# Snap-on modis reads but VCDS won't



## Rivals Inc (Jul 30, 2009)

So, I can't get a actron scanner, or vcds to read. It says "Can't communicate check connection." But yet, I can get $10k machine, the snap-on modis-global scan key 20 to read, and even with that I have a 80% success rate. Has anyone ever had this problem before? what should I do? rip out the dash and check out all the connections? Because that seems to be my only option. I had a friend come over with his vcds and he did everything he thought of, checked fuses, took out the stereo, turned the car on & off, all that goodie stuff. I dont know what to do here and it really is pissing me off.


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## Rac_337 (Sep 24, 2004)

try the vag com forum. :beer:


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## LouieTHEkid (Jan 27, 2007)

do you have an aftermarket headunit?


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## Rivals Inc (Jul 30, 2009)

Rac_337 said:


> try the vag com forum. :beer:


last time i went there i got flamed with no real help.

And a aftermarket head unit? Um, if you mean the actual head, no. If you mean a chip, porbably but i have no idea. Can't get in to find out.


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## Peter Badore (Jun 17, 2002)

Rivals Inc said:


> So, I can't get a actron scanner, or vcds to read. It says "Can't communicate check connection." But yet, I can get $10k machine, the snap-on modis-global scan key 20 to read, and even with that I have a 80% success rate. Has anyone ever had this problem before? what should I do? rip out the dash and check out all the connections? Because that seems to be my only option. I had a friend come over with his vcds and he did everything he thought of, checked fuses, took out the stereo, turned the car on & off, all that goodie stuff. I dont know what to do here and it really is pissing me off.


Try disconnecting various modules--start with the ABS/ASR. I have had this problem many times.


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## LouieTHEkid (Jan 27, 2007)

Rivals Inc said:


> last time i went there i got flamed with no real help.
> 
> And a aftermarket head unit? Um, if you mean the actual head, no. If you mean a chip, porbably but i have no idea. Can't get in to find out.


Im asking is the stereo aftermarket. If so it changes the impedance of the communication lines. Certain scan tools can't hook up. There are however others that will. If the car is sending to high of an amperage/voltage to the scantool by default IIRC it won't connect to protect. 

Something along those lines, Let me get to my class computer and dig up the alldata info I had :thumbup:


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## Uwe (Jan 16, 2000)

Rivals Inc said:


> So, I can't get a actron scanner, or vcds to read. It says "Can't communicate check connection." But yet, I can get $10k machine, the snap-on modis-global scan key 20 to read, and even with that I have a 80% success rate. Has anyone ever had this problem before? what should I do? rip out the dash and check out all the connections? Because that seems to be my only option. I had a friend come over with his vcds and he did everything he thought of, checked fuses, took out the stereo, turned the car on & off, all that goodie stuff. I dont know what to do here and it really is pissing me off.


What does VCDS say when you click [Options] -> [Test]?

-Uwe-


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## stockstatus (Jun 4, 2012)

Tried using modis on my 1.8t at school and all i could access was pids even with the k20 key our rosstech program worked fine though 

sent from a payphone using quarters


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## Rivals Inc (Jul 30, 2009)

LouieTHEkid said:


> Im asking is the stereo aftermarket. If so it changes the impedance of the communication lines. Certain scan tools can't hook up. There are however others that will. If the car is sending to high of an amperage/voltage to the scantool by default IIRC it won't connect to protect.
> 
> Something along those lines, Let me get to my class computer and dig up the alldata info I had :thumbup:


alldata is my best friend sometimes. Im taking a auto degree also. However. Yes i do have a different stereo. Sony gtx-520. BUT ive never had a problem reading codes with this head unit. Read codes just fine. I dont know what happen, it just started to not work, then it worked again then it stopped. That was little over a year ago. Until i strapped the modis to it it worked. And it bought up like 10 cel codes. How touchy is vcds? The actron scanner i have doesnt have all the pins. So i did rearrange the wires in the obd-ll connector. Should i try putting them back & try it? Also, i am not sure of the exact wording of vcds, my friend just told me it won't communicate that he couldnt get anything.


