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VCM from china

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Today our dealer received an email from BWL automotive science and technology co, they are the manufacturer and wholesaler of auto diagnostic equipment from china. They supply such as GT1 for bmw,XPSTAR for Mercedes,5052a for audi, Piwis for Porche, Consult 3 for Nissan and VCM for Ford,HIM for honda and Dice for Volvo.Anybody heard of them before.They left a phone # 0086-571-88989721 and this store name and address Jingtong auto parts mart,Hangzhou city,Zhejiang province, china. And no this is not a joke. I,m just scared to called and get a $500 phone bill. /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/scratchhead.gif

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The Chinese have earned a reputation as a producer of copies of items without having any licence or permission to copy those items... Indeed, many of these counterfeit products have even showed up on Ford dealer shelves from time to time in "look-alike" packaging. FWIW, counterfeiting isn't limited to either Ford or automotive products and is a billion dollar industry in the world.

 

I frequently receive unsolicited e-mails from Chinese sources offering fantastic deals on building materials, plumbing supplies, office equipmenmt and, of course garage equipment and auto parts....

 

And here-in are two keys... "Unsolicited"... picture a guy walking up to your door with a pamphlet or a vacuum cleaner... What get's eerie is when the guy is selling something you might have actually considered... like a VCM - and here it is dropped in your lap at a price you can't afford to turn down...

 

Ann Landers (you youngsters may need to google that one) used to tell people that "If something sounded too good to be true, it probably was....".

 

As a last thought, PT Barnum said "There's one born every minute".

 

On edit... I googled "counterfeit products" - and I forgot all the e-mails I get offering me Rolex watches at discount prices = and one day these will be worth a lot because "Rolex" is misspelled.....

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I Googled the number and landed on asiannet.com. Here is the page with the VCM http://www.asiannet.com/offerdetail/367876/367876.html

 

I think it is funny how Jim in Canada gets solicitations from China for just about anything. Here in the states I get hammered with email solicitations from Canada for Viagra and such. /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/scratchhead.gif

 

Got to love the Internet, eh?

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and Dice for Volvo.

Is that like "Diagnostic Dice"? /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif

I have trouble trusting anything from China these days. If a regular company sells something from China it is a little easier to have some confidence (although I don't like it). But an email solisitation, I don't think so.

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Good work Keith, i googled the company name,Ford VCM and could not find anything conclusive.Thank you for taking the time to find it,I neverthought to try the phone # on the net.

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I Googled the number and landed on asiannet.com. Here is the page with the VCM http://www.asiannet.com/offerdetail/367876/367876.html

 

I think it is funny how Jim in Canada gets solicitations from China for just about anything. Here in the states I get hammered with email solicitations from Canada for Viagra and such. Posted Image

 

Got to love the Internet, eh?

Just curious. What was that priced at? Does it actually work?
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I'm not sure if thats from the same company or related to it or not, but the local Diesel Tech program at the college here purchased a VCM kit off E-Bay from someplace in China. They received it with IDS version 55 along with whats shown in that picture. I believe they paid a little under a grand IIRC.

 

I just got the pleasure of using their IDS/VCM setup this past week to use it to replace a FICM, and the software they had would not allow any module reprogramming, PMI, or parameter changes. However I was able to download & install IDS 58 from motorcraft.com and then had full functionality. Also I didn't expect for it to retrieve new calibrations online and update since there was supposedly no subscription to the VCM, but it updated everything with the newest calibrations.

 

I will be by the college again next week to talk to the instructor if he's had time to play with it any more since I got it figured out, and can inquire more where he purchased their VCM kit and can let you know.

 

Buddy

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Just talked to the local instructor, there VCM kit was ordered from a EBay store called ECUfactory, and they also have a website www.ecufactory.com. I do not see it listed on there website now, and they are on vacation until Feb 4 according to the EBay store.

 

I see they have the Honda GNA600, which appears quite similar to the Ford VCM kit, and I am also wondering if the software in it can be reflashed/updated with the IDS to work on Ford applications even? Maybe if Bruce sees this he might have some insight? I'm just curious about it...

 

Buddy

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To: All Ford and Lincoln Mercury Dealer Principals, Service Managers and Service Technicians

Subject: Non-Ford Vehicle Communication Modules (VCM) in the Global Market

 

ANNOUNCEMENT

Counterfeiting is a growing phenomenon affecting virtually every brand owner in every industry around the world. According to Government agencies & industry sources, parts counterfeiting costs the global automotive industry $12 billion annually.

 

Counterfeiting occurs when a third party copies an Original Equipment (OE) product and/or package through their own manufacturing process and utilizes company trademarks in order to defraud consumers. The advent of the internet has greatly facilitated the trade in counterfeit products, allowing unrestricted global access to unsuspecting consumers.

