Techstream, method to customize?

It is super hard to figure out which XHorse clone one is buying. After much searching this was found

Ft232rl Ic Mini Vci J2534 V14.30.023 Diagnosis Machine For Japanese Car Toyota - Buy Diagnosis Machine For Cars,Diagnosis Machine,Diagnostic Scanner For Japanese Car Product on Alibaba.com

which corresponds very closely to what is seen through the plastic case on the model I have. (Also, the same orange velcro cable strap.) Mine works very well for reading values, and running active tests, but Techstream never shows customize or utility options.

Scroll down a bit and on one of the circuit board pictures there is an empty "U7", and now that I know where to look, that is indeed the same on mine.

This seems to be the same board (or at least close)

(URL was mangled, google for: site:amazon.com B084H75MZ3 the manufacturer is "Washinglee")

This is a different circuit board. Nothing labeled U7 that I see, but there is an empty slot U11 on the side where U7 would be expected, and the driver is still 1.4.1

MINI VCI for TOYOTA V16.20.023 Single Cable

Looking for knock offs with 2.0.4, which the original had, didn't turn up anything that I trusted. Perhaps I will spring for the Vxdiag nano at around $100, but not before I contact their technical support to see if customize should or shouldn't work. Failing that, there is the Tactrix. People claim to have been able to use the XHorse clones to use configure, but given the variation in circuit boards figuring out which one they used would be challenging.

 

Success, finally, with v16.00.017 using the same cheapo mini-VCI (SV46-D1)

Mini VCI J2534 Cable for Toyota Techstream V16.20.023

following the instructions from here (mostly)

How to Install and Activate Toyota Techstream 16.00.017 Driver & Software? | OBDII365.com Official Blog

Yes, I had tried that version before and it had not worked.

Base information:

1. net.framework 4.7.2 already installed
2. mvci driver already installed
3. This is on Windows 7 Pro 32 bit (link above shows x64 instructions)

I think that the key was that I very carefully cleaned the machine before this install.

1. uninstall old techstream
2. removed the "toyota diagnostics" folder in Program Files
3. Update Java (version 8 already, appears to be just security changes, but who knows with these things?)
3.5 reboot
4. run ccleaner. Fix all registry problems. custom clean: with defaults once, plus with "old prefetch defs" once
5. Delete libraries\Documents\Techstream (<- this was old, perhaps interferes with new installs?)
6. Scan entire disk for "techstream", only hits were to distributions kept in C:\temp
7. Find "C:\users\<ACCOUNT_NAME>\Recent" and clear list
8. Regedit. Scan for "denso", found none. Scan for "techstream", found two under a "compatibility" folder and removed them. Found a bunch under "Avast", leave those alone.
9. Scan the installer for viruses with avast - clean. (Previously it thought cuw.exe was a problem.)
10. Set up avast to ASK before quarantine, and also not to check things being written into "C:\Program Files\Toyota Diagnostics"

11. With laptop NOT attached to net and J2534 cable NOT attached to laptop: install Techstream v16.00.018.exe. Respond to prompts as in link at top of this post. Avast did not flag anything.
12. With laptop NOT attached to net and J2534 cable NOT attached to laptop; double click Techstream on desktop. Respond to prompts as in link at top of this post. Setup->Vim select Xhorse. Exit.
13. Copy the 32 bit patch from the download to the desktop.

14. move to car, laptop already on, car already on (foot off brake, push start twice). Plug in OBD end of cable then USB end. Wait a few seconds for the device to be detected.
15. Double click the 32 bit patch file on the desktop. Techstream comes up and "configure" and "utility" buttons are present!

Now I want to turn on the alarm. While running with patch click on "body", open it, set the mode at the bottom of the page to "customize" and it shows "Security system: off". Problem is, I don't see "Security system" as an option in any of the customize ECUs. Maybe that is a different extra security system? I see these options under "customize" at the top level (skipping irrelevant stuff like A/C):

Warning: none
Security:

warning by glass sensor: off
passive mode: off
warning by horn: on
entry delay time: 14s​

Door lock:

unlock key time: on​

others: none
wireless doorlock:

open door warning: on
hazard answer back: on
wireless control: on
panic function: on
unlock 2 operation: on
wireless buzzer: on
autolock times:30s (60s is an option)​

In general the values from the "customize" list match up, but there is no "Security system" On/Off.

How to enable the alarm?

Possible to disable autolock? (By which I mean the car locking the doors when it is off after some fixed time, even though the fob is still in the slot. If that is what "autolock" means here.)

I don't see a way to turn off the transmission "reverse" warning. I would have thought that would be under "Warning" but that is empty.

Note added. Also, for the first time on this install the install screen which contains the fields "Repairer name", "Repairer code", etc. was not truncated, so that the entire thing was visible. That truncation is the sort of graphics error which might happen with a Java mismatch (but shouldn't.) Or maybe the older Java install was somehow corrupted? No way to tell now as the new one replaced it.