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## LouieTHEkid (Jan 27, 2007)

is this the schools vagcom? They may only have it set up for can bus but not hex bus :thumbup:


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## 79rabbit4dr (Jul 25, 2007)

Move the OBDII pins back.


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## Rivals Inc (Jul 30, 2009)

LouieTHEkid said:


> is this the schools vagcom? They may only have it set up for can bus but not hex bus :thumbup:


no. It is my friends not the schools. The modis is the schools. I will move the pins back later today.


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## Anony00GT (Mar 6, 2002)

Here's the best advice possible, and what you should be doing: *E-mail Ross-Tech directly with this one.*



Rivals Inc said:


> last time i went there i got flamed with no real help.


Uwe Ross himself asked you a question in this thread, a question you seem to have completely ignored. Maybe you got flamed because you're not a real Ross-Tech customer, or you don't have a real genuine interface (might also be the reason it's not working)?





Rivals Inc said:


> The actron scanner i have doesnt have all the pins. So i did rearrange the wires in the obd-ll connector. Should i try putting them back & try it?


:what: :facepalm:


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## Rivals Inc (Jul 30, 2009)

I looked around the wiring. I got a awesome wiring diagram & the grey/white wire that runs from the connector runs into the stereo harness. And someone has put a different gauge wire, 16 gauge wire it looks like. I will upload a picture later. 

So could a different gauge wire cause this?


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## VR6Now (Dec 31, 2000)

Rivals Inc said:


> I looked around the wiring. I got a awesome wiring diagram & the grey/white wire that runs from the connector runs into the stereo harness. And someone has put a different gauge wire, 16 gauge wire it looks like. I will upload a picture later.
> 
> So could a different gauge wire cause this?


In this one thread you've been offered the correct help twice and have totally ignored it. You're your worst enemy.


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## Rivals Inc (Jul 30, 2009)

VR6Now said:


> In this one thread you've been offered the correct help twice and have totally ignored it. You're your worst enemy.


who the hell says i didnt take the advice? Go back & read what i originally posted. No wait, i'll qoute it.

[QOUTE=Rivals inc]I can't get a actron scanner, or vcds to read. It says "Can't communicate check connection."[/QOUTE]

OK, so i did that. I had a friend (recent made friend) come over with his vcds scanner & it won't read. He tried everything. Checked fuses, wires, with the car running, car off. I also took a ohm meter & checked the gray/white wire, reads just fine. I cant get you a complete scan if vcds won't communicate. Thats why im asking for help.


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## bearthebruce (Dec 23, 2005)

Uwe Ross of Ross-Tech asked:


Uwe said:


> What does VCDS say when you click [Options] -> [Test]?
> 
> -Uwe-


Did you ask your friend back to run that test? The test would tell us the state of the K-Lines in your vehicle and by knowing the state of the lines, we would hope to eliminate some reasons for the failed communications. Without knowing those, it's hard to make a diagnosis. 

I do see that you measured with an ohm meter and stated that the wire reads fine. Could you be a little more precise? What did you measure? Continuity from point to point? And did you verify the connection points? 

Did you measure the voltage between the pins to ground? You can use this web page to determine what is on which pin of the DLC. http://www.ross-tech.com/vag-com/aftermarket-radio.html  - & Scroll to the bottom of the page to see the DLC diagram. 

There is another possibility - one of the control modules in the car could be hanging the communications lines. This ABS and Air Bag modules have been known to do this. Are there any failure symptoms that you can report? I mean, what started you down this path?


