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Remote Car Starter Myths
Remote car starters are probably one of the least understood products that a 12 volt retailer sells. There seems to be a lot of bad information floating around. I wanted to take a few minutes and dispell some of the myths about remote car starters:
1. Remote Car Starters Will Void My New Car Warranty
Nothing could be further from the truth! The Magnuson Moss Act forbids a vehicle manufacturer from doing this. We’ve covered this a million times so click on the link above to learn more.
2. Remote Car Starters are Bad For My Car
I have never found any information to support this. In fact, many top mechanics would agree that allowing the car to warm up for several minutes before running can extend the life of your motor.
3. Remote Car Starters Waste Gas
Actually, as a tie in with number 2 above, warming up your car can actually improve your gas mileage. When you hop in you car on a very cold day and just take off, your engine is working overtime and consuming more gas. Warming it up and thinning the oil for a few minutes can improve your mileage. And isn’t it easier to press a button to warm it up instead of going out in the frigid cold.
4. I Have a Manual Transmission. I Cannot Get A Car Starter
In the past, I would have agreed. Today’s Remote Car Starter technology has come a long way. Our starters employ a very sophisticated, yet easy to use, method to prevent the vehicle from starting while in gear. If you have a manual transmission vehicle, you can enjoy the same comfort and convenience as those with automatics. To learn more, read this post about remote car starters in manual transmission vehicles.
5. I Don’t Need a long Range Remote. I Park My Car in My Driveway
The fact that you park in your driveway at home is all well and good, but what about when you are at the mall….or the movies… or a restaraunt…. You might need to park 100 yards away or more. Don’t you want to take advantage of your remote starter all the time? Of course you do.
6. I Have Keyless Entry Already. I Don’t Need That Added To My Starter Installation.
Well… You probably do. Your factory remote has probably less than 100 feet of range. All of our remote starters have at least 800 feet of range. So if you are already in line at the movies and can’t remember if you locked your doors, don’t worry. Just press the lock button on your remote starter remote and you can rest assured that your car is locked. Not to mention all of the other convenience features that you can add to your starter installation.
7. My Key Has a “Chip” in it so I Cannot Get A Remote Car Starter
Almost every vehicle key made anymore has a “chip” in it. That chip is designed to prevent your car from being hotwired. A remote starter essentially “hot wires” your car in a very controlled way. So in order to make a starter work, we need to fool your car into believing that the key is in the ignition. Our starter manufacturer offers hundreds of solutions for almost every vehicle on the road. In most cases, it is a matter of installing an additional “bypass module.” This module replicates the actions of that chip, thus allowing the car to start. Pretty simple. huh?
8. My Cousin’s Best Friend’s Uncle Can Install a Remote Starter For Me
DON’T DO IT!!!! Today’s vehicles are very sophisticated and integrating a remote car starter to them is a very complicated procedure. We have gone through countless hours of training and have access to world class technical support if we need it. Can “Uncle Louie” make that claim. Probably not. While he might be an excellent mechanic, remote starters are a whole different animal. You wouldn’t bring your car to us for body work, would you? Of course not. You would take it to an expert like Wentz’s Auto Body. When it comes to remote car starters, Mobile Edge is the expert.
9. I Don’t Need A Remote Starter. I Park in My Garage
Oh yeah?.. Do you park in a garage at work? Or your local eatery? Or what about the “garage” at the movie theater? Does your best friend let you park in his/her garage when you visit? You will get more use out of your remote car starter away from home than at home.
10. I Can Only Use My Car Starter For A Few Months A Year?
Why? You will quickly find that your remote starter is just as useful in the dog days of summer as it is on a frigid Winter day. Your remote car starter will cool off your vehicle on hot summer days also. Just remember to leave the AC on when you get out of your car. Your Automatic Car Starter will do the rest!
Summary:
A lot of myths circulate about remote car starters. The main reason for this is that there are a lot of shade tree mechanics and poor quality products out there. Mobile Edge has been doing this for over 15 years and we sell and install only the very best starters made. Stop in and let us show you how affordable a remote car starter can be.
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Great post, never thought of a few of those. Going to look for a remote starter now.
Can I remove the remote car starter to put it in another vehicle?
Yes, but you may need additional or different parts for your next vehicle.
I had a remote starter on my Dodge Intrepid. Loved it, but I also went through 3 starters. I have heard some people that know more about cars than I do (which isn’t hard) say that remote starters are hard on a car’s starter. Is there anything to that? I want to put a remote starter on our new car but I don’t want to be shelling out for new starters every other year.
Lee…. With a quality remote starter, starting a car is no different than starting it with the key. Some, low end remote starters (or ones that are installed incorrectly) will crank the engine longer than necessary and this can cause a wear on your starter. My recommendation to you is to find the best shop in your area and have them install one for you. We sell Compustar and have never had any problems with them.
We have a 1999 Dodge Ram pickup. It is a diesel. Is it ok to install an automatic starter in a diesel pickup?
Absolutely! Just because you have a diesel doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy all of the benefits of a remote car starter! Find a reputable, local shop and i would bet that they can do the job right for you.
I am considering having a remote starter installed by my dealership in my 2007 Nissan Maxima. I have been doing some reading regarding remote starters in Maximas and have repeatedly read that once the car has been started by the remote starter, you must actually turn the car off completely and restart it to drive. My car has a “Smart Key” so you don’t have to put a key in the ignition to start it. Is this how remote starters work in these cars or is this the result of a faulty installation?
Won’t the bypass unit make the immobiliser useless? My car insurance requires an immobiliser.
Karen – There are a few different ways to do your car but, The safest way to do your car is that the remote start shuts down when you open the door and then you restart the car as normal when you get in it. There is a way to do it that the car stays running and does not need to be restarted but if you do not do it the right way it will cause warning lights on your dash to light up and need to be reset by the dealer. So we have found the previous mentioned method to work best.
Nathan – Great Question! The bypass only does it’s thing when the vehicle is being remote started. At all other times, the immobilizer is fully functional. Essentially, the bypass fools the car into believing that the key is present, but it only does this when the remote starter gives the command to start. So I would not imagine that any insurance company would see this as an issue.
I have a remote starter installed in my 2009 Nissan Frontier. In order to install it they had to take my spare key and place it in the immobilizer bypass unit. Now the dealer wants $100 for a new key…is it possible just to have a key cut that will work since there is already another key next to the ignition>
Ken – That is another great question. Assuming that the immobilizer bypass was installed properly, it is only coming into play when the remote starter is starting the car. All other times it is out of the loop. When you are using a key, that key needs to be a programmed key. So you will need to get a programmed key from your dealer. Sorry , I know they are not cheap!