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Techstream not talking to my 2015 Prius

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by nimbus22, Jul 28, 2018.

  1. nimbus22

    nimbus22 New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 21, 2018
    4
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    Location:
    Natick
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    V
    I purchased techstream 12.20.24 with a mini VCI (J2534 with firmware 1.4.1) cable from ebay. The purpose is to add a key fob.

    I had an old laptop with win 7 32 bit and loaded everything.

    Software loaded fine and I was able to activate the software.

    Cable drivers loaded fine. There is a firmware update tool for cable info and that worked ok. So it would indicate I'm able to communincate with the cable.

    I attached the cable to my Prius with the techstream program running. I turned on the Prius (double click start without pressing on the brake). When I "connect to the vehicle" via techstream, I'm not able to get the VIN number. Meaning it's not really talking to the Prius. Manually adding the information to the vehicle connection wizard doesn't do anything.

    After a while, there is a "check hybrid system warning" message on the Prius console. Seems something in the techstream or the cable is creating a problem for the Prius. I'm able to clear the message by disconnecting the car battery for a minute. I did this a couple of times resulting in the same error message.

    Questions:

    1) Has anyone had a similar problem?

    2) I suspect I may have a bad cable. I'm in the process of ordering techstream from an amazon vendor. Do I need cable firmware 2.xx? I seem to recall people have used 1.4.1 successfully, while other posts have said I need the later firmware.

    3) There is a check cable/connection utility in the techstream When I run it I get the image below. Is that normal?
    .
    bad_cable.png
     
    #1 nimbus22, Jul 28, 2018
  2. Grit

    Grit Senior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 22, 2017
    6,114
    4,040
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    Location:
    Wilkes Land
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    how about putting the car in ready.
     
    #2 Grit, Jul 28, 2018
    Raytheeagle likes this.
  3. nimbus22

    nimbus22 New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 21, 2018
    4
    2
    0
    Location:
    Natick
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    V
    I believe I also tried to start up the car and leave it in park. Then started the techstream program. It still caused the "check hybrid" error.

    I watched some youtube videos and they seem to turn on the car (engine not on)
     
    #3 nimbus22, Jul 28, 2018
  4. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 2, 2004
    44,836
    16,072
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    Location:
    Canada
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Sorry, mini vci is a pirated software for running Techstream. We do not condone the use of this software.
     
    #4 Tideland Prius, Jul 29, 2018
  5. Benny Claudio

    Benny Claudio New Member

    Joined:
    Nov 21, 2019
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    0
    Location:
    California
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    I used mine with mini vci 1.4.1 slow but it work fine on Win 7. The engine in ready and running. Just wait till its connected then it goes to next screen enter the option. Next then go to the monitors to see what you want to see.
     
    #5 Benny Claudio, Nov 23, 2019
  6. Siward

    Siward Active Member

    Joined:
    Aug 7, 2014
    296
    124
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    Location:
    Toronto
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    I just bought a mini vci v14 from Aliexpress from China for $9.80 USD. It will come in 3 months. I was going to just fool around with it. Perhaps use it to do upcoming coolant change. Now I am a little hesitant to use it.

    I watched videos too. From what I saw, you go in to IG-ON mode (which is pressing the power button twice without the depressing the gas pedal). The power button should go amber-colored.

    You also may want to disconnect your internet connection (since you are using a knockoff). There were some install guides that recommended this.

    The v12 install has a lot more install steps than the v14 version. There is software fiddling involved which is why I didn't buy v12 or v13. Try googling to review your install.

    I haven't installed it before, so you might find better comments from someone else.
     
    #6 Siward, Nov 25, 2019
    Last edited: Nov 25, 2019
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