ThinkDiag, ThinkDiag 2 and the licence question

Bidirectional, in one paragraph

An ordinary scanner is a listener. It reads fault codes and watches live data, and that is all. A bidirectional scanner can send commands the other way — it tells a module to perform an action while you watch what happens.

That difference is the whole job. A code says "cooling fan circuit fault." Listening tells you nothing more. Commanding the fan on tells you in five seconds whether the fan, the relay or the wiring is at fault — and saves you buying the wrong part. Same with an injector you can fire on the bench, an EPB you can wind back instead of fighting, an ABS pump you can cycle to bleed properly.

For how ThinkDiag compares with other bidirectional tools, see the bidirectional scan tool guide.

Which model is which

The dividing line is simple. If the cars you touch are pre-2020 and you mainly want to see every module and do the usual resets, Thinkdriver covers it. The moment newer chassis appear on your driveway — or you want to command components rather than observe them — ThinkDiag 2 is the one that keeps working.

The licence model — read this before you buy

This is where buyers get surprised, so it is worth being blunt about it.

The device arrives with a period of manufacturer software included. After that window, manufacturer software is licensed per brand, annually. Generic OBD2 — engine fault codes, live data, readiness monitors — keeps working on any car forever with no licence at all. What lapses is the deep, OE-level coverage for a given make: the full-system access, the brand-specific resets, the bidirectional tests.

Practically, that means you should decide up front which makes you actually work on. Somebody servicing their own VW and their partner's Toyota needs two brands, not thirty. A workshop covering whatever comes through the door has a different maths problem, and should price the annual renewals into the decision rather than discovering them in month thirteen.

We would rather tell you this on the way in than have you find it later.

What people actually use it for

• Service resets — oil and interval, electronic parking brake retraction for rear pads, steering angle calibration after an alignment, battery registration, throttle body adaptation.
• Diesel work — DPF regeneration status and forced regen, injector coding after replacement.
• Brakes — ABS pump actuation so a proper bleed is possible on a modern system.
• Pre-purchase checks — a full-system scan across every module tells you more about a used car in ten minutes than an hour of walking round it.
• TPMS relearn after sensor or wheel changes.

Exact coverage always depends on make, model and which brand software you hold. Anyone who promises you "everything on every car" is selling you something.

Where it stops

• It is not a flash tuner. Diagnostics and actuation are not remapping.
• Security-gated functions on newer vehicles can require manufacturer authorisation no tool bypasses.
• Licences lapse. Plan for the brands you need; do not assume permanence.

Questions people actually ask