loser101

Would it be really hard to install an alarm into my 96 se? Like is it much harder then installing a head unit or something like that?

nismo skyline

i watched as my buddy at the stereo shop installed mine in my s13 it looked pretty complex with all the relays and such. he also hooked up power door locks which were a bitch.

twitchy

its doable

i did mine with 3 friends helping, it had 2 sensors and doorlocks and it took 2 days

Honestly when people ask, I just say take it to a shop unless you are very patient and very flexible

my old addage holds true when installing alarms- you need to be an octopus to work on the 240

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phrozen

go to a shop if u dont nkow what ur doing

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duey

that would be the most wise decision, since you've tackled such a job.

Alarm jobs gone bad will be your worst enemy.

i've been installing alarms for a few years now and it shouldn't take an (decent) installer anymore than 1/2-1hour to finish the job.

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aznpoopy

it really depends on how good (complicated) of an alarm it is... the better the alarm, the more wires to splice in. for a simple ignition/door lock alarm u could probably do it yourself.

loser101

how much you think a shop would ask?

Heartwork

ask the shop and find out...

installing an alarm does not solely depend on how "good" the alarm is itself, it relies on the installation

Wei240

depends on the alarm and your skill and patience,
i have a crappy alarm in my car that i can take out and reinstall in a weekend... of course it's a simple one, i wouldn't even think about working with the better/complicated ones, don't have that much time and patience...

meme

i did my own; the alarm had buuilt in relays. it was real easy!!!! there was only one wire for the door lock. it was easy. this was on a 95 240sx se

95civicEX

not to butt in on this thread, but how hard would it be for one to remove an alarm installed by a shop? I have an alarm in my old 240sx but it's not running, so I can't just take it to a shop...do they do house calls? I want the alarm put in my new coupe...it was a $250 alarm so I don't really want to waste it...

aznpoopy

they probably would if you made it worth their while... but for a typicaly 50dollarish alarm de-installation i seriously doubt they would make a house call. if you have AAA premium you can use up two of your three free anytime tows.

heartwork : the quality or 'good'-ness of an alarm is very indicative of the complexity of the installation... the crappier the alarm, the less options and the less wires to splice and vice versa.

Yoshi

you should ALWAY have your alarm installed by a certified professional!

Think about why you got the alarm in the first place...
it's there to help protect your car (or at least make it look like a less appetizing target). Of all things on your ride, should the protection be what you want to be a cheap ass about? That's like half-assing your brakes as far as I'm concerned.

Alarms are easy to install, Period.
What's NOT easy, is the adjustment of the sensors; motion, vibration, glass, hood check, etc. These things need fine tuning just like dyno tuning. Unless you have a lot of experience, this isn't something you want to do by trial and error, or just hooking it up so that it works (and i use that term very loosely).

Alarms should always be installed professionally.

(oh, and when I got mine put in, they yanked out the old crappy codealarm that came with the car for free! I didn't even buy the alarm from them, just had them do the install, cost me $120 very well spent dollars to do my 2-way)

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240toFast

From my experience alarms are very easy to install on 240's as well as most regular cars, cars that I would stay away from are cars such as a Lexus or anything very luxury. The most time consuming part of installing is finding the wires to connect to. Install time is usually about 3-5 hours depending on type of alarm and car.

duey

seriously no offense to you. but if it takes you 3-5 hours to do an alarm on ANYTHING, stop and bring it to a pro please. But if it's an alarm remote starter combo thats different.

If you know what your doing you should be able to do an alarm in a 240 in less than 1hr depending on what additional options your adding. My car with remote stater and a few other misc sensors took me 2hours.

basically like everyone else has been saying if you don't know what your doing leave it to the pro's. Cuz if by chance you do it half way and fuck up, and if u attempt to bring it back to them to get it installed...prepare to be bent over.

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Pudula

LMFAO

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ca18guy

Alarms are one of the three things I will always pay someone else to do to my car.

1. Tint
2. Alarm
3. Rebuild a tranny

I should add paint to that list but I would like to give it a try

old_s13

What's NOT easy, is the adjustment of the sensors; motion, vibration, glass, hood check, etc. These things need fine tuning just like dyno tuning.

jaaahahaahahahahahaahahaha


alarms are SO over-rated and the biggest false sense of security.


amateurs...

Tictakman

how about removing a aftermarket alarm. i have had one on my car when i bought it and want to take it out but i dont want to remove the wrong wires. do i just follow each wire to where it splices into and take it off there? if thats the case i dont think it will be too hard. i just dont want to be without a car bc the alarm has disabled my ignition somehow. any ideas?


Zak

twitchy

I work as a bartender in a nightclub downtown which means sometimes walking to my car at 3 or 4 am after work

many people I work with have had cars stolen downtown and none of them had alarms. That may not be the reason mine was never stolen but I like the fact that the red flashing light turns people away from stealing it just when they peek in.

Its not a false sense of security at all.