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## Rivals Inc (Jul 30, 2009)

bearthebruce said:


> there is another possibility - one of the control modules in the car could be hanging the communications lines. This ABS and Air Bag modules have been known to do this. Are there any failure symptoms that you can report? I mean, what started you down this path?


well, i know i have airbag/abs light on. But they have always been on. I looked on alldata to locate the abs relay & it dont give a location so where would that be? I even googled & didnt come up with anything. Im going to assume its under the dash. I measured ohms on the 2000 tab, and came back with 0. So its good. I tested it where the wire had been spliced & at the stereo harness pin.

And all he told me was he tried everything he could & it wont do anything.


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## VR6Now (Dec 31, 2000)

Rivals Inc said:


> who the hell says i didnt take the advice? Go back & read what i originally posted. No wait, i'll qoute it.
> 
> [QOUTE=Rivals inc]I can't get a actron scanner, or vcds to read. It says "Can't communicate check connection."[/QOUTE]
> 
> ...


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## Rivals Inc (Jul 30, 2009)

VR6Now said:


> Now where does it state you attempted to use the test mode as recommended. Maybe you need to go back and read what you wrote and what was suggested before flapping off. Based on your lack of response, you didn't. This is how it works since you don't get it. You ask for help. You are asked questions. You resond to those questions if you want help. If you don't' like that, don't post. Easy isn't it.
> 
> Your friend tried everything. What is defined as 'everything'? If he tried evrything, why isn't working now since everything was done? 'Everything' would fixed the problem sport.
> 
> You get flamed because you set yourself up for it.


IF you would have read my 1st post for the 1st time, I was pretty clear with specifics about 'everything.' However, you're about a ignorant one, if someone died of cancer & the doctors tried everything to keep them alive, 'everything' didn't cure or help them, they still died. I said my friend did the scan, I never said I did. Anyway, today, my friend decided to tell me it was probably HIS connector that was bad, as he stated "it stopped working that week." 

Love to know why this was moved to the vag-com forum. OBVIOUSLY I had a reason not to post here because retarts want to be ignorant queers baits. As with the 1.8t forum is much more helpful & a lot more knowledgeable of english.


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## penclnck (Jan 27, 2003)

Rivals Inc said:


> I looked on alldata


OK, now we are getting somewhere... get the Factory Repair Manual for the car you are trying to work on. Alldata is great for... um... for... um... generating tax revenue I guess.



Rivals Inc said:


> So could a different gauge wire cause this?


No. But someone not knowing what they are doing sure will.



Rivals Inc said:


> Yes i do have a different stereo. Sony gtx-520


As long as terminal #3 of the black power plug is not connect up to the aftermarket rat's nest of a Serny wiring harness, it should be OK.



Rivals Inc said:


> the abs relay


Eh... at the risk of sounding stupid... what ABS relay?



Rivals Inc said:


> I measured ohms on the 2000 tab


2000 tab? Must be hipster thing, I've never heard of it. My mom use to drink Tab cola, I think Walmart still sells that stuff.




Rivals Inc said:


> How touchy is vcds?


It talks to the car using same protocol as the factory scan tool. I can't really define how "touchy" it is as compared to my Uncle who is now in jail... but if the car is screwed up... say random wiring changes to the OBDII port, I could see that being an issue. The things is, as noted a few times in the future flashback classics thread, several things can prevent communication... wiring, another module locking out the K-Line, questionable origins of diagnostic equipment, software running in the background on the computer.

It tends to break down to 3 simple basics.

1 - the car
2 - the interface (cable)
3 - the laptop computer

As any good mechanic knows, if you have different thing things that could result in the same issue, then you need to do the process of elimination. Using the same interface/computer, try to scan other VW/Audi cars.... if no cars talk, then we've narrowed it down to the interface/computer. Next, install the latest and greatest version of VCDS (11.11.4 at the time of this post) onto a different computer. If things start working, then that computer was the issue. However, if changing cars and computers makes no difference, then the interface would be suspect. I would suggest contacting Ross Tech directly.


