Bulldog Security Remote Car Starter
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The tiny transmitter inside a remote starter sends a radio signal to your car or truck engine, using a frequency band next to the one for remote-controlled garage doors -- in between the airwaves for FM radios and walkie-talkies.
Choosing a remote starter for your car or truck begins with a truism: If you pay more, you get more.
The cheapest models do nothing more than start your car or truck at the touch of a button, generally from about 200 feet away.
The fanciest systems do the same thing but over longer distances, some at more than 1,000 feet. They may work while your vehicle is out of sight and send a buzz or visual cue on your key-ring transmitter to confirm that the engine is running.
Deluxe models can ward off thieves with built-in antitheft alarms, pop your trunk lid and unlock your doors, and might have a tiny computer screen on the plastic key fob to show -- with puffs of cartoon exhaust -- that your engine is running.
The push-button feature that locks and unlocks your car doors is called keyless entry, and it works only if you have automatic locks already. Keyless entry is popular because it means that instead of fumbling with keys on a winter's night, then sitting in your car cranking the engine in a dark parking lot, you can have your vehicle running as you approach. Then, touch a button to unlock the doors seconds before you walk up. Most remotes make the dome light pop on then, so you can check for a possible intruder in the back seat before entering.
Another reassuring note: No one can drive off in your car after you've started it by remote. The key must be inserted into the ignition first. If you don't show up to drive off, or an interloper scares you off, the system eventually shuts off your engine after a preset time period ends, typically five, 10 or 15 minutes.
Do-it-yourself remotes
For the lowest prices, get a do-it-yourself model with many of the same
features as costly dealer brands. Warning: Expect a serious tinkerer's
challenge when you install it.
"You have to double-check your wiring," said Don Snyder, chief executive of Bulldog Security Inc. in Steubenville, Ohio, -- a company he describes as the only manufacturer of remote starters in the United States.
To help do-it-yourselfers, Bulldog Security kits come with an installation video, a test light that checks your work as you go, and a toll-free phone number customers can call for advice. With some models, "when you're done hooking it up, it says thank you," Snyder said. Those models have antitheft devices that shout, if a vehicle is jostled, "You're too close!" and "I've been tampered with!"
Bulldog remote starters start at $50 at Murray's Discount Auto Stores, Kmart, Sam's Club and Target stores. Or order at www.bulldogsecurity.com
"Our customer is generally the guy who likes working on his car or pickup. It takes the average do-it-yourselfer 2 to 3 hours" to install a Bulldog Security remote starter," said Snyder. His firm makes 12 models, six with built-in alarms. Even the cheapest one has keyless entry and remote trunk-lid release.
Basic installed models
For $99, you can get an Audiovox Prestige Model No. 55.
You can set the system to run your engine for, say, 10 minutes, then shut off if you haven't reached the driver's seat.
As with many automotive choices, there are options. For keyless entry, add $50; and for an automatic trunk release, add another $50.
The transmitter in a remote key fob runs on a small 12-volt battery that costs about $3 to replace every year or two.
Deluxe retail brands
$499 will buy you installation of a premium remote-starter system that features lots of bells and whistles -- the electronic kind, that is, aimed at keeping car thieves away.
The Responder Model No. 790-XV from Directed Electronics, a new model last year, has a tiny video screen on the key fob. It displays a host of symbols that are invaluable if you're worried about a vehicle you can't see.
Among the icons that pop into view are puffs of smoke, showing the engine has started; a pounding hammer, that indicates someone jostled your car, perhaps in a theft attempt; signals showing the hood or trunk are open, and a bevy of symbols confirming that various aspects of the antitheft system are cocked and ready to alert you.
It comes with a lifetime warranty on parts and two years on labor. More options are available at extra cost.
