Posted: 9/29/2014 3:20:20 PM EDT
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Anyone ever install a remote starter themselves?
I've got a 2006 Nissan Frontier, and between the onset of winter, and needing to get my five year old out the door at 5:00 in the morning, it would be fantastic to be able to get the truck running with a push of a button from in the house. I've looked at some online, and have no idea what I'm looking at. I do know, that I don't want to have two fobs hanging from a keyring. I don't care if it uses the existing fob, or replaces it, but a second fob would be a pain in the ass. (Albeit not as much of a pain in the ass as going out to start the truck myself.) Are there specific brands I should look at? Specific brands I should stay away from? Specific features I should look for? I'd like something with as clean an installation as possible... by which I mean limiting limited hacking on the factory harness. I'm not afraid of doing the install... but I've obviously never done one before so this is all new territory to me. |
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Ive installed multiple systems in multiple cars. Have you ever wired a car radio? More complex than that.
On newer models, you may want to buy a bypass module if you dont want to sacrifice a key. These can be a bit finicky to program, but they always seem to work in the end. I prefer to solder/heat shrink my connections. Crimping works if you have a good tool and high quality connectors. Viper/Audiovox systems have been pretty good to me. Viper's DIY support is almost non existant these days... FYI. I prefer the Audiovox Prestege system if you dont need the bells and whistles of a smartphone start system. Plenty of wiring guides online regarding almost every vehicle. |
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I installed a factory remote starter in my Ram a few years ago. Factory. Should be simple, right? Plug and play, right?  Heh. I removed the factory installed remote start from my Toyota to replace it. Range was 20 ft, max, warmup time was short, and the car shut down as soon as you unlocked the door. Bullshit. Funny thing was that there was nothing plug and play about the factory system. It was a dealer add on (and poorly done, at that) |
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Heh. I removed the factory installed remote start from my Toyota to replace it. Range was 20 ft, max, warmup time was short, and the car shut down as soon as you unlocked the door. Bullshit. Funny thing was that there was nothing plug and play about the factory system. It was a dealer add on (and poorly done, at that) Quoted:
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I installed a factory remote starter in my Ram a few years ago. Factory. Should be simple, right? Plug and play, right? Heh. I removed the factory installed remote start from my Toyota to replace it. Range was 20 ft, max, warmup time was short, and the car shut down as soon as you unlocked the door. Bullshit. Funny thing was that there was nothing plug and play about the factory system. It was a dealer add on (and poorly done, at that) When I was at Chrysler we had a tech that installed all 'factory alarms and/or remote start systems. That was his only job. He would stroll in around 10am, install a few systems and be out the door by 3:00. All systems were from various aftermarket companies, but were sold as factory units. |
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It just made NO sense to me what an ass ache it was to install a factory remote start, directly from Chrysler.........having to splice into the ignition wire, having to splice into the brake light wire, having to send a wire thru the firewall to splice into a coil wire.
Stupid. |
| We have a audio place do them for us here when it isn't a plug and play unit from Ford. IF your car is a plug and play, you can probably do it. If it isn't, save yourself the time and headhache and have someone else do it. The place we use does astrostart. 500 feet of range, small one button fob for the remote, and lifetime warranty on the starter as long as you own the car. Plus if something funky does happen they fix it on their dime. |
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Friend of mine actually trust the guy at Best Buy  to do installs. He bought one of their systems with free install and it took the dude ALL day, and he does it every day.
I'd go that route if I did it, and I can wire more than the average joe. Yep. I'd give yourself the full weekend if installing a remote start w/door unlock. Some companies sell wiring harness adapters like they have in car stereo. Ive heard this can make it easier. Oh. And unhook your battery when you are wiring. Nothing like blowing some random ECU/Ignition/whatever fuse if you short a wire out. I've gotten it down to four hours on newer Toyota vehicles. |
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You'll be intimate with a wiring diagram by the time your done.
Not hard but a little time consuming to figure out all the wires, especially if you dont have a good diagram. You will def need to know you're way around a meter. depending on what kind you get they have a lot of different options. The one I did has a brake switch cutoff, parking brake switch cutoff, can control the door locks, etc so it cant be easily stolen. You don't have to use all of them, For bare bones operation all you really need to tap into is the ignition switch for start, run, crank, start/run etc, and the accessory wires if you wanna run climate controls or stereo. You'll also need to tap into something that carries tach signal, a fuel injector is an easy one but you could also tap into ckp or cam sensor. Can program them to run for 10 minutes, 5 minutes, how long to crank, etc. The difficulty depends on the capabilities of the system you're installing. T-taps are fine if you do it right and makes it easy to remove later. |
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Just leave the start remote at home. Once you start it up in the morning, do you really need it again? Unless it sends out some RF code to let you actually drive the car, that is.
