What's the general consensus about the CAN Clip interfaces? - (copy vs copy)

Brunoandrade98

Brunoandrade98

Paid Member
Hi all,

So, I'm looking to buy a CAN Clip interface, and I'm finding it a bit hard to figure out what to get.

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but after doing some research, it seems that getting genuine CAN Clips is out of the question, as they are expensive and have to be licensed. So, it appears that (most) people's only option is to get copies.

There seem to be many copies, and types of copies out there, some even with the original "Clip" logo. What are the differences between the different versions of interfaces, and which ones are the best ones? I know that some have different chipsets, and looking at images of the different PCBs, online, it seems that quite a few manufacturers are making these copies.

Does each interface work with any version of the software, so long as it's "cracked"?

I also found forum posts that claim that some interfaces don't have full functionality, and some don't actually have a whole lot of functionality. How accurate is this?

It would be good if someone with experience could shed some light on this.


Many thanks,
Bruno
 
I bought a cloned CLIP device from eBay about two years ago. It was a Chinese clone that I paid just over £100 for.

The device was shipped with a CD-Rom with the CLIP software on it.

CLIP software is all over the internet if you know where to look. If you load up genuine CLIP software it will work for three days as a grace period. You can used various ways to crack it. Again, all of that information is availble if you know where to look.

I bought CLIP two years ago to retrofit a RS Monitor device and to flash software on to a brand new OEM Renault radio.

My experience of using CLIP is that it is good enough to hold a stable communication for a short period of time. So it is good enough to reconfigure the airbags when seats and seatbelts were removed. I was able to reconfigure the control unit so that the car was aware the RS Monitor was installed rather than a standard display. But, my clone was unable to hold a stable communication for say 10 minutes or longer to flash new firmware on to a blank new OEM radio.

I have used my CLIP device to activate and install a RS Monitor and to sort out the airbags but not much else. I have not had to use CLIP to diagnose any faults or fault codes yet so I could not tell you whether it is any good for running diagnostic tests on the car. I would not trust my CLIP device to bleed the brakes or ABS pump.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Brunoandrade98 and M154MATT
burrellbloke said:
I bought a cloned CLIP device from eBay about two years ago. It was a Chinese clone that I paid just over £100 for.

The device was shipped with a CD-Rom with the CLIP software on it.

CLIP software is all over the internet if you know where to look. If you load up genuine CLIP software it will work for three days as a grace period. You can used various ways to crack it. Again, all of that information is availble if you know where to look.

I bought CLIP two years ago to retrofit a RS Monitor device and to flash software on to a brand new OEM Renault radio.

My experience of using CLIP is that it is good enough to hold a stable communication for a short period of time. So it is good enough to reconfigure the airbags when seats and seatbelts were removed. I was able to reconfigure the control unit so that the car was aware the RS Monitor was installed rather than a standard display. But, my clone was unable to hold a stable communication for say 10 minutes or longer to flash new firmware on to a blank new OEM radio.

I have used my CLIP device to activate and install a RS Monitor and to sort out the airbags but not much else. I have not had to use CLIP to diagnose any faults or fault codes yet so I could not tell you whether it is any good for running diagnostic tests on the car. I would not trust my CLIP device to bleed the brakes or ABS pump.
Click to expand...
I'm an IT Technician, so, over the years, I got good at "looking in the right places". There's loads of places to download it from, cracked. I already downloaded and installed a version on my laptop, to see how the software was, but this was a while ago, and I can't remember how it was, or if I hit any bumps during the installation, which is likely.

One of my questions was if I had to use the version supplied with the interface, or if any version would work.

I didn't know you could bleed brakes with Clip, which is awesome, as it's a pretty tedious job (although I do wonder if it's as good as manually bleeding them). I wonder how it even works...

Anyway...Do you know if all the Chinese copies experience the same issue where communication is lost after some time?

It would be good to know which copies are better, if at all, so I know what to avoid, and what to look for.

I'd like to buy one mainly for diagnostics, but it would also be good to be able to do the odd job like coding a key, which I'll probably need soon, as my spare one is in pretty bad shape.
 
Mine was a Chinese copy. I think that most of them experience communication problems after some time but I could not tell you what PCB is better than the one I have got.

I am not sure if it will be stable enough to code a key.

It is good enough to code out airbags!
 
I have just checked the link to the one that I purchased in 2020 is now dead and the seller has no other items for sale and doe snot appear to be active.
 
Yeah there's not many genuinenone floating about for sale. Which version of the software is best?
 
I have got v210 software. I have no idea what software version is the best but I am pretty sure v210 includes Renault models made after the 197/200.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Paul_D
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar Thread Suggestions

Thread starter Similar threads Forum Replies Date
mrcactus Please help as no garage can find what's wrong. Clio 197 Area 20
R20BTG For Sale section - what's the difference? Questions, Bugs and Suggestions 6
S What's the cable fitting called?! Body Work and Exterior Lights 5
H What's it worth? Scorpion exhaust 200 Engine, Gearbox, Exhaust and Air Intake 5
N What's your Saturday night tiple General Chat 22
Similar threads
Please help as no garage can find what's wrong.
For Sale section - what's the difference?
What's the cable fitting called?!
What's it worth? Scorpion exhaust 200
What's your Saturday night tiple
Top Bottom