- Thread starter
- #21
OK.....here goes:
Since I live in the middle of nowhere (basically) I had to do some driving to get to an authorized CompuStar reseller/installer. I ended up about 90 minutes away at a place called Safe & Sound in Chicopee, MA. David set me up with the parts and appointment, and Kevin did the install. It's a small shop, but they've been in the business for over 30 years, and Kevin has been an installer for something like 17 years.
This is the unit I went with... My main criteria was a SMALL key fob (I hate large, bulky clumps of keys) and it had to be a 2-way system so that I'd know for SURE that the truck actually started when I pushed the button. Range wasn't that important since I usually am less than 100 feet away when I need to truck to start/warm up... this system does up to 2500 feet which is already excessive. For guys that want to go farther than that, there are more expensive CompuStar models that will do it.
I told Kevin that I was going to post up the whole story about the remote start on IH8MUD and he offered to snap a few photos of the installation so that I'd have a more complete story. Pretty cool of him to offer, and it proved to me that he had nothing to hide with his work.
The majority of time was spend under the steering column to access the fuseblock and wiring harnesses there:
Here is the brain for the CompuStar:
One nice thing about the install is that Kevin was able to access all the door locking wires from the passenger side dash area, and didn't have to pull the door panels. I've done a TON of DynaMat work in the front doors, and didn't want to have anyone cutting it or disturbing it to get to connectors, etc. So knowing that the install was less intrusive was a huge plus.
Here was another nice touch. Almost all of the wiring was done by carefully cutting the factory insulation and gently sliding it out of the way so the new wires could be wrapped and soldered in place. There was virtually NO cutting of wires, so the integrity of the factory harness remains intact. In fact, if I ever wanted to remove this system it would be VERY easy to prune the wires off the harness and rewrap it with insulating tape!
The remote starters all need some way to receive a strong signal from the key fob, so a small antenna needs to be mounted in a spot that is free from windshield coatings. Kevin tucked it up nice and high above the rearview mirror. From the driver's seat it's just about invisible.
....and from OUTSIDE the vehicle it actually IS invisible!!
You get two fobs with the system. The silver button is the 2-way version, and the black button is just a cheap 1-way version. Here's a photo of the 2-way on my keyring to give you a sense of size and scale:
For anyone in the Western NH / Massachusetts area that wants to get a system like this installed, here's a copy of the invoice so you can see the breakout of pricing as well as the phone number for the shop.
They did a nice job... it took about 4 hours total, which gave me plenty of time to just relax in their showroom and to get a nice Italian lunch a couple of blocks away.
I was out-the-door for $445.93
I made a quick "demo" video this morning for those that want to see how it actually works.... hope you like it! I did it in one-take with no editing, because I'm lazy and this update has already taken up WAY too much of my time this morning!!!
-G
Since I live in the middle of nowhere (basically) I had to do some driving to get to an authorized CompuStar reseller/installer. I ended up about 90 minutes away at a place called Safe & Sound in Chicopee, MA. David set me up with the parts and appointment, and Kevin did the install. It's a small shop, but they've been in the business for over 30 years, and Kevin has been an installer for something like 17 years.
This is the unit I went with... My main criteria was a SMALL key fob (I hate large, bulky clumps of keys) and it had to be a 2-way system so that I'd know for SURE that the truck actually started when I pushed the button. Range wasn't that important since I usually am less than 100 feet away when I need to truck to start/warm up... this system does up to 2500 feet which is already excessive. For guys that want to go farther than that, there are more expensive CompuStar models that will do it.
I told Kevin that I was going to post up the whole story about the remote start on IH8MUD and he offered to snap a few photos of the installation so that I'd have a more complete story. Pretty cool of him to offer, and it proved to me that he had nothing to hide with his work.
The majority of time was spend under the steering column to access the fuseblock and wiring harnesses there:
Here is the brain for the CompuStar:
One nice thing about the install is that Kevin was able to access all the door locking wires from the passenger side dash area, and didn't have to pull the door panels. I've done a TON of DynaMat work in the front doors, and didn't want to have anyone cutting it or disturbing it to get to connectors, etc. So knowing that the install was less intrusive was a huge plus.
Here was another nice touch. Almost all of the wiring was done by carefully cutting the factory insulation and gently sliding it out of the way so the new wires could be wrapped and soldered in place. There was virtually NO cutting of wires, so the integrity of the factory harness remains intact. In fact, if I ever wanted to remove this system it would be VERY easy to prune the wires off the harness and rewrap it with insulating tape!
The remote starters all need some way to receive a strong signal from the key fob, so a small antenna needs to be mounted in a spot that is free from windshield coatings. Kevin tucked it up nice and high above the rearview mirror. From the driver's seat it's just about invisible.
....and from OUTSIDE the vehicle it actually IS invisible!!
You get two fobs with the system. The silver button is the 2-way version, and the black button is just a cheap 1-way version. Here's a photo of the 2-way on my keyring to give you a sense of size and scale:
For anyone in the Western NH / Massachusetts area that wants to get a system like this installed, here's a copy of the invoice so you can see the breakout of pricing as well as the phone number for the shop.
They did a nice job... it took about 4 hours total, which gave me plenty of time to just relax in their showroom and to get a nice Italian lunch a couple of blocks away.
I was out-the-door for $445.93
I made a quick "demo" video this morning for those that want to see how it actually works.... hope you like it! I did it in one-take with no editing, because I'm lazy and this update has already taken up WAY too much of my time this morning!!!
-G
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