Note added. "Customize" values are the same when the car is turned on with foot on brake, press "start" once as they are when the car is turned on the other way.

 

Note: msconfig now shows two things which are supposed to run at startup:

GTS_API_TGD Application
GTSdotNetChecker

In the test above there was no reboot after the installation, and neither of these is seen running in Task Manager. Are they going to be a problem, make things work better, or have no effect? Let's find out.

Reboot (network disabled) ...

Nope, just like before.

Ran the health check and all was good. Beats me why "warnings" is empty.

 

Anybody in Europe with a working Techstream and a 2nd generation Prius reading this? If so, on the page that shows model and vehicle spec does it show NHW and 1NZFXE, which is what I am seeing? NHW is a generic Toyota prefix for a Prius, but 2nd gen is NHW20 (or sometimes XW20), first generation is NHW10 (or NHW11). I cannot help wondering if perhaps Techstream is pulling up the Gen 1 information and applying it to this Gen 2.

For that matter, where does Techstream get its model specific information? That is, the list of things which can be configured, and presumably some sort of map of their locations or names, so that it can address them. I know there are tables for setting engine timing and things like that, but the information I am interested in is much simpler.

 

There seems to only be the "NHW" option for Prius vehicle specification. In the manual list of vehicles there are no XW* nor are there any variants on the NHW, like NHW20.

At this point every option found in "data list" ->change option pull down to "customize" has been found in one or the other "customize" button lists (like "body" or "illuminated entry") except "Security system", which appears nowhere. Oddly none of the A/C "customize" options appear in that first list.

Where should "Security system" appear in customize, in which button?
Should it be possible to customize the "transmission in Reverse" warning in customize, that is turn it off/on?

As far as I can tell Techstream and this adapter are doing what they should, with the possible exception of those missing customize options.
The only part of Techstream I thought was a bit off was that the "CAN bus test" for "ALL" comes back with "There is no system found on this communication bus". Obviously it is communicating since, for instance, the "Health check" talks to all the ECUs without throwing any errors. (Or showing any DTCs, other than B1421 because the car is parked in the shade.) Maybe it isn't using CAN to do so. I guess I could buy another adapter but it seems really unlikely that they would magically make the missing customization option appear.

 

Apparently the Security System on/off should be in an "option setup" category under "customize". However, there is no such selection shown. So I searched for:

techstream no "option setup"

and found this in a Siena forum

https://www.siennachat.com/attachments/vip-rs3200-security-pt398-08102-sienna-2011-pdf.1907/

where there is an addendum on page 28 for handling this "no option setup" situation in a Sienna. Oddly it involves manually configuring the vehicle in Techstream as a 2009 Camry. In addition, it looks like a shorting plug needs to be installed if there is no hood switch. Unclear if that is for the GBS itself (what the manual is about) to be installed, or if that is needed for any form of the alarm system. I have not tested to see if my 2007 has a hood switch or a shorting plug. Perhaps if it does not adding that jumper will be enough for "option setup" to appear.

Hmm, found the same document for a 2010 Prius

http://toyotaparts.sparkstoyota.com/install/PT398-47090inst.pdf

and in that case it says to set it for a 2009 Prius. Those are two different generations.

The techstream version I am using has the European model identifier method, and that does not as I recall allow a year to be specified. However, the program will not run if the area is changed to North America, to obtain the other type of identifier dialog.

Got to say, this is an awful lot of work to flip one bleeping bit!

 

Success!

Since it looked like the instructions for turning on the security system might only function in North America I decided to try to switch regions, at least temporarily,

1. Turn on laptop, no network, no mini VCI plugged in
2. Turn on car: no brake, push power twice
3. start techstream (program, not patch)
4. configure techstream, change region to North America, English
5. "cancel" when the registration window appears
6. exit techstream
7. Attach cable OBD side, then USB
8. start techstream with the patch. It complained about limited functionality, ignore that.
9. It saw vehicle (Prius, not NHW, with correct year) and configure was still an option.
10. Configure, "option setup" appears! Run that, turn on security system.
11. Change region back to Europe/English.
12. Exit Techstream and unplug cable.
13. Roll down windows and turn off car.
14. Exit, lock car. Security icon goes to solid immediately, previously it would flash slowly.
15. Wait a minute, open door, horn sounds!
16. Unlock door with remote, horn deactivates.

So the alarm seems to be working.

 

Slightly more useful. So far the only substantive difference found was the lack of the "option setup". When set with the NA region it tries to "phone home" at startup and puts up a warning about "reduced functionality" when it cannot connect. It might be a bad thing if it actually did connect, given the "license" it is using. It isn't clear how well this "license" will continue to work with that region setting, all the installation instructions say to use "Europe".