 

Ford Motor Company actively monitors & pursues the sale of counterfeit and unauthorized products in the supply chain. In the last few months, the Company has investigated the sale of non-genuine Vehicle Communication Modules (VCM), presented and packaged as Rotunda Original Equipment VCM's, available through various Internet channels (e-commerce, auction sites, etc.).

 

SUPPORT

The non-genuine VCM units have not been tested to the same Ford VCM OE standards for safety, quality, design, specifications, completeness or other performance characteristics prior to sale.

 

Ford makes no warranty or representation that non-genuine VCMs can be used for any particular function or that non-genuine VCM customers have the ability to use such devices without damage, and Ford assumes no responsibility for the safety, quality, design, specifications, completeness or other characteristics of the performance output or end result of using non-Ford VCMs. Ford shall in no event be liable to non-Ford VCM users, its successors, customers or any other third party, for damages, consequential or incidental, arising from any loss claimed as a result of the use of non-Ford VCMs.

 

IDS software in identified non-genuine VCMs will be disabled. Furthermore, Ford Motor Company will not provide warranty coverage, service repair support, or licensed software updates for non-genuine VCM's.

 

IDENTIFICATION OF NON-FORD (VCMs)

At a glance, the non-genuine VCM tools are very difficult to differentiate. Listed in the attachments are some characteristics to aid in the identification of non-genuine VCM units compared to an OE version, and the following attachments contain specific photo examples.

 

The Rotunda (OE) VCM has two ground pins that extend approximately 1/8 of an inch past the other terminals in the connector used to attach to the DLC cable. Some of the non-genuine units inspected do not have this feature. See Attachment A.

The Rotunda (OE) VCM has a wireless card cage under the plastic cover to accommodate wireless communication. Some of the non-genuine units do not have the card cage. Refer to Attachment B.

The Rotunda (OE) VCM does not contain any external markings, stickers, or decals indicating production dates. Some of the non-genuine units have these indicators and in a foreign language. Refer to Attachment C.

The Rotunda OE VCM Mercury logo on early-built units is a white background with red lines, while the current units have a black background with white tines. Some of the non-genuine versions use a white background with black lines. See Attachment D.

 

ACTION REQUESTED

Please review and distribute this information with all service department personnel. Ford Original Equipment VCM's are manufactured in the USA. Genuine Ford VCMs are available for dealers exclusively through Rotunda.

 

QUESTIONS

Questions regarding Rotunda tools and equipment should be directed to 1-800ROTUNDA

(768-8632). Questions regarding this communication should be directed to Matt Monroe, mmonroe2@ford.com, (313) 323-2789.

 

 

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I emailed one of the sellers on ebay to see what info he would give on the VCM he sold.I choose him because he had 100% feed back and also the npictures of the VCM and cables were in bags with rotunda part numbers on them exactly like the ones you recieve from Ford when you order them.I think his price was $900.00 us dollars.His response was....

 

Hello, together with VCM device you will get DVD with IDS software and calibration files. IDS updates itself periodically from the internet, no additional license purchase is required.

 

 

 

Ford VCM IDS Diagnostic Tool Kit

Item Id: 220335248250

End time: Jan-25-09 13:39:46 PST

Seller:

automotivediagnostic (24)

100.0% Positive Feedback

Member since Jul-18-07 in Lithuania

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IDS updates itself periodically from the internet, no additional license purchase is required.

The Motorcraft website won't let you do an upgrade unless it sees a valid VCM serial number stored in your PC that is linked to an current subscription.($$$) How are they getting around that?

 

Lithuania, huh? It still doesn't pass the smell test. If it were my second or third VCM I might consider it, but beware!

 

 

Posted Image

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I agree, the price of these VCM's are tempting to all of us but if they are getting around subscription process somehow it won't be long before they are blocked by Ford through a new software update to the update process itself.If anyone remembers the days of hacking Direct TV maybe they will black sunday all the counterfiet VCM's.

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Part of the problem is since Ford raised the renewal fee from $350 to $485 yearly, people are trying to lower the initial VCM cost to help pay for the increase. I am just glad our dealer stepped up and purchased more IDS units to keep the shop productive.

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The quote is from SVB 2009-12N on the Canada site... There are several attachments I haven't read yet that may be of interest.

 

What we need to remember - service DVD subsriptions, web access subscriptions and scan tool subscriptions are an industry within themselves at the dealership level.

 

Flip side of the coin. Ford will spare no effort reminding us of all the bad things that 'might' happen from <let's say> using a "counterfeit" VCM. (And let us remember the serial number requirement for VCM updates). But it remains to be seen if and when Ford will actually do anything about it.

 

Looking at all the 'expired' service DVDs available in spite of being marked "NOT FOT RESALE" and Ford not doing anything apparent about it.....

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