Honestly if you do a lot of FCA brands it's best to just bite the bullet and get witech 2. Problem with the autel is you loose sgw access if your yearly subscription is expired, also loose topology feature, among other features. Also can NOT program any modules with autel. It's 50/50 on whether the advertised feature work at all. I bought a maxisys ultra and had nothing but problems with it. It can't talk to hardly anything older than 04. Ended up being replaced by warranty in the end due to it constantly freezing. Also autels customer service makes you want to gouge your eye out with a hot spoon.
Well depends on how you look at it. The modules are there to keep from people stealing cars is the idea. A lot of people think that it’s designed so you cant work on your own car. Perhaps…. But as a mechanic for 20 years that sees all make and models, the diy model doesn’t normally work because the day to day person has no idea how to work on the most basic things as it is. I constantly work on cars that people try to throw parts at. If they cant do the simplest things, seriously doubt security modules are keeping people from working on their own cars. I could make a living just off people trying to fix their own stuff even on old cars
I like what Mike said in his answer. Today's cars are becoming increasingly complex, requiring tooling and training outside the scope of most DIYers. Even tasks as simple as changing the oil or replacing the battery aren't so simple anymore.
I have to call b.s on the response from motor age. It is absurd to just give a blanket statement and say diyers are incompetent at repairing their own vehicles. Also by the way good job at insulting the majority of your viewers as most of them are not “ technicians “ but actual diy guys. Also this is another way to implement a denial of a right to repair. The real problem was that the engineers allowed the cellular network connection to ever even communicate on the CAN bus in the first place. I also understand that yes some people shouldn’t be repairing things that they have zero knowledge of but also that someone who spends thousands upon thousands of dollars on tools to repair their own cars shouldn’t have to deal with this kind of problem maybe Chrysler should have to give confirmed owners the code to get access to the gateway.
Tools and features do cost money but it's an investment, just like every tool we choose to purchase to make our performance more efficient. Maximizing the effectiveness of the tool will boost its return on investment.
