Femto Full Bench Unlock

[charlesr]

As it was

Cheers. Just put a deposit down for the car, and want to get a tune done asap. Hoping to collect next Wednesday \o/

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[Sithlord84]

F it ... might as well and unlock it!

 

[RacerJohnny]

Both Femto and AutoTuner now offer full unlocks now, which means the DME basically operates like a pre 06/2020 DME. You can use whatever tuning suite you want, and if the DME becomes locked from ISTA update, you can just bench unlock it at home or a local shop.

I almost started a new thread, but this answered most of my question…thank you @razorlab

I noticed what might be a key detail and may be the difference between going FEMTO vs A/T…if ISTA update relocks it and you need to Bench Unlock, Femto specifically mentions it works with ANY bench unlock tool. But I believe A/T says you can only bench unlock theirs with an A/T tool. Is that true? (I’m not talking about OBD flashers…specifically what happens if dealer relocks and you need a bench unlock to open up the OBD port again for flashing)

I guess another relevant question…what’s the likelihood of dealers relocking these with typical maintenance visits…am I concerned about something not likely to happen? (I still need to get some vehicle services at the Dealer, so I can’t just say avoid dealer or prevent updates)

Key Point: If needing bench unlocks is likely, the flexibility of Femto to use any tool may be better if you don’t have an A/T dealer nearby.

 

[razorlab]

I almost started a new thread, but this answered most of my question…thank you @razorlab

I noticed what might be a key detail and may be the difference between going FEMTO vs A/T…if ISTA update relocks it and you need to Bench Unlock, Femto specifically mentions it works with ANY bench unlock tool. But I believe A/T says you can only bench unlock theirs with an A/T tool. Is that true? (I’m not talking about OBD flashers…specifically what happens if dealer relocks and you need a bench unlock to open up the OBD port again for flashing)

I guess another relevant question…what’s the likelihood of dealers relocking these with typical maintenance visits…am I concerned about something not likely to happen? (I still need to get some vehicle services at the Dealer, so I can’t just say avoid dealer or prevent updates)

Key Point: If needing bench unlocks is likely, the flexibility of Femto to use any tool may be better if you don’t have an A/T dealer nearby.

Not sure if anyone has been brave enough to test that yet. I'm sure not going to.

AutoTuner also even stated in the past that they only guarantee their flashing tools to work with their unlocks but we now know any flashing platform works for it, so I would take it with a grain of salt.

The dealer can and will do updates to the DME if there are updates available. You could put a obd2 port lock on the car if you are really concerned.

 

[RacerJohnny]

Not sure if anyone has been brave enough to test that yet. I'm sure not going to.

AutoTuner also even stated in the past that they only guarantee their flashing tools to work with their unlocks but we now know any flashing platform works for it, so I would take it with a grain of salt.

The dealer can and will do updates to the DME if there are updates available. You could put a obd2 port lock on the car if you are really concerned.

Haha yeah, I’m probably just splitting hairs so it isn’t a huge deal. I like A/T for driving the costs down…but if any future bench unlock is limited to their tool, I only see 3 dealers listed in US and I don’t wanna mail it out every time. Prob seals the deal that I’ll go FEMTO and buy the MHD Bench Tool if it comes down to it so I can just do it all myself. Thanks man!

 

[itzTang]

Haha yeah, I’m probably just splitting hairs so it isn’t a huge deal. I like A/T for driving the costs down…but if any future bench unlock is limited to their tool, I only see 3 dealers listed in US and I don’t wanna mail it out every time. Prob seals the deal that I’ll go FEMTO and buy the MHD Bench Tool if it comes down to it so I can just do it all myself. Thanks man!

Both are opening offices in US. Could wait for that. Office might be local to you lol

 

[Angry Viking]

Both are opening offices in US. Could wait for that. Office might be local to you lol

Recently saw on Instagram that they are opening a US site as well, wonder what state they are choosing for the location.

 

[RacerJohnny]

Both are opening offices in US. Could wait for that. Office might be local to you lol

I heard back from autotuner directly who said bench unlock after the full unlock should only be done by autotuner tool (which is like $6k but meant for shop use). I’m up in MI and no shops close (even the new one in Alabama). So if dealer relocks it, it means sending it back out to a dealer or autotuner. They did say they are working to rapidly expand the dealer network.

With that said, seems like Femto might still be the better option if you don’t live near a dealer and mailing it back out is a concern for you. Femto doesn’t limit the tool to bench unlock and if you don’t live near a shop that has an unlock tool, you can just buy the MHD one for $450 and never worry about it again. If you get relocked 2-3 times, it pays for itself. I’ll prob go that route.

 

[RacerJohnny]

Recently saw on Instagram that they are opening a US site as well, wonder what state they are choosing for the location.

Autotuner announced Auburn, AL. I haven’t heard from Femto.

 

[Eastwood]

Autotuner announced Auburn, AL. I haven’t heard from Femto.

It appears the Auburn, AL is for product distribution for now. Hopefully they announce something about their US Unlock mail ins soon.

 

[RacerJohnny]

It appears the Auburn, AL is for product distribution for now. Hopefully they announce something about their US Unlock mail ins soon.

Autotuner confirmed by email thats where they will operate out of for mail-in unlocks and will be fully operational by time of announcement. But they wouldn’t share any additional details, only saying details like pricing etc will be announced Feb-Mid

 

[razorlab]

you can just buy the MHD one for $450 and never worry about it again. If you get relocked 2-3 times, it pays for itself. I’ll prob go that route.

I've used the Mission Unlocker with good results. Super fast and easy.

 

[swrdply400mrelay]

I've used the Mission Unlocker with good results. Super fast and easy.

Were u unlocked by Femto or Autotuner?

 

[razorlab]

Were u unlocked by Femto or Autotuner?

Sorry I should have added more context, this is on my Supra which is a 2020. I used Autotuner for my 2023 M240i

 

[RacerJohnny]

I've used the Mission Unlocker with good results. Super fast and easy.

That’s great to know it works well…it’s about $100-$150 cheaper than MHD tool if I recall, so solid option!

So in summary for everyone else…

SITUATION: You have a pre-2020 “factory unlocked DME” or post-2020 DME that was already sent off to be fully unlocked. You had a dealer update that relocked it (locked out the OBD flashing)….

1) If you are pre-2020 DME or post-2020 DME fully unlocked by FEMTO - you can take it to any shop with a bench unlock tool to regain access. Or you can buy your own personal unlock tool (ie MHD Unlock Tool, Mission Unlock Tool, etc). The Femto Full Unlock and the pre-2020 DME’s act essentially the same for bench unlocking.

2) If you are post-2020 DME and had AUTOTUNER full unlock, you’d need an Autotuner shop to regain access via bench unlock. Per Autotuner directly, only their tool will work to bench unlock it should dealer relock after service. There are currently 3 authorized shops in US that can do it so you might have to mail it in if a shop is not close. Is it possible Autotuner is “just saying that”, yes - but nobody has posted that they tried using the other bench unlock tools on an autotuner unlocked DME. I’m not gonna be the guinea pig and risk damaging a DME….

So if you are deciding between Autotuner and Femto, see above. Do as you wish with that info….

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