How to Repair Bricked Chinese Mini VCI?

 Here is the customer DIY solution for those who bricked their mini vci j2534 interface after using Firmware update tool.

SOLUTION:
STEP 1: Download the hex file attached.
STEP 2: Download Flash Magic (used version 13.20)
STEP 3: Connect the mvci device to an USB port
STEP 4: Open Flash Magic, select LPC2119 (LPC2000) in the field device
STEP 5: Select the serial port: i.e serial port COM3, try to remove the mvci device and plug it again to see if the FlashMagin detects the COM port automatically (maybe is better to remove all others USB devices during the process (my case))
STEP 6: Baud-rate: I selected 38400, but maybe other (lower) can provide a secure flashing.
STEP 7: In the Firmware panel update the .hex file.
STEP 8: Press the giant button START. The flashing should start, it takes a while (2 min aprox. for me, I read others could take 20 min)
STEP 9: When Flash Magic get out of the busy state, the process is finished, close the software and remove the device of USB port.

To confirm that it was restored to 1.4.1 version open the Firmware Update tools and check the firmware version.

Free download mvci-MVCI006000001

 

1. Be sure your device is connected and recognized by the computer. Try connect to your computer with driver FDTI FT232 (be sure your system is 32bits or 64bits). (MVCI J2534 china clone use this driver https://www.ftdichip.com/Drivers/D2XX.htm)
2. Once connected, easily will be recognized by Techstream in Windows 32bits. For 64bits, you need search online
3. Save your current firmware with FlashMagic (Read & Save) before updating
4. Update Hex firmware 1.4.1 (attached compressed file, unzip the entire folder with 7zip or whatever unzip program)

NOTE:

FlashMagic access to LPC2119FBD64 microcontroller from MVCI J2534 selecting LPC2119 (LPC2000) in the field device. If FlashMagic don’t read your device, probably you have to open it to identifier the microcontroller type.

If the MVCI clone is built on a fake FT232R chip, it is possible the installation of fresh drivers has reset its EEPROM.
Years ago FTDI released a driver (2.11.0 and 2.12.0) that bricks chips that it believes to be counterfeit. What it did was to set the PID (Product ID) to 0000 instead of 6001 which renders the chip unusable as Windows cannot find a driver for it.
There are many post how to identify fake FT232R chip and how to fix it.

Once you are sure your device have PID 0000, one of the solutions is flash it with the attached archive that contains an ept file using “FTDI Mprog 3.5“

ft232r_eeprom

 

Feedback:
1). The drivers are ok.
I have 2 other white/transparent MVCI devices:
– cheap one  firmware v1.4.1
– full chip one firmware v2.0.4

Both work fine without any problems.
I even have the impression that the cheap one works better then the Full Chip MVCI.

2).

This worked. I was able to flash the .hex file using FlashMagic, and the dongle connects to the truck. I had previously flashed to 1.4.8, and then back to 1.4.1, but using the “official” firmware, not the clone firmware, while trying to use this on 64bit Windows. After flashing back to your 1.4.1 image, it works great. I’ll stick with my 32 bit Windows 7 image for now.

3).

I tried to recover my dead Chinese MVCI cable with mvci-MVCI006000001.hex file.
In my case, I need put LPC2119 to ISP mode before flash with the file.

To this, I figured out just short holes on P2 of the PCB when connecting USB.
  

LPC2119 entering to ISP mode if successfully, LED keeps green. (fig2)

I think it is successfully flashed my dead MVCI cable with the hex file.

 

In a nutshell, there is no reason to try to update firmware. Interfaces with 1.41 will be bricked if you try to update firmware.