking hard on this one.
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Originally Posted by hatzie
The reasonable quality Chinese knockoffs are sufficient to the task at hand. I own one with a case, CAN-DI and all of the adapters that cost around $350 shipped from Guangdong, China about 7 years ago. It's about $290 without a case.
The knockoffs are not without problems. - I had to change the DC-DC Converter when it arrived requiring soldering skills and tools beyond a lot of folks skill set.
- Some of the super cheap versions have issues with the VCI module so you get to send it back or replace the VCI.
- I will not use any Tech 2 for ECM updates because any Tech 2 requires a fully RS232 compliant serial port on the PC doing the work. USB-RS232 will not cut it.
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This is what I was checking out online, minus the case I'm seeing $270-330 shipped, and they definitely look grey market to me. My concern is whether it's garbage or not. Nothing is sacred anymore, no doubt the plans for the unit leaked or were stolen 10+ years ago so these are probably roughly the same without the same QC of the original (QC/QA costs $$) so buyer gets to deal w/all the bugs and defects.
I work with two EEs and know my way around an iron, multimeter, o-scope and other misc related tools myself, so I've at least got some pro level support nearby.
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Originally Posted by hatzie
If you have a laptop or an old desktop PC that you can use in the shop the WiFI MDI clones are $200 and they work just fine over USB using Bosch MDI drivers.
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You know, I have a stack of SSD-loaded Dell E6230s I was just about to sell locally on the cheap. I think they have a serial port on the chassis, too. If not, there's a snap-on mini dock which hooks into the databus on the bottom that seems to operate way better than USB->RS232 adapters.
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Originally Posted by hatzie
The Autel Maxdas DS808 is around $700 on sale right now. You won't find a better deal on a full function scanner that doesn't have intellectual property issues. Eric O uses these in his South Main Auto Youtube videos on customer cars.
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His video was the first I found when diagnosing this exact issue - where he finds the TPS is the problem. Then I ended up over at another YouTube channel he referenced during that video who went into a longer explanation with a different tool. That's what led me to buy my cheap Ancel unit, $800 was hard to swallow at the time. I could tell it was using Android and it seemed to be crawling to a halt thru that video, so I had some concerns.
I have a Samsung Note 2 new, unopened box (inventory leftovers) and one of the 1st Gen Nexus7 tablets too ... surprised there's not some readily available conversion kit out there for old tablets, that would be awesome!
Quote:
Originally Posted by hatzie
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Honestly, the interface looks scary like the $30 unit I have now. It does lots of stupid **** and a lot of the information is gibberish. I'm attaching some screenshots.