Vagcom cable choice?

[M4YTY]

Hi, i wish to buy a cable to allow me to use vagcom or similar on my september 2003 passat TDI. Problem is which cable do i buy??? There is too many to choose from. There are pre and post CAN cables, HEX + CAN Which do i need because my car seems to be the model year when vag introduced CAN systems. I just want the cheapest one that will work. I have looked on the Rosstech and Gendan websites, and eBay, but can't make head nor tail of any of it!! Could one of you knowledgeable gents please point me in the right direction. Thanks in advance, Matty

[Lex Luthor]

I have a 3rd party serial cable and have just used it on an '04 Passat TDI so I think you will be fine with a cheap one.
Get the one that suits the laptop connection, USB or serial.

[M4YTY]

I have a 3rd party serial cable and have just used it on an '04 Passat TDI so I think you will be fine with a cheap one.
Get the one that suits the laptop connection, USB or serial.

My laptop is USB but its all of this hex can mullarky I dont get.They say some cables dont work on newer cars but i dunno which one i need. I know i need a USB one but its the unterfaces that are different and im not sure which I need.HELP! Its got me heed done in! Cheers

[Lex Luthor]

One of these will do: eBay item 230110452568

Your car is too early for CAN-BUSS

[Col]

I've got and would say the hex-can usb would be the one.

It's going to be future proof for quite some time.

Without the hex-can you won't be able to touch a MK5 Golf, New Passat and the equivalent Audi's / Skodas / Seats etc.

The hex-can lead means you can use the latest versions of vagcom as well which are amazing compared to version 4 which is about all the dodgy ebay cables will run... if your lucky.

[guyg]

The hex-can lead means you can use the latest versions of vagcom as well which are amazing compared to version 4 which is about all the dodgy ebay cables will run... if your lucky.

I agree this is the best product but it costs nearly £200.

If M4YTY hasn't got a CAN-BUS does he need to pay so much? I bought one of these on ebay for £14 inc p&p and it works fine with my 2001 Passat.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330088518713&ssPageName=MERC_VIC_RCRX_Pr12_PcY_BIN_Stores_IT&refitem=330103018684&itemcount=12&refwidgetloc=closed_view_item&usedrule1=CrossSell_LogicX&refwidgettype=cross_promot_widget

If I need extra functionality, I can licence VAG-Com for around £60. It's still only v409, but do I need any more for a car of this age?

Cheers

Guy

[tyler]

I downloaded 409 from rosstech, got the cheap blue cable off ebay and finally got the computer to recognise the interface. However before it will work on the car I need a registration/licence number. Is there a way of free registration or do I need to pay?

[onzarob]

The freeware version is a reader only, if you want to modify anything you need to register.

but when VW charge and hours labour (£62.50+vat) to read the codes it will soon pay for itself.

I personlly don't think theres much advantage with newer versions for the home mechanic and if you find you need a newer version rosstech do an upgrade scheme.

Rob :D

[Huffy]

I was wondering what people were running Vag -com on,as in operating system?? I bought a cable and plugged it into the laptop,running XP,but somewhere I read that Win 98 is better to use ,as its older tech,and also I have not been able to get the laptop to recognise the connection. :confused:

[snapdragon]

I've always used it on XP and Vindows Wista. It is USB, is yours serial, maybe that it better on 98?

[onzarob]

I've used xp and now Vista, with no problems. I woudln't expect 98 to run any diffrent, only windows 95 as it doesn't have proper USB support.

Rob:D

[Huffy]

Serial connector it is,so may be you are correct, last time I tried it ,I attempted to use it through Dosbox,on my XP,which basically fools the software into thinking its in a Dos enviroment,however it obviously was not fooled:D Cheers now.

[Rolands]

I agree this is the best product but it costs nearly £200.

If M4YTY hasn't got a CAN-BUS does he need to pay so much? I bought one of these on ebay for £14 inc p&p and it works fine with my 2001 Passat.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330088518713&ssPageName=MERC_VIC_RCRX_Pr12_PcY_BIN_Stores_IT&refitem=330103018684&itemcount=12&refwidgetloc=closed_view_item&usedrule1=CrossSell_LogicX&refwidgettype=cross_promot_widget

If I need extra functionality, I can licence VAG-Com for around £60. It's still only v409, but do I need any more for a car of this age?

Cheers

Guy
Having removed and replaced the passanger seat in my 2002 Passat 1.9TDI, I came across the problem of the airbag fault light being illuminated on the dashboard. I have now concluded that I should have removed the battery leads before removing the seat, then the it would not have been registered as an error. I understand that the problem can be put right via getting VAG_COM connection to reset the error. After reading the above posts I have concluded that Ross Tech is best but expensive. Other forum participants are satisfied with the cheap cables offered on e-bay, but the link refferences are now obsolete. As I only want to fix the error reading, please could you advise if for example this e-bay item will do the job. I am confused as to why they list the Passat Mk5 as not compatible with this cable.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/409-1-KKL-VAG-COM-OBD-2-II-Diagnostic-USB-Scanner-Cable_W0QQitemZ330347843385QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_D iagnostic_Tools_Equipment?hash=item4cea440f39&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65%3A2|66%3A2|39%3A1|293%3A1|294%3A50

[martin1810]

Go to ilexa or gendan and get the cable from them. Cost about £20 and guaranteed to work on your car with ross-tech free software. A rough rule of thumb with the passat is that cables work on B5.5 models but only dongles work on B6 models. BUT not all functions work with free software but your airbag reset will.

[Rolands]

Excellent. ilexa sells only RossTech, so prices no different to RessTech. On the other hand the genden web site had all the info needed. Total price 19.75GBP. MANY THANKS. :approve:

Genden ship only within the UK, so as I am abroad and could do with the VAG_COM here in Latvia, I now need to arrange the shipping through a friend in the UK. :beerchug:

[PeteK]

I bought a £15 one off Ebay and have had no issues; worked fine on both Windows 98 and XP. You do not need the CAN one for a B5.5 Passat.

[Rolands]

Thanks for you help. I have ordered the cable and now will await arrival. I was curious to know, as the airbag fault light is illuminated on the dash board, does this mean my airbag system has been diconnected and will not work until I do a reset?

[PeteK]

Correct, the airbags will not deploy in a crash whilst the warning light is on. I bought my cable as the airbag light came on shortly after buying the car. It came up with a fault code relating to the passenger seat airbag wiring, I cleared it and it hasn't reappeared in the past 17 months.

[808]

Have u downloaded the drivers for the cable????

[Rolands]

Just to let you know that I have resolved my problem with the airbags. The VAG-COM cable from e-bay works fine. Thanks for all contributions. :beerchug: