Best Improvement: Remote Starter

[jaclawn]

Geoff said that his best improvement for this season was having a yard guy. Well, I am not at that point, but my best improvement was getting a remote starter for MY truck. It is nice to walk out to the truck, and just have to brush off the windows, and then hop into a nice warm truck. It helps to turn the heater on before hand.

 

[SlimJim Z71]

I used to install those things. I had one on my 1995 Pontiac Grand Am GT. They are great! I don't think I ever started the car with the key after I got it. I've been meaning to put one in my Z71, an Avital one with something like a quater-mile of range on the transmitter. We have to walk quite a long walk from the employee parking lot to the building at work. I miss it. Maybe after I get paid from my accounts, I'll order one. Just make sure if you park the truck in the garage, there's NO CHANCE of that button getting pressed. I had a habit of leaving my keys in my pants pocket, and I would look out the window and my car would be running....

-Tim

 

[John DiMartino]

I have done a bunch of them too,have them in all my trucks,even the 84 s10.

 

[Psyclopse]

I've always wondered (but never checked)- do they make those things for diesels? It would have to know to wait on the glowplug cycle. I'd consider getting one if it was available.

 

[Eric ELM]

I saw a remote starter at Sams for $50.00. Can anyone tell me if they are worth putting on? Tim, how much would you charge me to put one on my F250? Email me if your available to do this and interested. Thanks

 

[SlimJim Z71]

Yes they do have 'em for diesels. There's usually a switch, or a program function that will tell the remote starter unit to wait 5-10 seconds until it will crank the engine. But BEWARE!!! Once you get one, you'll never want to be without it!

-Tim

 

[SlimJim Z71]

It's been a while since I've done one. Don't get me wrong, they're not all that hard, except on some of the newer vehicles that have things like transponders in the keys, key sense wires, bulb test wires, VAT systems, etc. Tell ya what, let me do the one in my truck (hopefully soon!) and I'll see how that goes and let you know.

I wouldn't recommend getting one from Sams. Some of the cheaper ones tend to be of "lesser quality." The wires aren't as thick as they should be (yes, I have seen some that have burned a car to the ground), they don't last as long, and they develop problems. If it were me, I would spend the money to get a good one. If this thing is gonna be starting your truck for you, without you needing to be nearby, you want it to work properly. You don't want it overcranking the engine, or leaving glow plugs on, or something like that.

Some good brands are Avital, Pursuit (Audiovox), Clifford, Crimestopper, and Code. Call around for pricing, both installed prices, and just parts prices.

-Tim

 

[Yardworks]

Eric, I bought the same one from Sam's that you are talking about last year. It's still working great, no problems. It took about 2 1/2 hours to put in. That was the first time I had installed one. I think I could install one now in about an hour.

 

[Deere John]

Yes, they do make them for diesels. I had one on my last '97 6.5 diesel - worked great if I used 0-W-40 oil in the winter. Otherwise, regular oil would be too thick -- the starter would cam out before it would start. The shut-off, in otherwords, was too sensitive to allow it to crank until the rig fired up on all cylinders. It worked great when the truck was plugged in. I loved it all-year round anyway.

One other thing - don't expect your diesel to heat up like a gas engine does when idling. Diesels inject very little fuel at idle, and the heat comes from the burning of the fuel. But what you do accomplish is to warm up the block, oil and turbo so that it is ready to go when you jump in and hit the hoist button.

Ok, another benefit of remote starters is that you can program them (most) to allow the vehicle to idle a while before turning off automatically. I used that after working the truck really hard - trailer pulling, etc. I could park, set the timer, get out right away and lock the truck. The idling would properly cool the block and the turbo after a hard run, and then shut the fuel off.

Ya, I'm talking myself into getting another one now...