NA: Car remote starter recommendation

LDJones

LDJones

Touchdown! Greaser!
Gone West
Joined
Sep 6, 2011
Messages
10,998
Location
Twin Cities, MN
Display Name
Jonesy
Home Airfield
KMSP / KFCM / KSGS
What's the latest and greatest? I like the idea of the smartphone apps but not sure how that works. Do you need some sort of annual data contract on those?
 
I believe for most smart phone style starters you need a membership plan. I'm not entirely sure how they work.

My advice is to pick something that will work with the factory system. We bought my dad a cheap viper system years ago for his old truck, we broke one of the fobs and tried to use the key to get into the truck but the alarm system wouldn't allow the truck to be started. It was a nightmare trying to get another fob to get the truck home.

What kind of vehicle is this for?
 
How old is your car? I had a Jeep GC 2008 that had a factory installed remote starter, I believe you could just by the module and remotes and add it if you didn't get it from the factory.

I have 2015 now and you can start it with your cell phone. It came with 5 years of service from the factory. I'm thinking I won't pay for it when it runs out though.
 
This is for a 2016 Honda HR-V if that helps.
 
Austingt350 said:
Honda offers one for $400, in all honesty I would go with this. OEM stuff generally works a little better than aftermarket.
Click to expand...

That's interesting. I specifically asked the dealer about it and they only thing they offered was a $700 third-party offering installed by an outside company. They said Honda didn't offer anything. That's really strange.

I'll have to follow up with them.

Loren
 
Last edited:
LDJones said:
That's interesting. I specifically asked the dealer about it and they only thing they offered as a $700 third-party offering installed by an outside company. They said Honda didn't offer anything. That's really strange.

I'll have to follow up with them.

Loren
Click to expand...

Dealers suck, I wouldn't go back to them if they lied. Check out the link I gave you, you need to scroll down.

Of course, maybe the dealer is referring to the smart phone remote start not being available which seems to be correct.
 
PaulS said:
Dealers suck, I wouldn't go back to them if they lied. Check out the link I gave you, you need to scroll down.

Of course, maybe the dealer is referring to the smart phone remote start not being available which seems to be correct.
Click to expand...

I agree dealers suck. We didn't request the smartphone. We just asked what Honda options there were for remote starters and they said Honda didn't offer any. Goofballs.

I always feel like I need to go home and shower after dealing with a new car dealer.
 
I just talked to the dealer, again. They said they don't offer the Honda product because they feel it's inferior to the third-party products. He then said that the $399 MSRP was the Honda price, but that "after our markeup and installation it's more than the third-party products which work better."

"Markup" on MSRP?? WTF??! Geez these guys are slimeballs!
 
I have Astrostarts, one on a manual car. Had to replace the 'brain' on one after 180k. The part was under warranty. The install is pretty involved and a pain if you have to work under the dash for anything else.
 
weilke said:
I have Astrostarts, one on a manual car. Had to replace the 'brain' on one after 180k. The part was under warranty. The install is pretty involved and a pain if you have to work under the dash for anything else.
Click to expand...

That's why I like the Honda one, it's almost plug and play plus it turns on the heat or AC automatically.

If you are handy you can install it yourself, instructions below for the ex - exl


http://techinfo.honda.com/rjanisis/pubs/AI/AH/AII01797-27/enu/AII01797-27.pdf
 
LDJones said:
I just talked to the dealer, again. They said they don't offer the Honda product because they feel it's inferior to the third-party products. He then said that the $399 MSRP was the Honda price, but that "after our markeup and installation it's more than the third-party products which work better."

"Markup" on MSRP?? WTF??! Geez these guys are slimeballs!
Click to expand...
Find another honda dealer. Plus a honda one mostly likely won't void any factory warranties. All it is most likely is a Pcm flash and some new remotes
 
PaulS said:
That's why I like the Honda one, it's almost plug and play plus it turns on the heat or AC automatically.
Click to expand...

My cars are old enough that you can just leave the AC switch engaged or the heat turned on high :wink2:
 
Thanks for all the feedback. We decided to go with a Compustar remote that utilizes the cars own fob for starting (you just hit one of the buttons three times to autostart), and adding the DroneMobile smartphone option so you can start it, lock it or unlock it from anywhere and know its status at any time. All that for 2/3 the cost of what the dealer wanted to charge us for a basic two-way remote start.
 
This is why we normally refer people to the installers and let them work it out. I don't normally mark up outside vendors and it's simpler for them to schedule it between the two of them. I don't see the need to mark up such a low cost item and **** off the customer to make $75 bucks! :D

LDJones said:
I just talked to the dealer, again. They said they don't offer the Honda product because they feel it's inferior to the third-party products. He then said that the $399 MSRP was the Honda price, but that "after our markeup and installation it's more than the third-party products which work better."

"Markup" on MSRP?? WTF??! Geez these guys are slimeballs!
Click to expand...
 
