XTOOL D7 Bi-Directional Scan Tool Review

It is never fun when you’re driving along and suddenly one of the lights on your dash appears to let you know that something isn’t right with your car. You can go to a dealership and pay a lot of money for them to check what code is causing the light, and then have them fix it, but who wants to do that? If you’re into doing your own work on your vehicle, or if you are a professional mechanic with your own shop you need a sophisticated code reader that does more than just tell you what the code number is. The XTOOL D7 Bi-Directional Scan Tool gives you that power, with features that you’d find on devices that cost 2-3 times as much.

Note: The XTOOL D7 is currently 22% off (a savings of $94) for Black Friday. Plus you can use the code OTEKOF5M to save an extra 10%!

The D7

The XTOOL D7 is an easy-to-use, bi-directional scanning tool that was designed for automotive diagnostics. Don’t worry about it not being compatible with your ride, as it works with over 10,000 different vehicle models, including U.S., Asian, and European OEMs.

The D7 gives you dealership-level, full-systems diagnostics that includes ECU coding, CAN FD, DOIP, FCA, and more than 36 additional advanced maintenance services. In other words, if there is anything going on inside your vehicle, the D7 will find it and tell you exactly what needs to be fixed. The unit also lets you customize your reports to make them more user-friendly and easier to read and use.

The D7 is a convenient and easy-to-use 7-inch touchscreen tablet in a durable, drop-resistant frame and using the Android 10.0 system. It’s powered by a Quad-core 1.6GHz processor and features 32GB of internal memory for storing reports and diagnostic data. English is the default language, but you can switch it to over 15 different language options if you need to. It comes with all the necessary cords, chargers and connectors and is packaged in an easy-to-use hard shell case.

When you turn it on the first time and connect it to your Wi-Fi, it will run a software update. From there, you get three additional years of software updates at no cost.

What Can The D7 Do?

I could just say that it does a lot, but that isn’t doing it any justice. For starters, the D7 can perform more than 4,000 active tests on your vehicle. The bidirectional control can check all of the smaller systems like ABS motors, windows, solenoids, relays, switches, valves, sunroofs, headlamps, and more.

Why do I mention these systems? Have you ever had a switch, or solenoid go out? Fixing it can be a pain in the you-know-what, but using the D7 tells you if any part of the system is the cause. I once replaced a whole wiring setup and electric motor that ran the idle adjust on a car I owned. The cost of the parts alone was over $700, and after I did the work, I tested the motor, only to find that it was a short in a wire. This is where a tool like the XTOOL D7 would have come in handy.

The D7 lets you have full access to real-time data, active tests, ECU information, adaptation, and component matching. The XTOOL D7 provides powerful, dealer-level diagnostics covering all available systems such as engine, transmission, ABS, airbags, and more. This ties directly into what I experienced using the D7 on my Toyota Tacoma. It has one major light on the dash, indicating an airbag sensor issue. Let me run through that process.

A cheap code reader gave me a numerical code that simply reported an airbag sensor problem. A slightly more advanced tool gave the same information, but indicated that it was on the passenger side of the truck. The XTOOLS D7 narrowed it down to an issue with a switch in the seat base on the front passenger seat. The part costs $6 and I have it on order.

Maintenance Help

The XTOOL D7 can help with all of the regular maintenance services and lights. These include things like the Oil Reset, ABS Bleeding, Injector Coding, Fuel Trim Learn, Transmission Reset, TPMS Reset, BMS Reset, SAS Reset, and more. It has more options for some of the fancier maintenance systems you find in luxury cars, as well as some sensors for bigger maintenance tasks, like crankshaft relearning and seat calibration.

Tuners Rejoice!

When it comes to some vehicles that are popular for modifications, especially to the ECU, the XTOOL D7 will work with the tuner to allow for new ECU Coding for select models, including VW, Audi, Skoda, Benz, and Mitsubishi. This also applies to other OEMs, so don’t worry. What it means is, when you do some modifications that require ECU flashing to gain performance, the D7 will communicate with the ECU and keep your settings and modifications. This way you can go ahead and make your vehicle as fast as you want and not be furious if your diagnostic tool erases your tuner settings.

Professional Use

If you’re a professional mechanic you will appreciate the improved V2.0 Diagnostic Report feature that lets you personalize reports with logos, customer details, and attachments, making it easier to generate an estimate and giving you added professionalism. Plus there is the fact that the D7 does the same type of tasks that other diagnostic tools do, but at less than half the cost of many of them. When every dollar you spend comes directly from your pocket, it is nice to have access to tools that have the quality and features you need at a much lower price.

Keys And Fobs

The D7 has an IMMO Reset Function that every shop needs to have, and for the DIY’er, it is a great feature to save you yet another trip to the dealership. What this feature does is give you the ability to disable a lost vehicle key and/or program the replacement key fob. Want to get some additional keys and fobs for your spouse, or to have as a backup set? Not a problem for the D7. The D7 also lets you read PIN code/pin code calculation, check on the number of keys programmed for the vehicle, generate a new key, and add more keys. An important part for stolen keys is that the D7 lets you quickly set a key as lost, and deactivate it to help prevent vehicle theft. We lost the keys to our Ford van and I wish I had this tool when it happened. I could have bought the new key with the built-in fob myself and programmed it with the D7. As it was, that was another $200+ trip to the shop.

Don’t Get Fooled

You may have heard that some of the newer vehicles from the bigger North American manufacturers are so complex that normal diagnostic tools can’t communicate with them. While there is some truth to that with lower-quality readers, the XTOOL D7 doesn’t have that problem.

The D7 was specifically designed for diagnosing the latest vehicle models, including GM models made after 2020. DOIP offers fast and efficient communication capabilities with modern vehicles. It also works just fine with all Fiat Chrysler Automobiles brands, with complete compatibility.

The Bottom Line

If you like to do most of your own work, buy this thing right now. It pays for itself so quickly that you can’t afford not to have one. I even showed it to a mechanic buddy of mine and his response was that it does the same things his current tool does, but his cost $1,500.

I will likely never use all of the different features of the XTOOL D7, but the features I do and will use make it worth every penny. Its’ already started paying off for me.