> > That price sounds ridiculously cheap. I hunted around and 300 about a
> > year ago was the best I found so be careful to check that seller out
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> happy and the aggrivation will drive you to rip it out. Happened to my Bro
> in law.
> I found the alarm for $189.00 here: http://tinyurl.com/54onn . Tell me
> what
> you guys think. They say it's a brand new unit and all items they ship
> are
> verified to ensure there are no missing pieces. Thanks for the help so
> far.
Not much info at that site. Sounds like it might be legit.
The big thing about putting the darn thing in is hooking it up.
I had mine installed by a pro and it took 4 hours. When I asked why it took
so long they told me that there were so many different vehicles and many
varations on each and each varation has it's own map. You also have many
options as well. If you install it yourself be sure to make solid tight
connections. After checking to be sure everything works as you want. Solder
the connections to keep them from corroding. If one thing fails you might
not be able to get your truck home.
I know I was at a truck show a couple of years back and there was a truck
in the parking lot with a viper system in it. When you got within 3 feet
of the truck the system said in a very loud digital voice "Please step away
from the truck, it is protected by a viper security system". I thought that
was kinda cool. Mine don't do that but it can if I want it to.
Good luck
Willy
The site looks good to me...that doesn't *prove* it's legit, but I've
seen some that pretty much looked so bad I couldn't believe they were
legit. :) You might try calling their 877 number to make sure they
have a human there, and then use your credit card to pay for the stuff
so you can fight 'em that way if things go sour.
A buddy of mine used to do professional installs at a shop in Houston
(for 7 years) and he swore by mechanical connections (crimp
connectors). Willy's right about corrosion but as long as you're not
driving this thing in the surf you should be okay, I think. What my
best friend and I do when we install these things (between the two of
us we've done remote start and remote keyless on 6 vehicles in the last
few years, all our own vehicles) is to slip some heat-shrink over the
wire, cut the insulation off the crimp connector, crimp the bare
connector on the wires, and then slip the heat-shrink over the
union/connection and shrink it down. No troubles so far on any of our
vehicles. The heat-shrink tube should help cut down on the corrosion
possibilities. The most important thing about using crimp connections
is not to shower down on it with all your might; a good firm grip on
the crimper is sufficient; if you really hit 'er hard you might sever
some of the conductors in the wire, making a weaker connection.
Other tips include. FUSE IT FUSE IT FUSE IT. :) Put a fuse on all
power supply lines (where you get power from the vehicle for anything;
the alarm unit, battery feed for horn, lights, or whatever else you get
a power wire for. Fuses are cheap and I'm convinced that about half
the cars you see on the side of the road on fire are because somebody
installed some aftermarket electronics and didn't fuse it and it got
across something.... That wire from the power supply (battery,
ignition circuit, run circuit, or accessory circuit) is looking to
become toaster wire...all you have to do is have it wear through the
insulation on something rough you didn't see and BAM red-hot wire
running through your dash and wherever else you ran it. :( Is it
likely to happen? Maybe. Is it cheap and fast and easy to put a fuse
on it and not have to worry about it? Yes. :) Fuse it as close to the
power supply as you can.
Another tip, make sure you know whether the output on the alarm/remote
start is high current or low current. For instance, I thought the
output for dome illumination on the 791XV was high current...it's not,
and the dome illumination circuit in my truck is high current...so I
hooked it up and it burned out that part of the head unit. :(
Fortunately the shop I bought it from went ahead and warranted it back
to the manufacturer for me...but be careful. Relays are your friend.
Relays rock. You can get all the relays you need from most any parts
store; some stock them on the hang pegs by the after-market lights and
such. You can also ask for a horn relay for a 98 Dodge Ram 1500 (most
of the '94-'01 Dodge trucks use the same relay for most everything, but
giving the parts monkey a specific year and make and model will avoid
confusion on his part).
Here's a great site with info on installing things like this and some
great info on setting up relay packs to control the various door lock
circuits: www.the12volt.com
You can get wiring colors for your particular vehicle here:
www.bulldogsecurity.com (click on Vehicle Wiring Diagrams, then scroll
down on that page and click the big text about diagrams).
The only part of the install that I remember that might leave you stuck
somewhere (besides the time it's torn up during the install <grin>) is
that you cut the ignition wire to splice in a relay that acts as 1) the
ignition bypass/kill for when the alarm is armed AND 2) acts as the
anti-grind device (preventing you from hitting the starter when the
engine is running in auto-start. I'd not be too worried about it. 1)
do it on a weekend you have free, 2) have a buddy around for moral
support and also to get a second opinion from if you have questions.
I got tired of having to go to Wal-mart and buy crimp connectors in
their paltry selection, winding up with a boat-load of one size or type
and needing more of another and having to buy more of both, tired of
hunting heat-shrink tubing, and tired of not having the stuff always
here so I hunted around and found these folks:
https://www.allelectronics.com/
I loaded up on crimp connectors and found their prices to be good, the
selection excellent, and I was pleased with the order I placed. I
bought about 300 bucks worth of connectors from them and bought a big
tackle box to store it all in.
Oh, on the relays, you can also clean up on relays at the wreckin'
yards. If you are going for some other parts, grab a couple of
handfuls of relays and fuses; often they'll let that stuff go for no
addtional cost to the price of whatever big items you're there for. :)
HTH.
Good luck.
--HC