LDJones said:
Thanks for all the feedback. We decided to go with a Compustar remote that utilizes the cars own fob for starting (you just hit one of the buttons three times to autostart), and adding the DroneMobile smartphone option so you can start it, lock it or unlock it from anywhere and know its status at any time. All that for 2/3 the cost of what the dealer wanted to charge us for a basic two-way remote start.
Click to expand...

Sounds like a good deal, I hope it works well for you. You are going to love the remote starter, just make sure you shut your windshield wipers off the night before if it is going to ice or snow.
 
Around here almost all of these devices are illegal due to "puffing" laws against vehicles running with no one present.

Not that anybody cares nor stops installing them. Haha.
 
LDJones said:
Thanks for all the feedback. We decided to go with a Compustar remote that utilizes the cars own fob for starting (you just hit one of the buttons three times to autostart), and adding the DroneMobile smartphone option so you can start it, lock it or unlock it from anywhere and know its status at any time. All that for 2/3 the cost of what the dealer wanted to charge us for a basic two-way remote start.
Click to expand...
Jonesy -
When you use the app, how does the signal get to the car? Do you have to get cell service for the car for the app to work?
 
LDJones said:
Thanks for all the feedback. We decided to go with a Compustar remote that utilizes the cars own fob for starting (you just hit one of the buttons three times to autostart), and adding the DroneMobile smartphone option so you can start it, lock it or unlock it from anywhere and know its status at any time. All that for 2/3 the cost of what the dealer wanted to charge us for a basic two-way remote start.
Click to expand...

Which model allows use of OEM key fob? Or do all compustar models allow it?
 
Jim_CAK said:
Jonesy -
When you use the app, how does the signal get to the car? Do you have to get cell service for the car for the app to work?
Click to expand...
All of the cellphone based remote starters use a cellular modem and associated data service. In most cases the data service is provided by a third party for a fairly low monthly fee (like $3-5). This is unrelated to getting cell service for a car that can act as a cellular data terminal.
 
I got a 2015 Toyota Highlander a few months ago. The dealer wanted to throw in the factory remote starter for free but I declined. I had one on my 2012 Highlander which I got for free also because the only car that they found in the area with the options that I wanted also included the factory remote starter. It sucked big time. There was no cell phone option, just a standard 400ft (yeah... riiiight) range, which was more like 100 feet at best. And the built in security features were the worst. It's supposed to shut off after 20 minutes, but I would come out after 10 and it would be off some days. And if it was still running, once I unlocked the doors, the engine shut off and you had to start it back up. That's stupid. I had a VIPER remote starter years ago on a Honda Accord and when you got to the car, you opened the door with the alarm, got in, put the key in the ignition, pressed the brake pedal, turn the key 2 notches, and drive off, engine never had to shut down. I hope that's how yours is. And now with smart key technology, it should be even easier, but Toyota is doing it ass backwards, hope your starter is smarter. Good luck.

BTW- yesterday, my CFI (who finished me up in Oct) got his ATP and is done training for the CRJ 200 and waiting for his 700/900 certification. He's doing his IOE (I think that's what it's called) soon. Reminded me of your journey.
 
I've used the factory remote start on several Ford/GM/Nissan vehicles and never had to do anything but get in and insert the key (on the non-keyless models).
 
I have an Astrostart on a manual transmission car. It requires you to unlock the door with the remote starter and turn the key two notches if you want the engine running. It is equipped with a number of interlocks designed to keep the car from driving off by itself and that is one of them.
 
gismo said:
All of the cellphone based remote starters use a cellular modem and associated data service. In most cases the data service is provided by a third party for a fairly low monthly fee (like $3-5). This is unrelated to getting cell service for a car that can act as a cellular data terminal.
Click to expand...

THanks - I wondered what the cost is. I have a company car (Dodge) that has remote start and I love it but there is no cellular option. I have to be line of site.
Where my office use to be - I could start it before I left the building. Where I am at now, I am on top of the car before I can get it to fire up.
 
Got the CompuStar installed today with the DroneMobile option. It uses the Verizon Wireless network which costs about $40/yr when purchasing a three year deal. The app is pretty slick, letting you lock/unlock the doors and start the engine from anywhere, as well as giving you two-way confirmation of the status of things. I'm thinking of adding it to the CompuStar in my vehicle so I can start the engine when taxiing in at MSP! The app lets you manage multiple vehicles easily.

It has a GPS that can be used with their premium option to locate your vehicle anywhere. If I had a teenager d take advantage of that in a heartbeat! It can rat them out if speeding or going places you've blacklisted! The ultimate Big Brother.
 
Jim_CAK said:
THanks - I wondered what the cost is. I have a company car (Dodge) that has remote start and I love it but there is no cellular option. I have to be line of site.
Where my office use to be - I could start it before I left the building. Where I am at now, I am on top of the car before I can get it to fire up.
Click to expand...
Cellular isn't the only long range option. Many aftermarket remote starters are good for at least several hundred yards (most claim 1 or 2 miles) and some of them have two-way radio so you can verify that the engine's running (and in some cases read the interior or engine temp) on the remote. There's no monthly charge for this type of system.
 
gismo said:
Cellular isn't the only long range option. Many aftermarket remote starters are good for at least several hundred yards (most claim 1 or 2 miles) and some of them have two-way radio so you can verify that the engine's running (and in some cases read the interior or engine temp) on the remote. There's no monthly charge for this type of system.
Click to expand...