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## VR6Now (Dec 31, 2000)

My cars work, yours doesn't. I have no problems connecting to VCDS. 

It seeems all you have are names and insults but not a clue on how to repair your busted up POS. You can throw names and insults around as you please and my cars still work. You're no further along in getting that pile straightened out than you were before. How does it feel?

No where in your post does it say you tried the test mode. I guess you think 'everything' means "I used the test mode and it didn't work." Its obvious to others that you did not say you tried the test mode but apparently over your head. I'm used to people who are smart enough to articulate exactly what they did and did not do. I will assume you're not intelligent enough to do so or to recognize people trying to assist so you can push your beater down the street for all I care. You and your broken down sled are a perfect match your friends pirated VCDS with a bad chinese cable. Good luck with that.

Its time to let this thread die because you're to much of an insular fool to get out of your own way.


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## Rivals Inc (Jul 30, 2009)

penclnck said:


> As long as terminal #3 of the black power plug is not connect up to the aftermarket rat's nest of a Serny wiring harness, it should be OK.


This i will check that out. Which will be monday when i go back to school as where the jetta currently sits. I don't recall a black wire being cut, i do know that there are two other wires that are cut on the sony harness. If i remember correctly, pinkish Colored? The guy did say his cable quit working after he attempted mine & he was there for like 2 hours. The actron scanner i have is fine. Ive used it on other cars, the snap on modis reads mine just fine. 

@VR6Now-dude, quit arguing with me. You will accomplish absolutely nothing. Now will I satisfy that ego of yours. Just pretty much saying, if you don't have anything good to say then don't say anything at all. Best you can do is bust a cap locks on me. So yeah. Time for the ignore list again....


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## [email protected] Parts (Nov 27, 2006)

Respectfully some quick questions.:heart:

Did you verify the VCDS con-fig works in another car? 
Which VCDS system version software and hardware are you using?

Since you failed to display an answer to Uwe/Bruce's questions of the options screen, or post the data.

What is the complete con-fig we are discussing, or are we supposed to guess its the 01 in your signature?

Do you understand the difference between ISO 9141 and VW KW 1281?
Since you can talk with the Crap-On Modis Local.
Did you try address 0x33 in VCDS OBD 2 mode vs the 0x01 proprietary mode?
Have you isolated dual K lines and L line or ALDL bridge/gateway 0x19?

If not, its time to consider you are not qualified to play in this forum, follow directions, comprehend the repair manual. Best advice would be, find a professional.

Don't let it piss you off.
FYI, you are certainly pissing off people who help here, or entertaining others with your stupidity generated.
I'm not ready to change the channel, entertain me.opcorn:


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## Rivals Inc (Jul 30, 2009)

[email protected] Parts said:


> Respectfully some quick questions.:heart:
> 
> Did you verify the VCDS con-fig works in another car?
> Which VCDS system version software and hardware are you using?
> ...


I didn't do anything, my friend did all the stuff. He is the only other person in my town that has any other knowledge of 1.8t. I couldnt be there with him because I had other things in the shop going on. I have a 83 camaro I'm restoring and a front caliper to rebuild and rethread with a heli coil where the banjo bolts into the caliper. I couldnt exactly hold his hand the entire time. Lol. while he was there, he helped pin point my exhaust leak. Ive been working on that also. I've got it solved but not fixed yet. I will get him to come back over next week IF he has a new connector for HIS vcds. I know he has vcds lite. He told me it would not read at all, this was about month ago & he just told me his connector stopped working that week. So that makes me assume he tried it on another VW. I just dont understand my connection. It worked fine one day. then it just stopped. with no changes to the car what so ever. 

WAIT. I remember putting in new o2 sensors and a o2 harness about the time it quit working. I'm going to check my wiring diagram.


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## VR6Now (Dec 31, 2000)

Rivals Inc said:


> @VR6Now-dude, quit arguing with me. You will accomplish absolutely nothing. Now will I satisfy that ego of yours. Just pretty much saying, if you don't have anything good to say then don't say anything at all. Best you can do is bust a cap locks on me. So yeah. Time for the ignore list again....