I looked into one for the wifes Honda Pilot. Once you removed half the interior and dash it was a plug in unit. But then you had to hook it up to Honda Service's computer and program the damned car to work with it. I also didn't do it because there was no way to flip on the seat heaters remotely. The older Honda's had a physical on-off switch and she could have just left the heater on at night. New car has a digital circuit that locks a gate on so the button is only sending a signal to the electronics. Even if it is on when the car is turned off, it resets to a default mode of off. So I make her run out to the car to crank it up and flip on the seat heater at 5:45 in the morning during winter months while my '66 GT Fastback sits in the garage all comfy and warm. 
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Just leave the start remote at home. Once you start it up in the morning, do you really need it again? Unless it sends out some RF code to let you actually drive the car, that is. I looked into one for the wifes Honda Pilot. Once you removed half the interior and dash it was a plug in unit. But then you had to hook it up to Honda Service's computer and program the damned car to work with it. I also didn't do it because there was no way to flip on the seat heaters remotely. The older Honda's had a physical on-off switch and she could have just left the heater on at night. New car has a digital circuit that locks a gate on so the button is only sending a signal to the electronics. Even if it is on when the car is turned off, it resets to a default mode of off. So I make her run out to the car to crank it up and flip on the seat heater at 5:45 in the morning during winter months while my '66 GT Fastback sits in the garage all comfy and warm. The Rattler system I installed had a programmable auxiliary output for the 3rd button on the remote, most often used to pop the trunk. What would keep that from being used as a signal to start the seat heaters if you knew what kind of signal was needed? |
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I installed a handful of astro's before. It really depends on what vehicle you have and making sure you buy the right modules to interface with the OEM wiring. Also, some RS systems require a programmer to be plugged into them. Some allow you to do it manually, some dont. The manual programming is a HUGE PITA.
Honestly they were a pain in the ass, and we had the computer programmer. To take on one in your garage would be a challenge, to do it without a programmer would be hell. Bite the bullet and pay someone to do it. |
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The Rattler system I installed had a programmable auxiliary output for the 3rd button on the remote, most often used to pop the trunk. What would keep that from being used as a signal to start the seat heaters if you knew what kind of signal was needed? Quoted:
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Just leave the start remote at home. Once you start it up in the morning, do you really need it again? Unless it sends out some RF code to let you actually drive the car, that is. I looked into one for the wifes Honda Pilot. Once you removed half the interior and dash it was a plug in unit. But then you had to hook it up to Honda Service's computer and program the damned car to work with it. I also didn't do it because there was no way to flip on the seat heaters remotely. The older Honda's had a physical on-off switch and she could have just left the heater on at night. New car has a digital circuit that locks a gate on so the button is only sending a signal to the electronics. Even if it is on when the car is turned off, it resets to a default mode of off. So I make her run out to the car to crank it up and flip on the seat heater at 5:45 in the morning during winter months while my '66 GT Fastback sits in the garage all comfy and warm. The Rattler system I installed had a programmable auxiliary output for the 3rd button on the remote, most often used to pop the trunk. What would keep that from being used as a signal to start the seat heaters if you knew what kind of signal was needed? After reading how the cars computer has to be programmed to work with it, no way would I use an aftermarket system. Cars are just too damned complicated these days, and the last thing I want is a 3rd party device that might not play well with the Honda system if I ever need service. |
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After reading how the cars computer has to be programmed to work with it, no way would I use an aftermarket system. Cars are just too damned complicated these days, and the last thing I want is a 3rd party device that might not play well with the Honda system if I ever need service. Quoted:
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Just leave the start remote at home. Once you start it up in the morning, do you really need it again? Unless it sends out some RF code to let you actually drive the car, that is. I looked into one for the wifes Honda Pilot. Once you removed half the interior and dash it was a plug in unit. But then you had to hook it up to Honda Service's computer and program the damned car to work with it. I also didn't do it because there was no way to flip on the seat heaters remotely. The older Honda's had a physical on-off switch and she could have just left the heater on at night. New car has a digital circuit that locks a gate on so the button is only sending a signal to the electronics. Even if it is on when the car is turned off, it resets to a default mode of off. So I make her run out to the car to crank it up and flip on the seat heater at 5:45 in the morning during winter months while my '66 GT Fastback sits in the garage all comfy and warm. The Rattler system I installed had a programmable auxiliary output for the 3rd button on the remote, most often used to pop the trunk. What would keep that from being used as a signal to start the seat heaters if you knew what kind of signal was needed? After reading how the cars computer has to be programmed to work with it, no way would I use an aftermarket system. Cars are just too damned complicated these days, and the last thing I want is a 3rd party device that might not play well with the Honda system if I ever need service. Guess I left out the part where the car I installed it on was a 1993 Thunderbird 5.0
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