TECH II SCAN TOOL

I see that you can buy a brand new Tech 2 scan tool with GM cards on Alibabba. Has anyone done this ?

The Tech 2 is the epitome GM scan tools of the 90s and early 2000s before the Win Tech .
I am intrigued with this . ( this pic is of the GM subs but there are other daya cards for the domestic GM stuff as well available)

Years ago, i determined that a Vetronix Tech II was necessary to keep the 8th gen Riviera
running.  In 2008, a number of GM dealerships closed down; among them plenty of Chevrolet
shops which sold off their Tech II's in the $500-$1000 range.  I got my Tech II from Tom Jumper
Chevrolet, one of the largest Chev dealers in Georgia.  Mine came with plug-in cartridges for
engine/drivetrain, body and brakes.  The interface cable that connects my Tech II to the OBD2
plug was bad.  The cable is unique to the Vetronix device so it was necessary to buy one from
Vetronix in California at a cost of $100.

the Tech II is more than a code reader. it can actuate systems on our Rivieras.  for instance,
the Tech II can exercise the pistons in the ABS brake pump to purge the old brake fluid when
a brake job is done.  it can open and close the purge solenoid for the vapor in the fuel tank.

Vetronix was bought by Bosch in 2003 and support for the Tech II's continued until maybe 5
years ago but that is all over now.

The screen on my Tech II has developed a few dark spots.  When last i looked, there is someone
on the internet who can repair Vetronix Tech II's and Vetronix Mastertech's.

Until recently, there were many cartridges and modules for sale on eBay, but that seems to
be drying up.

Further, Snap-On Tools sold the Vetronix Mastertech which is essentially the same as the devices
employed in the GM dealerships.

When i was researching the purchase of a Tech II, the reasonably priced Chinese "Tech2's"
came up and they looked good.  digging in the internet revealed these scan-tools are reverse-
engineered copies of the Vetronix product.  their development was in no way supported by
Vetronix and so they must be considered counterfeit.  it is said they are produced by several
sources and these devices may or may not be fully functional or accurate.

My understanding is that Alibaba is an enormous web sales operation based in
Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China and that its marketing subsidiary Taobao was added back onto
a list of notorious counterfeit platforms in 2016 by the Office of the United States Trade
Representatives.

Thanks for the info.
I know Alibabba well. The revenue generated by their platform was over 72billion USD in 2020. There founder, Jack Ma is so wealthy he started his own banking service and become super rich. The Chinese Communist Party made himstep down from CEO and sign over shares of his company to unknown shareholders in 2019 , and just as of November of 2020, he's disappeared somehow; but I'm thinking the Chinese government had something to do with disappearing him ... anyhow I have purchased about 10000+ dollars of industrial LED lightning through this site from a few manufacturers last year, and still use it today . This site is just a venue like amazon, sort of, if amazon only dealt with manufacturers and acted as a platform for information exchange and purchases that have a level or two of security for the buyer. They basically act as a liaison between the wholesaler or end-user and the manufacturer. I recently bought some control arms for my 2006 CRV on Amazon where I thought it was a good deal for about 85 bucks however I see that you can buy them directly from a manufacturer in China for about $10 us a piece so I can see how these things are profitable on websites like eBay and Amazon . There's nothing like this in the world i can find that's comparable.Ali will arbitrate claims of damage or shipping as well as act on the buyers behalf in a dispute of a product or shipping issue. Ali Express is great as well as you can order small quantities of goods...its more a Amazon really of China (lower minimum order quantity) where as on Alibabba sometimes need to order 1000 cases or liters or 1 or more containers and so on. I am inquiring right now on alibaba's website on the purchase of waterless coolant which is manufactured in China very very inexpensively compare to Evans coolant...My question was just if anybody's use this chinese device. I worked for a GM dealer for a number of years, so I am pretty familiar with the tech 2 and I have the service manuals for the car and they specifically talk about different test and program procedures that be run so it's a pretty handy tool for guys like us that run these old beasts. I may just take the stab and buy one of these little copies. Seemed weird to me that these would even be around today.

Ok i found something even better. This toll will emulate the Tech2 Win and do all of the functions of the tech 2 and the midi. It also allso download of all gm software from the tiss2 wedsite as well a sps sofware. Very cool . For a few dollars more you can get a 7 in one so basically get allot other manufactures in the mix. I watched a youtube about this product and did some research and its the answer to a scan tool. Everything is run from your laptop. Amazon sells ot but its also of cputse available on Alibabba. There's different versions and a super deluxe 2020 version. Ill pick out of these up for doing multiple brands of cars. It will do all of the factory tool stuff . Very cool

regarding the device you found which is "something even better" [VXDIAG & a Laptop],
question: can the VXDIAG communicate 2-ways with our Rivieras like the Tech II does,
i.e. can it send commands to the engine-control-module and to the brakes & body-module?

thank you for your comments regarding alibabba; interesting and enlightening.
perhaps Alibabba can help us keep these 8th gen Rivs on the road.

an aside, the lower control arms for the 1997 Rivs are the subject of many posts
regarding the fact that they are unique to that year only, and most difficult or impossible to buy.
[they are aluminum and the forward rubber bushings are horizontal]
it would be a great service to me and our fellow forum members if you can discover a Alibabba source
for decent 1997 lower control arms at a reasonable price.