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duey

well i think mike is basically trying to say - If they REALLY want your car, they'll take it no matter what you have.

And you know what sux? there's NOT a damn thing you can do about it. Cuz if they really want it they'll figure out a way around any security measures you may have.

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twitchy

absolutely

but if its your daily run of the mill car theives that dont have that kind of mental capacity theyll also skip your car if they detect an alarm

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old_s13

you think a flashing light or a screaming alarm is going to make someone NOT taking something if they want it? suuuuuuuuure. you tell me what YOU are going to do if you see a tow truck driving down the street towing a car with the alarm blaring.. because me and everyone else in LA surely dont give a fuck. ANY TIME you see a car on a tow truck, it should come along with a sign that says OWNED. :-)

as for the alarm thing, i've known people who've gotten their cars broken into, when the thief gets in they either unplug the entire alarm module, which typically is placed under the dash in the most obvious of spots because there's NEVER much room anywhere else in the car, so under the dash is always the best place. Plus, its close to the ignition column and firewall, which means you can run the wires for the siren into the engine bay; which of course, are 2 wires that are very easy to clip. Of course, you can add a battery backup to that.. but how many people do that, and how many people have that? AND, how many people actually place their siren in an area that is really impossible to get to?

For the MOST part, all stereo/alarm shops are run by absolute morons who think installing an alarm and/or stereo, involves self-tapping screws, lots of butt connectors tee-splices. The "cleaner" installs which you pay for, is them being nice and using loom. So, YOU tell me.. is it worth it?

Is it worth it when you have starter problems because the solenoid is not getting enough juice due to the added resistance in the circuit created by the shitty butt connectors and cheap relay harnesses they use? Is it worth it when all you have to do is pop the bottom of the dash off and UNPLUG the alarm which usually, is SUPER easy to find -- all you need to do is know what an alarm looks like. Here's a no brainer.. under the dash, there is stuff that looks nice and OEM.. then there is this CRAP which is typically slapped together.. yeah.. thats the alarm, bingo.

I'm not saying they are absolutely useless. BUT, they are WAY over-rated. I've been driving around a STRIPPED car for the past 2 years, one day someone decided to try to steal it. They politely found a nice way into my car which didnt involve breaking or damaging anything (a la slim jim or some key method), then they got into the car and attempted to turn the ignition cylinder.. which they did, with some sharp object which opens the pins in the ignition.. they got the car into accessory mode, ON mode.. but the start mode just never seemed to activate teh starter. WHY?

Because I took the time to wire up a little safety security in my car. There are SO many smarter ways to disable a car than killing the ignition. A simple relay can be used to disable the ECU, MAFS, fuel pump.. whatever you desire. Its cheaper, more effective, and will save you the massive headache of having to deal with SHIT randomly placed in your dash and engine bay. Unless, you are the type who feels security by hearing "beep beep" everytime you unlock your car and like having keyless entry, keyless trunk pop, yada yada...

Features are nice.. for mercedes and BMW, for car owners who are lazy and dont work on their cars. For ME, I work on my car and I want it as bare bone as possible. So, I chose the simplest and most effective method. Plus, it was the cheapest and smartest route.

Chose your weapon....

Yoshi

well this and what Mike was saying is all pretty self evident.

I thought it was pretty obvious that anyone who thinks a car alarm is going to protect their car is delluding themselves. It's just something to make the car less appetizing to say, the average crack addict.

If someone wants you car, they're going to get your car. Duh. no brainer.

I stand by having a pro calibrate the sensors tho, I feel the only alarms that help ANYTHING are the 2-way pager ones. Lets face it, nobody gives a f*ck about your ride but you. No one gives a crap about car alarms going off, unless it's 3am on a monday and it's keeping you up... cuz then you might just go over to the triggered car and destroy it just so you can sleep

Where you live also makes a big difference too. Where I live, there is almost no crime, suck on that cali guys (and I can say that cuz I was born in burbank, and I'm NEVER going back to socal!!!!)

so wait, I got off track...
Cliff Notes:
- if someone wants your car, they'll get it (um, duh... no brainer)
- if you get an alarm, get a pager style with AT LEAST 2 stage sensors
- get it professionally installed, or you'll be wasting a lot of time, and/or stressing more than you need when your pager goes off cuz a harley drove by

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old_s13

Or, install a lethal poisonous snake in your car.

Either that, or the Trunk Monkey (tm).

Yoshi

my car also has rabid pitbull SPL installed
have u guys seen that it's now LEGAL in australia to use incindiary devices as theft deterrents? I saw a video a year or so ago, that was a car that had "flame walls" installed. if you trigger the 2nd stage of the alarm, an wall of flame goes up (last about 2 seconds, the first time) the width of hte door, and about 3 feet high.

Another amazing invention that will never reach america cuz we feel the need to sue everyone (ex. the burglar that got $25k by suing an old lady, because he broke into her house thru a skylight and fell on some kitchen knives that were left out when he fell less than gracefully down to the kitchen below).

edit: my grammar sux0rz