Follow your own advise before you offer it up to others. You don't need an ignore list when you do a pretty good job already.


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## penclnck (Jan 27, 2003)

Rivals Inc said:


> I have a 83 camaro


Please submit a photo of your mullet. 



Rivals Inc said:


> I know he has vcds lite.


This would imply your friend is using a 3rd party interface... something made in China and of questionable quality. Generic "KKL" interfaces are well known for being crap. I suspect the serial port versions would work OK, but the USB version are really just serial port interfaces with a built in USB adapter, this is something that is not supported by Ross Tech as per the FAQ 1.5



> Many generic USBSerial converters are unable to handle the baud rate and timing requirements that are demanded by some control modules using the VAG protocols. If you wish to use a USBSerial converter, we recommend that you get one with an FT232B or FT232R chipset. It is essential to configure the virtual COM port that it creates to be in the range of COM1 to COM4, and to set the Latency timer to 2. See this screen-shot as a guide to configuring these devices. Please understand, this is a recommendation only; if you purchase your own USBSerial converter, please do not expect us to support it.


If your friend is using non Ross Tech brand interface with a USB plug and VCDS-Lite, then you may be pissing up a rope. Now if your friend has a real Ross Tech interface that he purchased from the Ross Tech website, then my statement about him contacting Ross Tech still holds true. If your friend is having issues with a 3rd party interface, then I think this whole thread is off topic as per the forum rules:



> 2) Questions about design and construction of home-made interfaces are Off-Topic, as are connection problems if you're using a home-made interface or a 3rd party interfaces. If you can't get your aftermarket interface to work, contact your hardware supplier for assistance.


Would you care to post a photo of the interface up here before we proceed?


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## Rivals Inc (Jul 30, 2009)

penclnck said:


> Please submit a photo of your mullet.
> 
> 
> 
> This would imply your friend is using a 3rd party interface... something made in China and of questionable quality. Generic "KKL" interfaces are well known for being crap. I suspect the serial port versions would work OK, but the USB version are really just serial port interfaces with a built in USB adapter, this is something that is not supported by Ross Tech as per the FAQ 1.5


Hate my life.  Lol.

here the pic of my camaro. only one I have at the moment. It's a Z28 5 sp manual. it came originally with a 305 H.O. but it got a 350 in it and me and my buddie are rebuilding it.


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## [email protected] Parts (Nov 27, 2006)

That is not an acceptable answer for this forum.

I suspect your friend is using a clone then, in that one horse, corn toothed, ta ta,... ta..... town.

"Heli-coil the caliper at the banjo bolt" Are you kidding me? Do you have a tooth pick, or piece of straw in your mouth?

Respectfully, if I owned that car,..... I would hate my life too. 

Hell,.... a caliper must be like what 10-25 dollars for something like that at Auto-Zone. A Heli-coil kit would be more expensive. Not to mention a bad idea for a brake repair.

A quick ebay search.
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_sop=15&_sacat=0&_nkw=83+camaro+caliper&_pgn=2&_skc=50&rt=nc

Then no one will have to hold your hand, or your friends at your wake.


TIME TO RTFB! and Gozer Lock this Horse apple!


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## Rivals Inc (Jul 30, 2009)

Caliper goes on my jetta. Caliper is a ATE 2FN42/32  

Heli coil worked out just fine. Fixed it and didnt have to spend $400 on a new caliper.

Ignorant dumbass. :facepalm:


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## [email protected] Parts (Nov 27, 2006)

Based on the way you write, it implies your speaking of your POS Chevy above.
What ever though.

You have only made yourself look very very very very very very Dumb.
Dumb has found you!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bobp5OHVsWY

Your PM sir.

