Anybody install a remote starter?

Has anybody installed a remote start in there car? Wife wants one for her Escape and im trying to decide if I should do it myself.

Don't do it at all! Friend of ours used to sell after market remote starters and he warned me to NEVER install one on my cars! What happens is the car wont start, owner tows it to his mechanic. Mechanic sees the remote start, knows nothing about it, blames the remote start. Tow it to the remote starter installer, checks out fine, tow it back to the mechanic. BIG $$$$! It would have to be a factory unit for me to even consider one...!

I installed the 'Bulldog' brand remote start on my new 1989 E-150 Conversion van van
in.

I followed directions and it worked flawlessly unti I sold it in 2001.

I like getting into a warm vehicle.

Like Omahagreg said, a factory one or not at all. Had one installed on wifes car, worked maybe a year and nothing but problems after that. They have high school dropouts install them, at least the ones I've seen done. Ever heard of scotchlock wire taps, that's what they use, poor connections and a butchered up wiring harness. Unless you know or have a buddy that does them, forget it.

A few years ago I priced an after market remote and a factory kit for a 09 Chevy Equinox. The GM kit installed was cheaper than the aftermarket. If I would of installed it still would need to be programed at the dealer.

I wouldn't do it, factory or nothing! I have heard nightmares about aftermarket installations. A garage is the real answer!

I bought a kit to install on our suburban a few years ago and it got back ordered. Mean while SWMBO retired and decided she wanted a smaller SUV and traded the burban off for a Ford Escape. So in about a month when I had totally
forgotten about having ordered it from Northern Tool Co. it showed up. She decided she did not want it on the Escape because she was not having to leave early in cold weather to go to work any longer.
It has sat on my shop office shelf for a few years in the opened but not used box. If anybody wants one
reasonable let me know and we can talk and make it happen. Gene Davis Tennille, Ga. E-mail me at [email protected]. Remove the 3 xs to use email if you are interested in it.

My cousins husband tried to install one on his Honda about 20 years a go. Notice I said TRIED TO INSTALL ONE. It wouldn't start
and he ended up taking it to a dealer.

A few years back cars were catching on fire that had remote starters.

DO NOT buy one!!!! Three years ago we gave my Wife's car to the one Grand Daughter when she started going to college while still taking high school classes. The car had to set out side. So I thought a remote start would be nice for her. I will admit not researching it very much. I saw different kits for different models of cars. So I assumed that they had different harness adaptors to hook everything up. I had a refund credit at "Best Buy" so I bought a remote starter including installation for the car. It worked fine for about a week. Then I get the evening call from the Grand Daughter in Waterloo, 80 miles away. She had an Olympics of the Mind event there and when she came out the car would not start. So I drive up there to get the car going or haul it home. When I get there the fuse to the ECM was blown. As soon as you would turn the key on it would blow the fuse. I unplugged the ECM and the fuse would still blow. I then suspected the remote start. I look under the dash and see a total butcher job on the factory harness. Scotch locks every where. I figure out that the wire feeding the remote starter is supplied off the factory ECM harness. I just unclipped the scotch lock. and the car would start right up. So GREAT car drove home fine.

The next day I took the car to "Best Buy". They looked at the car. Figured out the unit was defective. THEN told me the warranty was void because I had "TAMPERED" with the wiring harness. WHAT THE HECK!!!!! I just unhooked a cobbled up scotch lock!!! They told me that the remote starter warranty would have covered towing IF the unit was at fault. So they expected me to risk the cost of towing car 80 miles for their MICKY MOUSE warranty!!!! I finally raise enough cane that they replaced the unit but did nothing to the rigged up wiring harness. Then told me there was not future warranty coverage on the entire deal. The unit was less than ONE week old. They advertised a 2 year "No Hassle" warranty on this unit. The total cost was right at $750 for this unit installed. I have not set foot in "BEST BUY/ WORST BUY" since then. The "new" unit lasted less than one month.

I had a local GM mechanic tear out the entire JUNK remote start unit. We replaced the harness with a good used one and found a factory remote start unit an put it in. I will not tell you the cost of all of this. I did not want my Grand Daughter to be stranded at night again!!!!

