It's August, Winter is coming, what remote start?

I got my LGT in November of last year and the winters in PA are cold, it's winter! One of the things I hated most was dragging my lazy butt outside to warm up my car.

 

Now I finally have my finances under control and am very much interested in starting my car from my bedroom window on those cold days. I have an 05 5EAT, no performance mods. What do you guys have in your cars remote start-wise? Would I be best off going to my dealer (GASP!!!) for the install or is this something I could do myself?

This is what I do. Just start the car when you get in it and scrape or brush the snow off after starting the car. That is the only warming the car need's. For You, We'll you can get warm after driving for a little bit.

I've heard so many bad stories about remote start, I would never install on in any of my cars.

^ Why are you scared of remote start systems? Thousands of people use them with zero problems. Bad installs can lead to problems but that's true with even an oil change right? Do it right it should work perfect the life of the car. Plus I love getting into a car that's already warmed up and ready to go. I also love getting into a pre-cooled car on a hot day. Ever wonder if your car is locked in the middle of the night? Press a button and check. 2 way remotes with remote start are nothing to be scared of. Now days even 5 speeds have lots of options for safety.

 

You cannot do this yourself without a very solid background in alarm installation.

 

I had help from a buddy who was an installer for years and while I have installed many cd players, amps, speakers, navi, blue tooth, basic keyless entry systems... By help I mean he did it while I brought him snacks and soldered a few wires here and there. After my hell weekend getting my remote start set up I'll probably never attempt again. Spend the 150-250 for a professional to install it and guarantee their work. Go to a reputable local stereo/alarm shot not just best buy. Best buy's employees are super hit or miss (I used to work there I know haha) and I don't trust them touching my car.

 

If you're buying your alarm in a shop prepare to spend 250-400 bucks on a good unit. Most places give you a better deal on the install if you buy the alarm there. I saved some money buying my alarm online but I have no warranty of any kind and I wasted a weekend of my life.

 

I'm a big fan of DEI products. You can save 50% buying python instead of Viper - it's exactly the same stuff. The brains of many of their units are interchangeable and the only difference is the remote.

 

Pager remotes are AWESOME and I will never have another car without one. I was eating dinner a month ago (my car is still in the %^&@#ING shop!!!) and some dumb kid driving through the parking lot not paying attention smashed into my car! So much for parking far away to avoid door dings huh? But anyway when he hit my car my pager went off and I ran out of the sushi place I was eating at thinking someone hit my car with a cart or something only to find the kid trying to drive away. I yelled at him and another guy waved him down saying he was gonna call the cops on him if he left the scene.

 

So far my bill is over 4 grand and that's with bullshit farmers replacement parts... Luckily they accepted 100% fault but they're using shitty junkyard parts to fix my car, I'm really bummed... If anyone knows a good lawyer I'd like to talk to sue for depreciation after this whole shitfest.

 

So yeah the pager alarm saved me from having my insurance rates go up, saved me my deductible, and gives me great peace of mind. The 1 mile range is kind of bs but I get a solid half mile in a mall or something.

 

Here's the one I got. Only thing I don't like is the remote is kind of bulky.

 

http://automotive.become.com/dei-python-991-responder-lc3-2way-security-remote-start-system-5702p--compare-prices--sc1143576798

The problem with remote start isn't the bad install, the problem is letting your car idle until it warms up. Cold idling is very hard on your engine. After a cold start, you want to drive your car to get it up to operating temp quickly.

The only thing I replaced on my 98 Toyota Tacoma after 10 years and 100k miles was the starter. I blame the remote start I had professionally installed.

The skin melting heated seats in these cars warms me up quick enough. No silly remote start needed.

I have the Viper system on mine, although I have a MT, it works great and the previous owner installed himself. Obviously this is an expensive route for just remote start, but I haven't had any problems and it will run for 15 min before it shuts off automatically.

PA is cold?

PA is cold?

 

Cold enough.