VCDS - old style HEX+CAN cable - can this cable handle all functions for all A2s ?

dieselfan

dieselfan

A2OC Donor
Dear All,

There is for sale one of the old non USB, free VIN cables in my area.
Cable is registered on the owner today so he can use Ross support service.
This support is said by owner to be possible to transfer to me for an approx 100£ isch fee.
Since I know very little about the concept and have very limited experience with VCDS in general.... ;

Do this cable support all needed functionality related to all Audi A2 ?

It will cost me 50% of a new 3 VIN USB cable. I have 5x A2 and one A6 4f2 so the free VIN is a good argument for me.

I desperate need to diagnose 3x of the cars I have so I am probably more controlled by panic than sense for the moment. Please supervise me... :)
 
hello, ive got the old hex +can cable vcds bought it in 2009, used it various VAG group vehicles, i can comfirm it will work audi a2 and all its functionality
 
I'll 'second' Ben's comments as I have an even earlier hex+ can cable (about 2002 vintage) with serial port connector. It works perfectly on the A2 and also handles the new 'long coding' protocol on my Q3 plus everything else I've tried.
If the cable you are looking at has a Serial port connector, Ross Tech have a custom USB adaptor mentioned in section 1.5 - http://www.ross-tech.com/vag-com/faq_1.php

Cheers Spike
 
Hi,

Two points.

1. The $100ish transfer of ownership fee. I bought a used kit about a year ago and have not yet paid the fee. The kit works fine so I do not not need software support and I doubt they will be interested in helping me with a fault code when it is all documented online. I have not tried downloading the current VCDS version (**) but understand I can, so what exactly do get for my $100? Must do some reading.

2. VCDS does not quite do everything, as I understand it will not retrieve some security code to do with the immobiliser if you wanted to make an extra key.

Andy

(**) I run VCDS on an old (apparently best) laptop, Vista based. Now Microsoft discontinued thier free security package Essentials some time ago and not wanting to spend money on Norton or the like, and as I only use the laptop to run VCDS I now simply religiously keep wireless turned off to protect it by a pressing a function key when I boot Vista.

I loaded VCDS the other week and it told me a new version of VCDS was available, eek.
 
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Spike and Andy - again many thanks for all the effort you use to help me out when I am lost.
After your support I feel confident to buy the old serial cable even if I cannot get the spec on the USB adapter.
I will definitively need the free VIN so this seems like a low budget entrance for me into the VCDS World....

Any advice for manuals/guides to buy/reed (while I slowly build up my competence) ?


VCDS serial+usb cable.JPG
 
Andrew said:
Hi,

Two points.

1. The $100ish transfer of ownership fee. I bought a used kit about a year ago and have not yet paid the fee. The kit works fine so I do not not need software support and I doubt they will be interested in helping me with a fault code when it is all documented online. I have not tried downloading the current VCDS version (**) but understand I can, so what exactly do get for my $100? Must do some reading.

2. VCDS does not quite do everything, as I understand it will not retrieve some security code to do with the immobiliser if you wanted to make an extra key.

Andy

(**) I run VCDS on an old (apparently best) laptop, Vista based. Now Microsoft discontinued thier free security package Essentials some time ago and not wanting to spend money on Norton or the like, and as I only use the laptop to run VCDS I now simply religiously keep wireless turned off to protect it by a pressing a function key when I boot Vista.

I loaded VCDS the other week and it told me a new version of VCDS was available, eek.
Click to expand...

Can you not disable the wifi adaptor in the bios?
 
Bargepower said:
Can you not disable the wifi adaptor in the bios?
Click to expand...
Hi Ian,

Hope your recovery is going well and you are getting stronger.

I think I have now permanently disabled wifi. I Googled 'turn off wifi', quite an unusual request!, after all who in thier right mind would want to do that so it is not an everyday user friendly option. Deep inside network manager, a right click on a some tab reveals the option but you would never know it was there if you didn't know already.

Bit reluctant to crawl around in BIOS but if needs must ....

Andy
 
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