I think I paid only $14.95 for mine, and it's really the cable you're purchasing, as the OBDII system is, apparently, picky about cables. I've run into needing a specific cable for OBDII access/computer tweaking with a 2005 Cadillac STS, too.

If you get a newer version, and have problems, older versions are fairly easy to find.

Also, it's nice to see I'm not the only one who now has a dedicated vehicle/garage laptop. We live in an amazing time of tech which is available to the general population.

Then again, I never expected to have two laptops and three desktops in the same house of only two adults, much less be able to adjust a vehicle's behavior with one of said laptops.

 

I did not purchase from this seller but from Amazon and I have been using it for almost 2 years with minor issues. I recommend all DIY ppl on this site should have this software. I first loaded in Fusion on my Mac with XP. Now I have a small Lenevo laptop that is just for this purpose.

 

Mckellyb - I still shake my head sometimes when I think about my laptop as an essential tool in the garage. I remember when a timing light and a dwell meter seemed high tech. What I really enjoy, and I didn't think I would, is my Ipad next to my recliner. I can stay In-touch with the forums I enjoy, effortlessly, and research anything I care to instantly. ALMOST; makes up for the targeted advertising, predictive analytics manipulation, robo-calls, and email phishing scams this great new age has given us.

 

OKay, i messed with it again last night. I did a zero point calibration. Drove it this morning for a few miles. Just ran health check now and all the codes are gone. I did try to erase codes last night failed twice. ?? So only codes i have are for the A/C but those are normal since you need the car to be picking up some sun. For the solar panel to read.

I did have the car running the whole time today. Maybe that made a difference. ??

 

When you get the CD check it all. Mine had some PDF files on using it.

 

This might be a stupid question but is this like the Carista app? Or should just buy this and be done with Carista?

 

Carista app is more user friendly but limited vehicle data reported. I tried to use TIS to program TPMS ID with no luck. It always gave me some sort of error message (time out due to in initialization process). Carista worked right on the first shot; it is kind of expensive though (subscription base).

 

Oh ok. I am going to try the techstream software. I ordered the cable and software but I'm looking for version 10 in case the version that I ordered is not working for me. But thank you for your reply!

 

I believe you need to make sure you order the correct Mini VCI cable depending what type of computer you are going to run it on> A 32 bit XP machine or a 64 bit machine with Win 10. The firmware is different depending on the laptop. I started out ordering everything for a 32 bit XP machine but my brother gave me a very nice 17 inch screen Dell Studio laptop with Vista on it. The Vista was not the issue, the fact that it was a 64 bit machine was the issue and my cable firmware version would not run on it. Runs fine on my 32 bit XP Dell Inspiron Mini.

Dennis

 

FWIW the version I bought from the seller in my earlier post works flawlessly with 64-bit Windows 7.

 

May I know which version of TIS did you install on Window XP? I tried version 13.00.022, it crashed when doing a "Data List" of any ECU just like in Windows 10 32 or 64 bit.

 

I had to use 10.30.29 on my Windows 7 32 bit.

 

JLMS

There is firmware and there is software. The cable I bought and use on my XP 32 bit computer is firmware version 2.0.4. The Techstream software is version 12.10.00. There are 2 versions of the Firmware: 1.4.5 and version 2.0.4 which is the one I have and seems to work better on 32 bit machines. I believe the latest Software version is 13.00.30 maybe? The firmware is built into the cable. On the disk are the drivers for the Mini VCI cable and they interface with the Techstream Software which is a separate program on the disk. When I tried to run my firmware version 2.0.4 cable on a 64 bit machine I would get a message saying my computer had not been modified (ie the registry had not been changed). When I run it on my 32 bit XP laptop works like a champ. It can be a challenge believe me I know, the boys over on the SC 430 forum spent a week walking me through the install.

Dennis

 

Thank you Dennis for the detail info. I checked mine and the firmware version is 1.4.1. Guess this is the culprit and have to buy another cable for 2.0.4.

 

JMLS

Not so fast. The firmware version is 1.4.5. If you are seeing 1.4.1 I do not believe you are seeing the firmware version. I believe when you open Techstream you will see a version that shows 1.4.1 and I am no expert by any means but I am not sure if that is the firmware version of the cable because I remember seeing the version number somewhere in the configuration process?

Dennis