1 or 2 miles if both, you and the car are suspended in radio-wave free ether.

From an upper floor into the open parking lot it works about 300 yards. If the car is in the steel parking deck, it works only if the vehicle is in the front 1/2 of the structure, pretty much limited to line of sight.

To start a car in the employee lot at MSP from the terminal (and long enough to melt the ice off), you need a cellular system.
 
LDJones said:
Got the CompuStar installed today with the DroneMobile option. It uses the Verizon Wireless network which costs about $40/yr when purchasing a three year deal. The app is pretty slick, letting you lock/unlock the doors and start the engine from anywhere, as well as giving you two-way confirmation of the status of things. I'm thinking of adding it to the CompuStar in my vehicle so I can start the engine when taxiing in at MSP! The app lets you manage multiple vehicles easily.

It has a GPS that can be used with their premium option to locate your vehicle anywhere. If I had a teenager d take advantage of that in a heartbeat! It can rat them out if speeding or going places you've blacklisted! The ultimate Big Brother.
Click to expand...

Sounds like OnStar remote link
 
ktup-flyer said:
Sounds like OnStar remote link
Click to expand...

Similar, I'm sure.

Okay....so a story: I was impressed by the capabilities of the DroneMobile that I installed in my wife's new Honda, so I had that module added to my her old van which I'm now driving as my "airport car".

I pulled into the gate this morning after an overnight stand-up, pulled out my phone and told it to start my van after noting my battery was at 12.4v and the interior temp was 3.7 degrees! We finished the post-flight checks, I did my walk-around, grabbed my bag and headed for the car, which involves a hike, a tram ride, another hike, then a wait for the commuter rail between terminals, then a hike through the parking ramp. There sat my van, nice and toasty warm waiting for me! Love it.

So a few minutes ago my wife calls me: "I tried to use my phone to start the car and when I got out there it wasn't running."

I thought that was strange. So I grabbed my phone to look at the activity log. There were no logged items for the Honda. But there was for my van. Sure enough, I look outside and there sits my van running!!

Oops! So it appears the technology works just fine...and does exactly what you TELL it to do, not what you WANT it to do!

I guess some remedial training is in order.
 
LDJones said:
Similar, I'm sure.

Okay....so a story: I was impressed by the capabilities of the DroneMobile that I installed in my wife's new Honda, so I had that module added to my her old van which I'm now driving as my "airport car".

I pulled into the gate this morning after an overnight stand-up, pulled out my phone and told it to start my van after noting my battery was at 12.4v and the interior temp was 3.7 degrees! We finished the post-flight checks, I did my walk-around, grabbed my bag and headed for the car, which involves a hike, a tram ride, another hike, then a wait for the commuter rail between terminals, then a hike through the parking ramp. There sat my van, nice and toasty warm waiting for me! Love it.

So a few minutes ago my wife calls me: "I tried to use my phone to start the car and when I got out there it wasn't running."

I thought that was strange. So I grabbed my phone to look at the activity log. There were no logged items for the Honda. But there was for my van. Sure enough, I look outside and there sits my van running!!

Oops! So it appears the technology works just fine...and does exactly what you TELL it to do, not what you WANT it to do!

I guess some remedial training is in order.
Click to expand...

I love my remote starter, was at the Patriots game Saturday night, started my car before the walk back from the stadium, nice and toasty by the time I got there.

Just be careful that you don't mistakenly use the starter while the car is in your garage (if you have one).
 
FWIW my wife has a "maxi-Mini" 4-door. I wanted to get her a remote start for Xmas 2013 and was told that because of all the antitheft computer logic in the key fob, the only way we could do it was if we left the key fob in the car! So, no remote start for her. :confused:
 
airdale said:
FWIW my wife has a "maxi-Mini" 4-door. I wanted to get her a remote start for Xmas 2013 and was told that because of all the antitheft computer logic in the key fob, the only way we could do it was if we left the key fob in the car! So, no remote start for her. :confused:
Click to expand...

The technology has evolved rapidly. The Honda is keyless, only requiring the fob to be nearby for it to work. The CompuStar remote starter I installed works just fine without requiring the fob be nearby. The only minor issue is that when started with the remote, it will stop the engine when I activate the keyless entry via the fob since there's no way to transition from a remote starter start to a fob activated start, if that makes sense. It's a minor issue.

I do like the fob technology, allowing me to enter a locked car, start it, drive it, then exit and lock it without touching a key or remote!
 
LDJones said:
The technology has evolved rapidly. ...
Click to expand...
Yeah. I just threw that post in as a warning that some cars have issue with remote starters. Her key fob is kind of a flattened egg but smaller. It must be snapped into a little fob nest on the dashboard before the car can be started (with a button). In addition to the anti-theft function, the fob also contains driver preference setting (daylight headlights, automatic locking of doors in motion, etc.) so each driver gets a somewhat customized setup when he/she snaps their fob into the car.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top