Hi all,

What are the good places in NoVA to have an alarm installed? I'm looking for a Clifford system. And I want it installed properly, and by a company that won't steal my car shortly after the install.

SC~

 

well, im getting my alarm installed this sat, I'll let you know how it goes..

it'll be a hornet 2-way, for 500 installed (including remote start)

 

I'm going to watch an alarm install in Laurel, MD at a shop called DSI this Sunday. That's not too far from NoVa (I live in Alexandria).

I'll make a follow-up post Sunday night or on Monday.

 

Yah, let me know how it all goes. I just want to go somewhere that employs full-time professionals to do the installs, not part-time high schoolers.

Thx,

SC~

 

well, here's my update as promised... my alarm is finally in after some hubbub, but its almost perfect now.. I took it in on saturday, and they had it most of the morning, hooking everything up, then they realize that the brain to the alarm was bad.. since I had had them special order the alarm i wanted, they didnt have a replacement on hand, so i had to bring it back in today so they could pop the new brain in and program it. took about half an hour. I really love the alarm, the only issue is that opening the trunk doesnt trigger the alarm, and it should, so theres a problem there.. I'll take it back to them soon, and it should be no problem to fix.

as for the quality of the job, the install is very clean, I had to have them point out the valet swithc, and tell me where they put everything b/c i saw no trace of it. they wouldnt install a working remote start due to liability, but they did wire it up, and left the neutral safety wire unplugged, so i could only route it through my own neutral safety switch, and have it work. They bypassed the clutch only during remote start (you still need to press it when starting it manually), and they bypassed the engine immobilizer during remote start. the 2-way function works at good range (it works in my apt, when the cars out in the lot), and it lets me use the alarm as a turbo timer that i can control remotely. I love it..

bottom line, i really like the alarm, and i am about 80% happy with the install process. my friend who recommedned them to me had a great experience w/ them. I think my main problem was b/c of the faulty brain. I'd still recommedn them.. they're excessive audio, on Gude drive.

 

Things went pretty well at DSI Electronics in Laurel last Sunday. They have a well-stocked garage, and Dave (one of the owners) helped with a full alarm install, and an alarm system replacement. He also lent some assistance with my stereo replacement project.

He and his sister were kind enough to open their shop up to our car club on a Sunday, and he helped with installs for 5 hours -- at no charge. Both club members who did the alarm installs on their cars have been pretty happy so far.

The one possible 'negative' about DSI was on their parts pricing. They charge the manufacturers' recommended prices. That probably isn't a big deal for most people, but most of the DSMers I know balk at anything that's not heavily discounted

 

Thwack. I'm glad to hear the install worked out eventually. You got a Hornet system? They are made by DEI, correct? So it uses the same 2 way unit that the Cliffords use, right?

Did the system come stock with hood and trunk triggers? Or was that an add-on from the shop? I know the Clifford systems come with the hood/trunk triggers.....

Does it have a proximity sensor?

How far is your car is your apt?

I want a DEI 2 way system too. But I just want to make sure it'll be useful for me first.

If you don't feel comfortable telling this stuff on the board PM me.

 

Did you notice whether they sold Clifford brand products?

Did thwack ever give you that Evo test drive?

SC~

 

hornet is made by dei, but it does not use the same remote as a clifford. the clifford and the viper use the same style remote, but the clifford has 4 buttons vs. viper's 3 buttons. the hornet remote is the same style as the audiovox remote, but i believe it has more features.

the hood trigger (a mercury switch) was included in the install, the trunk sensor (to my surprise) was not hooked up as it required running a wire out to the trunk light, and they want another $15 bucks to run it. (not a problem, but i wish the had told me up front so i wouldnt have to make a 2nd apointment).

a proximity sensor is not included but can be added for around $50.

my apt is on third floor, and I'd say the car is parked around 100-150 feet from my room (if you trace a straight line through walls) the remote also works fine from my office, around 150-200 feet. only place it hasnt worked was in my gf's apartment, which seems to be a black hole for electrical signals. Its a basement unit, and my cell phone dont even work there. plus i have to park in visitor parking which is around 4-500 feet from unit.

out in the open, if you can see the car, the remote will work. Last weekend i let my sis park the car at the movies, she parked a block away, couldnt see it, remote didnt work till i held i over my head, then it worked.. funny.

the palce i went to normally installs the viper responder, i had to get them to special order a hornet. I prefered the hornet b/c it has a smaller remote with more buttons, included an extra 1-way remote, and has temperature sensing (displays car temp on the remote, useless, but still cool to show off). all this and its $50 cheaper than the viper. The only advantage the viper has over the hornet is longer warranty, and longer range, but im satisfied with the hornet's range.

for the viper (w/ remote start) expect to pay ~$550
for the hornet (w/ remote start) expect to pay ~$500
for the clifford (w/ remote start) a diff place quoted me ~$700

you cant go wrong with either of them, but the hornet get's my vote. If we ever end up organizing an area meet for some carting or something, you can see it in action.

 

Nice. Thanks for the thorough write up.

I was quoted appx $700 for the clifford too. But for that price, it includes the hood pin (solid state switch) and a trunk pin.

Have tried parking it on a fairly steep incline? Sometimes mercury switches won't work if the car is not parked on a flat surface. That would leave your hood unprotected.

Does it have an engine kill circuit? Does that circuit stay active even if the alarm is circumvented?

The Hornet sounds like a good unit. But I don't personally like mercury switches. I'm currently torn between the viper and the Clifford.

SC~

 

it does have engine kill, failsafe. I prefer the piswitch also.. I dont know if the alarm came with it and the shop swapped them, or what... it seems like the hood design makes mounting a pinswitch kind of difficult, and you need shorter wire run for mercury switch.from what I can tell you'd need to park on a hugely inclied hill to have to bypass the hood.. i might simply buy a $2 pinswtich and swap out the tilt switch, it would just be a matter of swapping switches, using the existing wire. im sure any installer will giveyou a pinswitch if you specify it. it's not liek they're expensive enough to really warrant paying an extra $200, even an extra $50 for it. either way, good luck.

ps, a trunk pinswitch isnt necessary as the trunk has a sensor to control trunk light already.

 

Sorry, but I did not check out the alarms. I wound up working in the garage all day, and did not venture into the showroom.

Thwack did take me and my wife for a test drive last week. We had fun cruising around the Kingstowne area.

 

Yeah, I remember DSI, I use to take my car to them back when I was attending UM. Do they still have that tricked out impala SS?
I understand what your referring to in regards to pricing, their labor rates were crazy as well.

 

BlackStar:

I don't know if they had an Impala, as I didn't get a chance to walk around the parking lot. The 'demo day' was something organized by a new bulletin board group of Porsche owners in the DC area. You may want to visit http://www.dorkiphus.com/porsche/index.php and check it out. It's a bunch of people who get together on weekends and help each other out with car repairs/ upgrades. There's work scheduled for the next two Saturdays, including an engine drop.