Difference between K20 and S44 keys

[Maui]

Aloha everyone,

I recently purchased a used Modis with Euro, unfortunately, it was missing the Euro keys and the adaptor. After doing a search, I found that the BMW that I have requires the use of the S44 key.

Not being able to find the correct adaptor and key, I purchased an el-cheapo BMW round adaptor so I could gain access to the ECM through the port under the hood. The adaptor wasn't what I expected because it had an OBD2 type plug on it.
Okay, I figured I'd just plug the standard OBD 2 adaptor with the K20 key into the BMW adaptor and see what happened.
To my surprise it worked just fine, and unlike the P0 code format seen when the under the dash connection is used, the scanner was displaying the codes in the manufacturer's format.

My question is this, is there any difference between the K20 and the S44 keys, aside from one having a void in the center and being different colors?

Will anything be gained by using the S44 key.

Thanks for any information, and for putting up with an old guy that most likely shouldn't be screwing around with this hi tech equipment.

aloha

[Witsend]

Maui
Difference between K20 and S44 keys
Aloha everyone,

I recently purchased a used Modis with Euro, unfortunately, it was missing the Euro keys and the adaptor. After doing a search, I found that the BMW that I have requires the use of the S44 key.

Not being able to find the correct adaptor and key, I purchased an el-cheapo BMW round adaptor so I could gain access to the ECM through the port under the hood. The adaptor wasn't what I expected because it had an OBD2 type plug on it.
Okay, I figured I'd just plug the standard OBD 2 adaptor with the K20 key into the BMW adaptor and see what happened.
To my surprise it worked just fine, and unlike the P0 code format seen when the under the dash connection is used, the scanner was displaying the codes in the manufacturer's format.

My question is this, is there any difference between the K20 and the S44 keys, aside from one having a void in the center and being different colors?

Will anything be gained by using the S44 key.

Thanks for any information, and for putting up with an old guy that most likely shouldn't be screwing around with this hi tech equipment.

aloha

They are different keys, green ones used with the Euro car DL16 and the k20 with the regular 16 pin adapter for the Asian and Domestic car lines. I think if you got a Solus Ultra you don't need to use any keys and can still use the OBD1 adapters from the kits of the older models.
If you want to work on BMWs you can find old used discontinued 5 year old keyless Chinaman scanners cheaper than what you would expect to pay for a complete bunch of old green personality keys and Euro adapters, and I'm not sure if even the newest Edge scanners are accessing most of the BS on 11 year old BMWs yet, but I might be wrong.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZoEzO6Ydvw&t=33s

[Maui]

Originally Posted by Witsend

They are different keys, green ones used with the Euro car DL16 and the k20 with the regular 16 pin adapter for the Asian and Domestic car lines. I think if you got a Solus Ultra you don't need to use any keys and can still use the OBD1 adapters from the kits of the older models.
If you want to work on BMWs you can find old used discontinued 5 year old keyless Chinaman scanners cheaper than what you would expect to pay for a complete bunch of old green personality keys and Euro adapters, and I'm not sure if even the newest Edge scanners are accessing most of the BS on 11 year old BMWs yet, but I might be wrong.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZoEzO6Ydvw&t=33s

Thanks for the reply,

I was looking for information on whether the 2 keys in question were programed differently from each other.

As best as I can tell at this point, these 2 keys are pretty much the same, which has saved me a pile of dough by my no longer having the need for the SO BMW 20 pin adaptor, the SO Euro key adaptor, or the S16 key.

A $6.00 20 pin BMW adaptor that connects through the OBD 16 pin adaptor and the K20 key works just fine.

Yes, and not unlike many others, I work on older vehicles, thank goodness.

A 14 something version scanner will last me way longer than I'd ever need.
However, I was disappointed when I found that neither the 14.2, nor the 13.4 scanners had legacy software, and that could be a problem that sends me looking for an older Solus.


aloha,

[sbreland73]

Originally Posted by Maui

Thanks for the reply,

I was looking for information on whether the 2 keys in question were programed differently from each other.

As best as I can tell at this point, these 2 keys are pretty much the same, which has saved me a pile of dough by my no longer having the need for the SO BMW 20 pin adaptor, the SO Euro key adaptor, or the S16 key.

A $6.00 20 pin BMW adaptor that connects through the OBD 16 pin adaptor and the K20 key works just fine.

Yes, and not unlike many others, I work on older vehicles, thank goodness.

A 14 something version scanner will last me way longer than I'd ever need.
However, I was disappointed when I found that neither the 14.2, nor the 13.4 scanners had legacy software, and that could be a problem that sends me looking for an older Solus.


aloha,

The main difference in the personality keys is the way it routes the pins for data lines. Some modules use different lines, protocols, and voltage (hence the resistors and transistors embedded on key). Be aware if you run into a "No Communication" with a certain year, make, model or module, not using the correct key/adapter configuration should be the first suspect, not the vehicle in question or the scan tool itself. The newer tools handle all this electronically, both with hardware and software. HTH

[Maui]

Originally Posted by sbreland73

The main difference in the personality keys is the way it routes the pins for data lines. Some modules use different lines, protocols, and voltage (hence the resistors and transistors embedded on key). Be aware if you run into a "No Communication" with a certain year, make, model or module, not using the correct key/adapter configuration should be the first suspect, not the vehicle in question. The newer tools handle all this electronically, both with hardware and software. HTH

aloha,

Thanks for the reply.

aloha

[Modis500]

I asked this same question 3 years ago after SO went keyless.... no one chimed in. I found personally that S44 and K20 worked the same on all the applications I tried. Are there other S keys that have twins in the K category???? That was my question that no one wanted to help with.... oh well, I went wireless since then so I moved on from that. Hope the K20 works wherever you'll need it

Tom