The car involved??? A 2009 Chevy Impala with less than 50K mile on it. So we are not talking a broke down beater car. They had damaged the factory harness so bad that the security system was tripping and not letting the car start. We fixed several broken wires before we gave up and replaced the entire dash harness.

So I would never install anything other than a factory remote start.

Doesn't surprise me, JD.

I avoid Best Buy.

Dean

We have a neighbor who installes them. He
put one in our Expedition about 5 yrs ago.
Workes good. Our Daughter hss one that her
phone controls. She can start and stop her
Expedition plus open and close the hatch.
From anywhere a cell phone works.

Never have never will, my ex wife had one on a
2013 Subaru she bought 3 months before she left,
no idea how it is working, I just know one day my
daughter said mommys car starts by itself! Lol, I told
her no mommy pushes a button to make it start. All
the years I was with that witch I let her park her car
in my garage, my 99 Dakota regular cab would fit in
my garage, that finally wore out 7 months after she
left, my dad let me use his Honda ridgeline, then I
bought a 99 f150 with super cab, as luck would
have it, it's to long to fit in my garage! So now my garage is all mine and i cant use it! Lol, so I just
go out every morning and start it so it can run for a
few minutes before I leave. I go back in make a cup
of coffee, feed the cat, check the wood stove,
bundle up and head out. No big deal.

Got one in a 93 Olds 98. Been in since new. Works great!

Never.....ever.....ever install an aftermarket remote start on any vehicle period ! Why,
you may ask......55 yrs. in the business.....nuff said.

I installed my own on a new 1996 Dodge Intrepid.
It came with the Scotch locks like others have complained about.

I didn't use them but wired it in using the instructions otherwise.
Traded the Dodge in on a new 2004 vehicle, remote start still
working as designed. Never had an issue with it other than the
range of the remote start was not what I would have liked.

The new vehicle didn't have remote start but I parked it in a
heated garage by then so I didn't need it. From my experience
with that one unit, I would agree with the others. Get a factory
kit or someone that knows something about wiring to install it.

I tried to install an aftermarket kit in my '98 F150.
My fingers are too big, the wires too close together, my eyes don't work in the dark.......

I surrendered after 5 or 6 hours.

I"ve heard the horror stories...when Christmas comes around and the kids ask what we want, I tell them explicitly NO AUTO START! Don"t even think about it! Plus, think it"s waste of gas. Not wimpy enough to worry about a cold car for a few miles.

My older son pestered me to get that done, and I resisted a long time. Finally had some company do it, Certified something or other.... WHAT A GOOD IDEA. You can use it or not, but the kids actually WARM UP THE ENGINE BEFORE THEY LAUNCH OFF. That think its so cool. You can go out the night before and set up the defroster, and next morning the engine is warm, she's defrosted, and safe to drive. I'd say do it. Like I say, I'd have a company do it, I would not do it myself.

I haven't, but if I were, the only way it would happen would be that I install it myself.

How many times I've seen butchered wiring harnesses, done by unqualified, noncaring idiots working at the electronics store! This type of damage largely goes unseen, hidden under the dash or inside a terminal box under the hood. And it's not just remote starters, any electronics, like sound systems, alarm systems, they all tie into existing wiring.

Then some time later there is a problem... The next person trying to troubleshoot runs into the left behind mess. Who knows what does what now? What changes were made? Is this the problem or something else?

The electronics on modern vehicles are way too complicated to be making any undocumented, untraceable changes!

I bought one a few years back, and attempted to install it on a Ford F150. Forget it!

(reply to post at 20:26:03 12/13/16)

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Go ahead and get it!! But buy it and get it installed at the dealer!! I don't say this about much of anything else, but you are taking a big chance doing one of these yourself or at any other shop. I have them on two cars and they were both installed by the dealer when the cars were bought. One is '07, the other '14. I gave a kit to my wife for Christmas soon after we got a '99 Expedition, and I was going to install it until I heard the horror stories.

Yeah.

