shaiss Are you nuts? That is a lease vehicle , you do not own it . At turn in time you could be financially penalized for any extra wear and tear and modifications. Do not even take a chance on voiding the warranty. Also what if the EBAY remote starter is junk and sets your vehicle on fire?
Follow up. I leased a pickup for my work one time. At turn in time a printout was made and the truck checked to make sure it was equipped just as it was when I leased it.
A Subaru remote engine start kit is $399 (for 2014 model year, 2015 catalog is not online). The balance is labor. There is a Subaru kit on Ebay for $365 but it is not worth the trouble, you may be able to get a 10% discount from your dealer on the kit/labor.
Those cheap kits you are looking at are not the same. They don’t show the control module, antenna or wiring. On the Best Buy site it states an additional by application installation kit may be needed, $5-$300. In the past I found one of the vehicle keys inside the control module on a Viper system. It is needed to signal the cars immobilizer to allow it to start. The OEM system can produce the signal without sacrificing an expensive key.
The only use for a remote starter in my opinion is to start the car from a distance and warm it up; a process which is basically unnecessary and at an idle takes a comparative eon to do.
The only other advantage is that “gee whiz, look what I can do…” factor.
Considering the expense and potential downsides of a remote I honestly don’t see why anyone would want it.
The best and fastest way to warm a car up in the winter is to start it up, allow it to idle for 5-10 seconds, and go.
Six hundred bucks would have a better purpose in life being invested in a mutual fund instead of on a widget that would bring 20 bucks on eBay if it were removed and sold the following year.
The only excuse that I can perceive for a remote start system is if somebody wants to be able to get into a car with the heater already putting-out heat when they enter the car in the winter, or if they want to be able to get into a pre-cooled car in the summer. However, I would prefer a few brief minutes of discomfort to the problems that can result from these devices.
All, thanks again for the replie . If I do get the starter I’ll go through the dealer.
Re why. Convince. Call me picky, but I lime the idea of the car being 72 degrees when I get into it at 6am Or 5pm when I go home.
Another point albeit small. I’m a nerd, and the idea of sticking a key in the ignition is outdated to me. I could have upgraded to the push button start, but that would have been am extra 2k.
Anyhow, thanks all for the feedback. I’m definitely not going aftermarket.
@shaiss … Yes.
"the idea of sticking a key in the ignition is outdated to me"
I believe that you will have to suffer the…disgrace…of being “outdated”.
As soon as you put your foot on the brake pedal, the engine will stop.
Then, you will have to use the ignition key to start it again in order to drive away.
This is the way that these systems work, in order to prevent a thief from driving away in it.
Our Factory Option Remote Starters Operate As Described By VDCdriver. A Key Is Required. However One Needs Only To Insert The Key And Turn It To “On,” Before Driving The Car, And Does Not Require A Restart.
I don’t have remote start on my car. I’m like the others who think this option is somewhat frivolous, but we do get many days when the weather conditions cause obscured visibility (frozen precipitation on glass) and actual ambient temperatures below or near zero. My wife stands at the door and starts her car. The heat output in just a few minutes makes the car either safe to drive or easier to prepare to drive.
The car automatically shuts down if left remote-started for more than a few minutes, making damaging an unattended car nearly impossible.
My wife’s on a tighter schedule and on those cold, dark mornings, the remote floats her boat.
CSA
Some of the folks at work have remote start. Our building is far enough away from the parking area that you have to be more than halfway out to your car for it to be in range. I chuckle when I see someone walk up to their car and trigger their remote start when they’ve almost reached their car. Seems almost as useful as going to your buddy’s house, then sitting outside and calling him on the phone.
@CSA, the ones I’ve seen only require a restart if the engine is killed by stepping on the brake. Otherwise it’s turn the key on and go.
“the ones I’ve seen only require a restart if the engine is killed by stepping on the brake”
Don’t all modern cars require you to step on the brake in order to put the transmission into Drive?
" Don’t all modern cars require you to step on the brake in order to put the transmission into Drive? "
VDCdriver, I believe you’re correct. Since the key is inserted and turned to “on” in the idling remote-started vehicle before the brake is applied, restarting isn’t necessary. After the key is in one can apply the brake, put the vehicle in gear, and drive away without restarting the engine.
CSA
they make remotes now that go from iphone to cell tower to vehicle to start. it then verifies engine in running. my wife wants one as she lives in a metro area and rides the bus after parking in a lot to proceed downtown.
this allows her to start it and have it warm before she arrives. i don’t like it cuz there is a monthly subscription too!!
tech costs money.
“tech costs money.”
I’m a bit on the conservative side of (cheap) thrifty. Keeping that in mind, there are places to save and places not to save. A happy wife is a happy marriage.
Besides that, I’ll assume the wife is commuting to and from work. The key word here is “work.” That’s a good thing. I’d support it.
CSA
I have a remote start in my truck…none in my wife’s.
I still must walk out in the cold to start hers…may as well start mine then too !
So my remote start is kind of an expnsive toy now…unless they both have it.
PLUS…
When spend all that on a car you’re giving back ?
Now if you were buying it …and keeping it ?
( I have an 08, 06, and…a 79 ! )
I bought the car Saturday. No remote start. This week’s going to be around 4 degrees on Wednesday when I head to work. That’ll be the real test of how quick the car heats up.
Bought and lease are not the same thing.
“That’ll be the real test of how quick the car heats up.”
Just remember that “the car” heats up faster when it is driven–slowly.
In other words, idling the car for an extended period of time will raise the temperature of the engine, but it won’t raise the temperature of the transmission fluid, the differential oil, or the wheel bearing lube.
My method on really cold days is to allow the car to idle for about 2 minutes.
Then, I set out slowly, and I circle the block at least once before venturing out onto the adjacent county road where I have to accelerate rapidly into traffic.
By driving a couple of extra minutes at 25-30 mph, the engine, transmission, differential, and wheel bearings are all more able to deal with rapid acceleration than if I simply idled the car in my driveway for 15 minutes.
-14F (14 Degrees Below Zero) This A.M. Wife Used Her Remote Start Before Going To Her Car. My Car Doesn’t Have It, But Tell Me You Wouldn’t Have Used Yours If It Was Standard Equipment On Your Impala.
CSA