Automotive / Car Security Systems / Remote Start....sounds greats!

When we bought my Acura MDX, we were given lots of add-on options, once of which was a remote starter/security system. My husband jumped at it.  After a long, hot day or shopping, you can start your car before leaving the store....the a/c comes on and cools the car before you even get in. How great does that sound? 

Overall, we've been pretty happy with the system. We weren't given a choice of systems, but this particular system seems to work pretty well. The remote has a range of 1/4 of a mile and has been pretty reliable in that department. The system is suppoed to allow you to not only start your car, but also check the interior temperature, put the car into "valet" mode, and tell you exact what zone and what kind of hit has set off your alarm.  There's also a clock feature and a timing features that allows you to turn on the car, let it run for a set amount of time, and then shut off automatically. I haven't used this feature yet...mainly because I can't figure out how to do it!

The interior mount for the system is on our steering wheel column. It's a little unsightly, but not too bad. It is easy to reach to reset the system, yet also out of the way. 

That's the first problem with the remote. You practically need to carry around the user manual because the sequence of keys that you hit and hold is pretty complex. Of course, there are only 5 buttons and about 30 different functions, so there's going to be a learning period. The whole system just hasn't sunk into my brain (even after 2 years!).

Our main issue with the system is the amount of false alarms we've had. If the wrong button gets pressed on the remote, the alarm goes off. For some reason, this seems to happen a lot when the remote is in my purse or my hubby's pocket. Unfortunately, it seems like when the alarm goes off with a false alarm, you can't turn it off with the remote. After two years, either our remote is wearing out, or this is a faulty feature of the system.

Another issue related to the false alarms is the integration with the Acura alarm system. Now, this system wasn't put in by an Acura dealer, though they are the ones that chose the system and the installer. You'd expect this system to work properly with the internal Acura alarm. Unfortunately, that's not entirely the case. After we had the car and system for about 2 weeks, the internal Acura alarm went off and wouldn't stop, no matter what we tried. After an hour of trying following the manual and talking to the dealership, we finally just unhooked the car battery and demanded the dealer come to our house to deal with it.

They ended up sending a tech out. He checked the system and that's when we all discovered (including the tech) that if you turn the car key in the door lock to the right and hold it, the Acura alarm will disarm. Good to know, since the AM9 system sets the Acura alarm off once or twice a week at the least. Apparently the Acura internal alarm can't be disconnected if you still want to have your cruise control, driver seat controls, and horn. (But that's for another review!)

So, all in all, I really like the AM9 remote starter/security system. My main recommendation would be to do some research on your own about whether the system will truly integrate with your car's internal system. But, despite that issue, it really is fantastic to be able to put your baby into a cool car in 100 degree weather!