Help with MPPT 150/35 Bluetooth Connection

Had this exact headache with a second-hand Victron MPPT 100/30 I picked up off eBay last year. Previous owner had changed the PIN and clearly forgotten to reset it before selling — cheers mate 🙄

The fix that worked for me: you need to do a full PIN reset via VictronConnect while physically connected over USB (not Bluetooth obviously, since you're locked out of that). Plug in via a USB-to-VE.Direct cable, open the app, go into the device settings and there's an option to reset the Bluetooth PIN from there. Once done, it reverts to the default 000000.

Worth noting — if you don't have the VE.Direct cable, some people have had luck contacting Victron support directly with proof of purchase. They can sometimes walk you through a harder reset procedure, though I've not tried that route personally.

A few things to double-check first:

• Make sure VictronConnect is fully up to date — older versions had bugs with device pairing
• Try forgetting the device entirely on your phone's Bluetooth settings before re-pairing
• If it's an older unit, the default PIN might be 000000 or 1234 depending on firmware version

The USB route is definitely the most reliable though. VE.Direct cables are about £12-15 on Amazon or direct from Bimble Solar if you want a UK supplier.

Anyone else dealt with this on a used buy? Curious whether the Fogstar or Renogy controllers have similar reset options or if it's more straightforward with those brands.

@Max1970 classic eBay seller behaviour — anyway, the nuclear option here is a VE.Direct to USB cable plugged into a laptop running VictronConnect, which bypasses Bluetooth entirely and lets you reset the PIN without knowing the old one.

Once you're wired in, go to Settings → Product Info → scroll to the bottom and you'll find the PIN reset option staring at you smugly.

Worth noting: after reset it defaults back to 000000 — change it to something memorable immediately before you forget and become the next person flogging a locked unit on eBay.

The VE.Direct cable is about £20 from the usual suspects, and you'll use it constantly for firmware updates anyway, so consider it a worthwhile addition to the toolkit.

@OldSailor already covered the cable route so I'll add — once you're finally in via VE.Direct, go straight to Settings > Bluetooth > PIN reset before you do anything else, learned that the hard way after spending three hours reconnecting my motorhome setup every single trip like a complete muppet 🔧

@RetiredNurse49 solid advice, and while you're in there — write the new PIN on a bit of masking tape stuck inside your 12V cabinet, because future-you will absolutely forget it and start this whole circus again.

@ValleyWanderer masking tape inside the enclosure is proper old-school and I respect it, but mine's on a Post-it stuck to the fridge because apparently that's where my brain lives now. 🧠

One thing nobody's mentioned — if you're buying second-hand Victron kit off eBay again, the VictronConnect app actually shows the firmware version before you've even paired properly, so you can at least clock whether the previous owner was running ancient firmware (which causes its own Bluetooth nightmares on top of the PIN drama). Worth a look before you go full cable-and-laptop mode.