Here is a comparison of auto programmers used when working on universal car key manufacturing and immobilizer key-related tasks.
Xhorse vvdi key tool plus and Autel IM508, which one do you recommend? Yes, the answer is that you should have both.
And for your information, this post is not for those who do maintenance, but for those who are interested in or create immobilizer keys.
First, this is Xhorse’s Keytool Plus. Unlike Autel, this company has developed and distributed scanner key material tools, etc., only for Locksmith. It is a company that personally updates quickly when new products and new technologies come out, and it is receiving a lot of response in the area of aiming for convenient key production for users. Personally, this tool is a tool that I cannot do without. I think it is the equipment that can work with relative reliability, especially in European cars. Of course, there are more expensive tools and dedicated diagnostic devices, but this posting is for the tools that Locksmiths commonly use (tackle specifications).
And it’s an Autel. The tool in the photo is IM508. If you haven’t purchased an Autel yet, I recommend purchasing the IM608 II. When I purchased it, the update cost was $1,000 a year, so I didn’t buy it, but now it’s around $600, so I recommend the 608 over the 508. If you plan to use it mainly for immobilizers rather than car maintenance, I’ve personally used the IM508 and it had almost no problems.
The Autel IM508/IM608 has a diagnostic function, and in the case of European cars, Autel is a very good tool for deleting software error codes that appear after key creation and copying. Keytool is weak in that respect! Since Locksmiths are not at the level of servicing vehicles, they can be used to delete simple fault codes. It may be necessary mainly when working on German cars.
There are many types of general-purpose scanners, but almost only Autel has a strong diagnostic function, so Autel scanner has become an indispensable tool for me. This company is famous for diagnostics, and there are many diagnostic-only scanners besides immobilizer diagnostics, so if you are only targeting diagnostic functions, other general immobilizer scanners are almost no match.
I repeat, you need both, not just one, and especially in the case of the xhorse key tool, it is very helpful for European cars because it provides user-friendly convenience for vehicles that do module work and vehicles that need to extract EPROM data from modules. Of course, there are still experts who work with the classic soldering method, but it is not easy to do such work on a vehicle, and above all, it is risky. In fact, if the vehicle breaks down during work, it is a problem to fix the vehicle, but if it takes a long time, the relationship with the car owner cannot be ignored, and I think that is how this field is. At first, you don’t know anything (I’m talking about you) and you bravely rush in, but after a few trials and errors and a break down, trauma takes effect and you become passive! To be honest, it is an extreme job.
Since Autel supports mostly soldering when using a program to work on Eeprom, it may not be easy for those who have difficulty with soldering. It is not easy to solder large components, but rather small components that need to be soldered, or such components need to be removed and reattached, so if you are not skilled, you can break it, and if that happens, it will almost never start.