Even 25 years ago when I was a Ford Service Manager, we'd occasionally have a young gal complain of the battery going down in her car. Almost without fail, her boyfriend had recently installed a big, souped up stereo system. We'd simply have to undo what he'd botched up. And charge her appropriately. We never got feedback on how the relationship went from there.

Or a young gal would call, describe a problem with her car, and ask what it would take to fix it. You knew her boyfriend put her up to it, and was maybe even listening in on another phone, so he could try to fix it himself. We never fell for it. We'd just tell her she'd have to bring the car in so we could put proper diagnostic equipment on it.

I agree with the others who say only use one from the manufacture.
I worked at a GM dealer and aftermarket units and installers are trouble ! The factory ones had plug in connectors made to match the car.

If you buy 1 make sure you have it installed by a honest guy. We've thrown away dozens of them because of the problems they cause by being installed incorrectly. I cannot begin to count the number of cars hauled in here because some clown "installed" one.

Simpler to just plug in the block heater. Engine starts warm and instant heat out the defroster. No wasting expensive fuel idling , reduced engine oil dilution and no high wear rates idling a cold engine .

If you are not an electronic expert,
skilled in auto electronic systems:
don't try it yourself. My older son
works for a company that does car
electronics. Remote start, theft
alarms, back up cameras, stereo
system, etc.... He specializes in
remote start. Every vehicle has their
own requirements. Get a reputable
company to install a quality unit and
you will enjoy years of trouble free
service. Many of the aftermarket
systems are made by the same company
that builds the "factory" units.

I have put in dozens, it is almost always a big headache to install. Usually a bypass module is needed to get around
the factory security system too. I have put in a couple different brands, some have good instructions and support , and
some don't. Some have a great range , and some don't. All are a little hokee ,IMO. Once installed , they are nice to
have though. I think the Bulldog brand was the easiest and most reliable in my experience . I have since given up on
installing them for customers because it would generally take me a LONG time to do the job and I would lose money on
them. Every year at Christmas time I will get a half dozen calls asking to put them in, but I now refer them to Best
Buy.

I have installed lots as that was my business for 8+ years. You will definitely hear horror stories and and yes if you have starting issues most mechanics will blame the aftermarket accessory out of ignorance. Most of the aftermarket units today are pretty well designed and tested on all applications.

You didn't mention the year of the Escape, but if you just want basic start on a newer one then the factory unit is the way to go. The cost is the same or cheaper than the aftermarket.

If you do choose to go aftermarket, select a reputable brand like Compustar or a Directed product such as Viper. For the security bypass I recommend Fortin or iDatalink. I prefer iDatalink and Compustar myself. There are T-Harnesses available of most applications now so less wire splicing. If using a shop, ask how they make the connections. If it is not wire to wire and soldered then they are doing it wrong. Scotch Locks or T-taps are lazy and will always fail.

I can't remember the last year of the escape I did, but the wires were hard to access so I do recommend using a shop.

Feel free to send me a message or reply back if you want more specific information. Also, there is vehicle wiring information at the12volt.com or bulldogsecurity.com which may help you decide if you want to tackle it yourself.

(quoted from post at 08:12:44 12/14/16)
Simpler to just plug in the block heater. Engine starts warm and instant heat out the defroster. No wasting expensive fuel idling , reduced engine oil dilution and no high wear rates idling a cold engine .

Click to expand...

Yabut, How about all of the work to set up a means of pulling the cord back when the car leaves with it still plugged in? Yeah I know, you just loop the cord through the door handle, or over the mirror, but what does that mean to the blond?

The cars of this decade are simply too electronic to allow any unqualified person even touch them. As examples, I point to the horror stories from Best Buy and others.
Some food for thought:
Third party mechanics DO tend to blame aftermarket installations for any number of reasons. Topping the list is a lack of service information. Following that is the issue of butchered harnesses and improper connections. I don't blame them. I did my time dealing with aftermarket add-ons. Most are a nightmare of butchered harnesses, a maze of crap connectors like scotch locks, and the like. Then there is a complete lack of available diagnostic information.

If I were you, and I really wanted that remote start, I would go to the DEALER and have a FACTORY AUTHORIZED add-on installed. Anything less, you could soon regret.