We are asked this question all the time. The short answer is: Sure you can! But I am confident that you want more information than that! Read on.
A Little History
We used to stay away from remote car starters on manual shift cars. Back in the day, there were all kinds of methods to do a remote start in a standard shift. One manufacturer had little lights that you had to line up to ensure that the shifter was in the neutral position. What a joke that was. There was nothing out there that appeared to be both safe and reliable.
Today, installations in standard transmission vehicles make up about 20% of our car starter business. So what changed our minds? A couple of years ago, our remote starter vendor came up with a very easy to use, reliable and safe method. That method has been improved upon and today, is very foolproof.
What’s the Big Deal?
There are several issues with installing a remote starter in stick shift. First of all, you must have the emergency brake on. Second, the vehicle must be in neutral. If either one of these conditions does not exist during the remote start sequence, the result could be deadly. The car could buck forward and roll down a hill. Not good.
So in order to make a remote starter function safely, it needs to be able to monitor both the E brake and the shifter.
How do we do that?
The first one is simple. Most vehicles have a wire attached to the emergency brake. If the brake is not engaged, the remote car starter realizes this and will not let the vehicle start. But what about the shifter?
In most cases, the shifter is a manual device and there is not a wire that can tell the remote starter without a doubt that the car is in neutral.
Our vendor has a very effective way of doing this. First of all, when you are ready to get out of your car, you need to engage the emergency brake. You do this before you shut off the car. This is a sign to the remote car starter to keep the car running even after you turn off the key. Next you actually turn off the key and the car stays running. Now you make sure that the car is in neutral and get out of the car. When you close the door, the car shuts off. Why go through all of that? If the car is still running when you get out of the car, obviously it had to be in neutral.
When you want to remote start your vehicle, simply press the button on the remote. As long as no-one has opened the door since you exited, the car will start. If the door was opened, the car will not start. This is a safety feature to ensure that no one has gotten in the vehicle and put it back in gear. Opening the door interrupts the specific series of events that needs to happen in order to start the car remotely. Once the door is opened, you need to repeat the process outlined above before remote car starting.
We feel that this is a very easy, effective and safe way to add a remote car starter to your vehicle. Please stop in anytime for a free estimate on a remote car starter for your standard shift vehicle.
I have 2003 Subaru Legacy 5 speed and would love an automatic starter, but I have to push the clutch to the floor in order to start the car even if the gearshift is in neutral. Can a remote car starter be installed in this vehicle?
Thanks
Absolutely!
I have a 2007 Ford Ranger, that is a manual transmission. I was wondering if i could put an automatic car starter in it.
Absolutely! Find yourself a great local shop and they can do it… And if Mobile Edge is within 100 miles… Well.. We’re worth the drive!!!!
Hi I bought one today under advice from a professional, but upon reading the manual I realized it says ” not for convertibles or soft tops” well my car is a vw 88 cabriolet.! Also my car is a manual and he installed it as an automatic because my emergency brake signal is ” sticky” and will sometimes flicker when not engaged- the brake works though….should I be worried?
I can’t find answers to this question anywhere! Please help.
I have no way of knowing the specific details of this install. Perhaps they took other precautions. Perhaps the brand that you had installed has different options that allow for safe installations in these cases (though I’ve never heard of anything like that)… That being said, based on the information that you provided, it sounds to be very unsafe. This would never be the way that we would do it. And I’m a little embarrassed that someone in my industry would do this. Gives us all a bit of a black eye. What you need to do is go back to that shop and ask them to explain exactly how this vehicle is safe and how ALL of the required safety functions perform properly. Be nice but firm and don’t take “well it just is” for an answer…. Make them show you. If they cannot, I would politely ask for them to take it out and refund all of your money. Injuring someone because of this potentially bad install would be horrible to live with.
I have a 2007 G6 and I was wondering about a automatic starter. With my car it has to be in reverse to remove the key so netural and e brake isnt an option. I figure the answer to my ? is no the automatic starter wouldn’t work but I could be wrong so will it work?
I haven’t run across that before. Is this a defect in your switch, or the way it was from factory?
