Micropod 2 Review on Chrysler WK

 

Reasons for the purchase:
All of the dealers in my area don’t seem to know what they are doing. No problem with either of my vehicles is solved on the first visit and I normally have to guide the dealer mechanics to find issues.
They are very nice but I honestly don’t have the time to teach them how to fix my vehicles. That’s why I wanna purchase a witech Micropod 2 interface but it is hard to justify the cost of the oem version for just my 2 Chrysler vehicles.

Purpose:
Purchase a Micropod clone with things like flash programming, general diagnostics, obd mode 8 stuff

Order and delivery:
I just ordered one Micropod clone off www.cnautotool.com
The kit is shipped directly from China and arrived for a few days.

Firmware:
The firmware that mine came with was v2.4.1.

Car(s):
I have a 2015 WK 3.6L (wife) and a 2015 DS 5.7L (me).
Micropod clone vs OEM:
The Micropod clone itself appears to be reasonably high quality but there are obvious differences from the OEM version: no lanyard, no wi-fi, no metal clip on the OBD 2 connector, etc.

Here’s what I found: https://www.cnautotool.com/goods-5182-Chrysler+Diagnostic+Tool+wiTech+MicroPod+2+V170301+update+online+With+IBM+X200T+Laptop+Ready+To+Use.html

Micropod clone problem:
The problem with the clones is that you can only use them with the old versions of the software that weren’t online, and they only go up to around 12MY or so. You also can’t do any sales code configuration or the like without a DealerCONNECT account.

wiTECH software installation:I followed the directions that came with the kit (albeit in somewhat fractured English) and upon starting the wiTECH software, I got a “device with serial number XXX-XXXXX is not registered” error message.
The company that sold it to me said the copy of wiTECH was destroyed somehow and that I needed to buy a “wiTECH hdd” from them for a small additional fee. Not entirely sure what that would be but I worked around the problem before I got their reply. Long story short, I am a computer guy so I spent a couple of hours messing around with the software and the computer it was installed on and was able to get around the issue.
Micropod II + wiTECH tests:
I connected it to my 2015 DS and my wife’s 2015 WK with no issues. I disabled the side view mirror tilt in reverse on her WK (only thing she didn’t like about it) and she was thrilled. There are functions to bleed ABS, program tire sizes, etc. There are literally hundreds of sensor readings, dozens of tests, actuators and misc functions that you can perform that seem to be very vehicle specific – which you would expect. Every switch/gadget in the vehicle seems to have a corresponding sensor reading of some kind in the software. The only odd behavior I saw was when I connected to the ABS computer of my DS… the EVIC freaked out and started screaming to service the ABS. Maybe that is a safety feature of some kind so folks don’t go driving while messing with the ABS computer? Powering the vehicle off and on again made the ABS warning go away. I could not find any “PROXI alignment” functions – maybe they don’t apply to my vehicles?
I did not try flashing anything as I don’t have a good enough reason to sign up for a time-limited TechAuthority subscription at the moment but next time I do, I’ll give it a shot. At the very least, it will be nice to be able to go to the dealer next time and tell THEM which modules need updating (wiTECH lets you print an ECU report) because whatever point-of-sale software the advisors use doesn’t always tell them when an update is available. For example, my PCM is on an AE revision but TechAuthority said that AF is available (and has been since before my last dealer visit)
Your mileage may vary but this was $200 well spent in my eyes.
micropod-2-clone-scanner
Suggestion & more research:
I’ve done a considerable amount of research on this software and it appears that as of the 17.04.27 P4 patch level, the wiTECH 1.0 system has been EOL’ed for all CAN bus vehicles – forcing you to use the 100% web-based wiTECH 2.0.
If you decide to move forward with the Micropod clone, you will need to block the P4 update (or find a way to block the “diagnostic.js” file that does the check) or the software will kick you out seconds after opening the vehicle topography.
Once the update is blocked, it works fine – confirmed up to the 2015 MY.