Black Friday deals on Autel scanners—thoughts?

The Autel AP200 is my recommendation. It can communicate with all 22 or so ECUs in a Gen 2 Prius. What that means is that it is capable of reading all the trouble codes, not just some of them. It can do everything that the Toyota Techstream software can do. The price right now on Amazon is $49.99 + tax. I own this model, and I also have Techstream.

The Autel AP2500E is a very capable scanner for a Gen 2 Prius. I believe that it can communicate with all the ECUs in the car. It does not have all the features that the AP200 has. The AP200 can do the complete brake bleed procedure like Techstream. I do not think that the AP2500E has the ability to do that. There may also be other missing features in the AP2500E, compared to the AP200.

The Autel AL539 does not look to me like it is a very capable scanner for a Gen 2 Prius. I would be very surprised if it could communicate with the ECUs in the car. I am not familiar with this model.

I do not know how much searching you have done on this forum concerning the Autel AP200. The following two linked threads are good reading.
https://priuschat.com/index.php?posts/3248209

Read post #1 and then scroll down to post #37 in this thread, https://priuschat.com/index.php?posts/3246758

 

I got a Gen2 Brake Booster Pump replacement job coming up soon and I'm thinking that my old Techstream laptop is so clunky and slow that I'd be better off buying one of these.

What do you think? Or at least do you know anyone who has done the brake bleed procedure with both Techstream and Autel AP200?

 

No, I have not done any brake bleeding with the Autel AP200 or with Techstream. I hope that I never need to replace the Brake Booster in my 2011 Gen 3 Prius. I also have not read any threads in this forum of anyone using both to do the brake bleeding.

There are many threads in this forum describing difficulties in using Techstrean with the cheap knockoff xHorse interface cables for brake bleeding. I seem to remember one thread about difficulties in using the Autel AP200.

If you can afford the cost of the Autel AP200, now is a good time to buy it because of the Black Friday deals. I like that the OBD2 Bluetooth dongle is small, and I can easily carry it in the car. If I have any problems with my car, I can just pull it out and use it to diagnose the problem.

 

Dang it folk no to 2500 we been down this road year or so ago . Ap200 looks like apple device White only. Bleed menu looks exactly like techs.. like I said before works nicely.youre phone needs connection . Other than that no subs or dumb shiet

 

If you're buying a serious scanner like for ALK work or all keys lost the companyabovebis involved on big hulabalooo over NASTF and locked features on these said devices . Read Autel forums very serious stuff . If it is to ya.

 

Absolute duffer here:

1. Can the AP200 be used with a laptop, or iPad (or similar)?
2. Does Techstream still have advantages?
3. Could the AP200 do the brake bleed required after (3rd gen) brake booster replacement?
(I've heard mention that it can be a nightmare even with Techstream, especially with inexpensive, knock-off cable.

 

I've done both brake bleeding on Xtool A30D (bi-directional) and Autel MaxiAP200. The step by step procedure is identical and does the job well. I don't think both can do recalibration (stroke/linear offset) which is a bummer (TechStream does)

 

1. The AP200 can be used with, android phones and tablets, and the iPhone but not the iPad.
2. IMO, yes, a laptop with Techstream is easier to view (larger screen) and it is easier to navigate.
3. Yes, the AP200 can do the complete brake bleeding. See my post #4 above.

 

I just ran across someone on here saying the AP200 won't do the brake pump calibration portion of the process that I think you do after the bleeding process. Claim is only Toyota Techstream can do the calibration. Sure wish that wasn't true?

 

I'm not sure one can extrapolate from "I couldn't do it with AP200" to "nothing but Techstream can do it".

But it's true, when I did the long-form bleed procedure recently with AP200, which is supposed to finish up with the linear solenoid offset, the offset was still unlearned when it was done. That was on my gen 3.

It was no biggie, because the solenoid offset also has a non-scantool, jumper-wire dance to trigger the learning, so I just did that as one last step.

I haven't had a chance to try again with the AP200 to see if it always misses that part, or just happened to that one time. I also didn't bother hunting to see if it had a separate operation to trigger the offset learning. I just went straight to the jumper-wire dance, because I wanted to be done.

 

Do you know where I can go to learn how to do that? My ancient laptop running techstream is so painfully slow, I really want to find a way to go into my first booster pump replacement job for a Gen2 without solely dependent on techstream.

 

I was working on a gen 3, where the procedure "when not using the Techstream" is prominently covered in the repair manual.

If gen 2 has a corresponding procedure, I assume it's in that manual too. The heading might be something like "when not using the handheld diagnostics" because back in the early gen 2 days they had some bespoke handheld tool instead of laptops and Techstream.

There isn't a non-Techstream version of the whole bleed procedure, though. Just the linear solenoid offset learning bit (and, you know, the various other random procedures on the car that have non-Techstream versions).

 

To clarify, if both firewall-mounted brake components have been replaced, is the non-Techtream method the sole need, to finish the job, or it just gets you 'round one potential stumbling block, and Techstream IS still required?

I do see mention of clearing codes, but I think that could be done by other ways, say even Dr Prius.

Candidly, my brain is full on this stuff. Just like to ensure it's not a fool's mission, before digging in.

See attached:

 

I would like to make some changes/corrections to what I wrote in post #2. I will provide the quoted section and then provide changes/corrections in bold text.

The Autel AP200 is my recommendation. It can communicate with all 16 or so ECUs in a Gen 2 Prius. What that means is that it is capable of reading all the trouble codes, not just some of them. It can do most of what Toyota Techstream software can do. The price right now on Amazon is $49.99 + tax. I own this model, and I also have Techstream.

The Autel AL539 does not look to me like it is a very capable scanner for a Gen 2 Prius. I would be very surprised if it could communicate with all the ECUs in the car. I am not familiar with this model

 

The latter. Learning the linear solenoid offset is simply the last little step of the job, after you've gotten all the air out. There is no procedure without Techstream (or a suitably-capable alternate scan tool) to reliably get all the air out of all the passages (including the ones behind valves that are closed when the ECU doesn't open them).

When you do the whole long-form air bleed procedure with Techstream (or your other scan tool), most of the time the linear solenoid offset gets learned as that procedure finishes up, so you don't need any separate step. But if you finish that whole procedure and the solenoid offset is still not learned, the non-Techstream, jumper-wire dance is an easy way to retry that one final step.

 

About three years ago, I need to do a transmission service in my Tundra, which requires getting real-time tranny temps to properly do the service.

I got an XTOOL D7 for just under $500 and it worked great....did a couple tranny services with it so it's pay for itself just with that. The newer ones have a lot more features and are now $308 on Amazon...like TPMS resets, etc.

Whatever you get, make sure you check how much the updates are yearly. My D7 came with 3-years of updates so whenever I turned it on it usually had over 100 to download....all makes and models and regional updates it has to do. (It's been a few months, I should go grab it to let it do it's update.)

This reminds me, my Tundra is needing her transmission serviced next spring.

 

In other words an Autel AP200 can replace Toyota Techstream when replacing a brake booster pump, but if you run into calibration issues once the bleeding procedure is completed you might have to do the jumper wire dance or resort to techstream?

 

Right. But I don't even know if the unlearned offset the time I did it was because of an AP200 problem or just because the offset didn't get learned that time. Seems like maybe sometimes it just doesn't; I maybe remember times I did bleeds with Techstream also where the solenoid offset was still unlearned at the end. I just went back to the brake utility and ran the offset learning again by itself, or used the jumper dance to run the offset learning again by itself.

Also, I don't know that the AP200 hasn't also got an option to run the offset learning again by itself. I just didn't bother looking for one, because I already knew how to do it with a jumper wire, and I was itching to move on to other chores.

 

gen3 can be done without Techstream by using jumper wire (there's a detailed instruction on how to do it in the service manual), gen2 however doesn't have that option.

service manual says:
Perform initialization and calibration of the linear solenoid valve when the brake booster with master cylinder (skid control ECU, brake actuator or pressure sensor), brake pedal stroke sensor or brake pedal is replaced.