Hi. I was wondering the same thing. I too have that exact vehicle. I’ve been told you cant put a remote start in our car. With having to leave the key in the ignition only invites a thief to take it.
That is normal for that vehicle. There should be an electronic switch to allow the key to be released when the shifter is in reverse. We should be able to recreate that scenario once the system has activated reservation mode by setting the E-brake. It would require some additional diagnostic and wiring, but it can be done.
hi! i have a 92 5.0 with a manual transmission i was wondering if i can put an automatic starter on it ??
Xavier, assuming it is fuel injected, yes you can! Stop in anytime with the vehicle and we can provide you with a firm price quote.
I have a 2009 manual Mazda3. Was thinking about an auto starter. Worried about hassle and safety. Would it work in this car? Is it worth it?
I cannot see any reason why it would not work in your vehicle. We feel that they are very safe however we would always tell you not to do anything unless you are 100% comfortable with it. Stop in with the vehicle when you have a chance and we can go over the unit in detail and answer any questions.
I have a turbo timer installed on my 2010 Evo X. How will the “sequence” work, as when I get out of my car and shut the door my vehicle is supposed to stay on until the timer counts down. Can you use the remote start in conjunction with a turbo timer? I don’t see how it can work but if it can, I’d definitely be interested in it.
That is a great question. I’m not sure if this would be possible, but we would be happy to look into it. Stop in with your vehicle and let us take a look at exactly how your turbo timer operates and perhaps we can make this work. Thanks for the great comment and question.
I have a 1993 Toyota Tercel, manual transmission, 1.5 lt., 4 speed. Can I put a remote starter on it?
I can’t see any reason why we could not do that! Stop in with the vehicle at your convenience and we will look it over and quote you a price. Thanks for checking out our site!
I have a toyota vitz 2005, I’m from Venezuela, have a viper 5901, my car is with manual transmissions, in my country there is no installation for this type of alarm. please to help me with this function. where to install the neutral safety imput?
I’m not familiar with that vehicle so I cannot answer your question. I would look for a quality installer in your area and have them look over your vehicle.
hey i have a 2000 dodge ram 2500 with a cummins diesel in it 5 speed.. can it be installed in mine????
Absolutely! Stop in with the vehicle and we can look it over and give you a quote.
will this wok on a classic car to.
In theory, the manual transmission aspect of it will work, however we do not recommend remote starters on carbureted engines.
I have a 04 Cavalier 5 speed and well to start my car the clutch is required to be pressed down, am I still able to get a automatic start for it?
Absolutely! If installed properly this will work just fine.
Have a 2004 Sunfire with a standard transmission.
What model of a command start would you recommend. ?
I’m not familiar with Command Start, however I would look for a quality shop in your are to do the job… Use the Buying Guide that I’ve written as… well … a guide.!
i have a 2000 camaro stick shift would it work?
Absolutely. Find a qualified professional shop and they should be able to do the work for you.
I have 1989 Honda crx with a 5 speed tranny. It has problems starting sometimes does the remote start know to try to restart it if doesn’t start the first few cranks?
Yes they do… The starters will try up to three times to start the vehicle before giving up.
Will the remote start work on a 2008 Hyundai Accent? Manual.
Of course it will! The way we do it at Mobile Edge anyway!
Will the car begin to act funny later down the road(in a couple of years)? I would love to do this to my bf’s new car but if it malfunctions…. Well, I’ll have to think of another Christmas gift. Lol. (0.0)
Have you heard back from people that have had an auto starter installed into their manual?
Like anything else, if you get a quality product and have it installed by a professional, you should not have to worry. We have done hundreds of Manual Trans installs and have not had any issues.
Hey Mitch,
I drive a manual 1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse and installed a Bulldog remote starter in it 3 years ago. The install took all day but it has worked as advertised since I put it in.
The only problem is that the range is not the best as I simply have a 10 gauge wire running from the switched switch to the back of the car. Do you guys sell anything antenna or otherwise that I could incorporate with this install that would give me better range? Perhaps a remote with an antenna?
Thank you in advance for your response!
…..Matt
Matt, that is not a brand that we deal with so I won’t be able to help you. I would contact the manufacturer and see if they can give you any advice.