_" This is where you are the ignorant one. $10-$25. The caliper goes to my jetta. Maybe you should ask questions before you do go off with some stupid bull ****. I have a ATE caliper from a 2004 Golf R32, hell it could been off a 95-2001 BMW 750i that uses the exact same caliper. FYI, I have a OEM caliper, not aftermarket which is this http://www.ebay.com/itm/MK4-VW-GTI-G...5c39a4&vxp=mtr

I never said what the caliper came off of. That's is why you should've asked. A tap and die set didnt work, so I just redid the banjo bolt threads, got a helicoil, specificly, 10 x 1.50. drilled out the hole, with a custom drill bit put the heli coil in, sealed it, got the banjo bolt lined up with the hole on the brake line, torqued at about 70 pounds, which is a lot. but its fixed, it dont leak and I save round $400 on buying a new caliper. 

Good day sir, ****ing dumbass. "_


My response:

The point is, stupid nuts,.... you shouldn't heli-coil any brake caliper.

Your right,... how would I, or anyone know, when you make threads in riddles, expecting people to read your mind.

How the hell do you screw up threads like that anyway. Only a real dumb-ass butcher would do that.

In the interest of safety, get new caliper dopey.

Good day sir to you to, however, with the correct link!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKG07305CBs

NOTHING! NOTHING! NOTHING!

Oh GOZER! We have a winner!


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## Anony00GT (Mar 6, 2002)

[email protected] Parts said:


> FYI, you are...entertaining others with your stupidity generated.
> 
> I'm not ready to change the channel, entertain me.opcorn:


Oh totally.





Rivals Inc said:


> I have a 83 camaro I'm restoring and a front caliper to rebuild and rethread with a heli coil where the banjo bolts into the caliper.


Yeah, clearly stated which caliper you were working on there. Remember back in second grade, when they taught the concept of "proofreading"?

And how the hell do you strip the banjo bolt threads to begin with?

This deserves repeating:



penclnck said:


> Please submit a photo of your mullet.


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## [email protected] Parts (Nov 27, 2006)

Oh I found it. 

Stan Lee Marvel Comics will appreciate this one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLrpBLDWyCI

TOTAL FAIL!

LOL


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## VR6Now (Dec 31, 2000)

Rivals Inc said:


> Caliper goes on my jetta. Caliper is a ATE 2FN42/32
> 
> Heli coil worked out just fine. Fixed it and didnt have to spend $400 on a new caliper.
> 
> Ignorant dumbass. :facepalm:


Like I said before, you are your worst enemy. You're jury-rigging brake calipers that need to be replaced. People ask questions to assist you and you ignore them. You think you are providing appropriate information and you're not. I can't believe you are calling someone else an ignorant dumbass! Really. Everyone is dumb except you right. If you can't afford to do a job right, maybe you shouldn't do it at all. If you can't afford to maintain a car properly, you can't afford the car.


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## Uwe (Jan 16, 2000)

34 posts and we still don't have an answer to the question I asked the OP in post number 7. 

:banghead:

-Uwe-


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## Rivals Inc (Jul 30, 2009)

Uwe said:


> 34 posts and we still don't have an answer to the question I asked the OP in post number 7.
> 
> :banghead:
> 
> -Uwe-


oh wow. ha. It wouldn't communicate at all. Then again, i did say my friend waited untill 4 weeks later to tell me his connector stopped working that same week he tested my car =/


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## penclnck (Jan 27, 2003)

I guess if we don't see a photo of the mullet or your friend's interface, this thread should be closed down because it is just circling the drain as it is.


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## Anony00GT (Mar 6, 2002)

Rivals Inc said:


> oh wow. ha. It wouldn't communicate at all. Then again, i did say my friend waited untill 4 weeks later to tell me his connector stopped working that same week he tested my car =/


You don't need communication with the car to do what Uwe asked. You only need a genuine interface.

Gozer, time to lock this up.


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## Gozer The Destructor (May 10, 2004)




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