Thank you Mitch! Merry Christmas
hey i have 2001 honda accord lx sedan 4cyl. i know i can put automatic start on it but can you give me quote how much the cost?
thanks in advance..
Paul, if you are able to bring your vehicle to our location in Lehighton, PA, please fill out our estimate request for at http://www.mobileedgeonline.com/products/remote-car-starters/remote-car-starter-estimate-request-form/
I have a 96′ civic with automatic starter it’s a stick so I guess I left it on 1st and the car turned on an went about 5 meters and hit some stairs does this mean it was installed incorrectly!?
It would be impossible to tell what is wrong with your installation without taking a look at it. It would be our opinion that you should take this back to your installer and explain what happened. They should be able to assess your problem.
I drive a 2005 Civic Hybrid in Oregon. Obviously, I cannot make it to your shop for installation and I cannot find a local shop who is willing to do an install. Can you provide instructions to safely install remote start? With the car being a hybrid, the engine is usually ‘off when I take the key out of the ignition. Would that affect the shutdown and subsequent restart of the engine?
Thank you for having a safe way to install remote start on standard transmission cars. Now I will not settle for anything less than your setup.
Jake…. First of all, thanks for all the kind words… we try! I wish that I could support you with some installation help.. Unfortunately we do not offer installation advice, particularly for remote car starters. There is way too much liability involved. If we were offering advice, we would be somewhat responsible should a mistake happen… We have a tremendous amount of checks and balances involved when we do these jobs to ensure safety. What you really need to do is to find a quality shop that does excellent work. You may gladly put them in touch with us if they are unfamiliar with the process that we use. Currently, we recommend Compustar remote starters and you can use their dealer locator at http://www.compustar.com
Thanks again for the nice words.
I have a 1994 Jeep Wrangler 5spd is there a way I could get a remote start even if I dont have automatic locks or anything?
Yes, you can, but in order to do it the most secure way, you would need an additional part. The part would detect any motion with the vehicle. We require this on any “convertible” vehicles with standard trans that we would do a remote starter install on.
I drive a 2011 mazda 3, i had a remote starter put in a couple weeks ago and it seems to only work 1/10 times I try.
It says in this article that once you get out, and if someone opens the door again, the starter wont work.
question one, does the ebreak need to be at a certain point for it to activate because i do this constantly and my starter still wont work, (my car either turns off as soon i take my keys out, or the starter just doesnt start my car.
and
question two, i have two kids, so when i get out of my car and shut the door, i need to open my two back passenger doors to get my kids out, does this disarm the starter too?
Thanks
Jaime, unfortunately it is VERY difficult for me to offer any guidance on this since I do not know how it was installed, what brand, model, etc… I would HIGHLY recommend that you go back to the installing dealer and have them check it out ASAP. Not something that you want to wait on and the dealer that put it in should feel the same way… When done correctly, these devices are safe but it sounds like you may have something out of whack! Good luck.
If I remote start my manual transmission car will the engine shut off when I get to my car and open the door to get in? You say the system shuts off if the door is opened so does it shut off even when I’m getting in the car after I’ve remote started it?
Great question… No.. it will not shut off. When putting the vehicle into reservation mode, the unit is looking for the door to open and close at which time the vehicle shuts off. When remote starting the vehicle, this does not come into play and the vehicle will stay running. You get in, put the key in the ignition and turn it to the “on” position. Tap the brake and drie away. It’s that simple.
Hello I have a 90 5.0 lx mustang 5 speed, I want remote start and alarm im in detroit area any suggestions, brand place to install thanx
Tim, I do not personally know anyone in the area to recommend. As for a brand… At this time, Mobile Edge is extremely happy with the Compustar brand. We have been selling Compustar for several years and they are a top notch company. Go to http://www.Compustar.com and use their dealer locator to find some dealers in your area. VISIT THEM! Talk to the managers/owners… DO NOT BASE YOUR DECISION ON PRICE!!! (Sorry… I get passionate about this stuff)… Go to the place that impresses you… the place that you feel confident will do the job right. When buying a remote starter it is never a good idea to trust your business to the lowest bidder…