Remote Start Shuts Off When Door Opens?

This is a rare thing Ford actually got right. The factory remote start on the Mustang is nice and works how it should. You get in and the engine is still running, you just have to press the button once to go.

 

My friend works in an auto/home accessories shop and has installed aftermarket remote starts in Toyota vehicles that still lets the vehicle run once a door is open (even our trucks). The only problem is the remote start system has to be pretty top-notch (Compustar, Viper, etc.) and requires a LOT of work. He told me that splicing wires, installing resistors to fool the ECU that the key fob is always present, and having hours of install labor to get it to work properly is an absolute headache to do and he doesn't recommend it over the savings for just the cheap remote starts we can get and install ourselves. ~$200 but the truck turning off when a door is opened and just a 30-minute install makes much more sense than a ~$400 - $700 install for the truck to stay on and for your truck to be molested with a thousand different wires hanging out everywhere and your ECU getting tampered with.

 

Has anyone thought about just adding a door switch bypass switch? In the on position, the bypass switch would simply make the truck think the door is always closed - in the off position, the door switch would operate as normal.

Leave the bypass switch on and you never have to worry about the remote start shutting off when the door is opened.

Turn the bypass switch off when you're in a sketchy area where you're more concerned about security than the remote start shut-off.

In a situation where the truck needs to see the door open/close, just cycle the bypass switch.

Sounds pretty simple to me. What am I missing?


EDIT 10/8/19: This won't work - after a remote start, pressing the brake pedal also kills the engine. Sorry!

 

Our trucks don't have what's called a "take over" feature. A take over allows the remote start to take over operations of the vehicle when started; this is what allows the vehicle to keep running when a door is opened. When you depress the brake pedal to put the car in gear, the take over feature also tells the ECU that a key fob is present in the car and then the ECU takes over after that point, thus completing the take over process from the remote start.
So while the bypass switch would work to have the truck stay running when a door is opened, we are missing that important take over step. So the truck will turn off once the brake pedal is depressed while you are trying to put it in gear.

 

So you're saying if I remote started the truck, climbed through the open window and pressed the brake pedal to put the truck in gear, the engine would stop?

 

Correct, the take over feature tells the truck it's okay to keep the vehicle running. The reason being is the ECU process that monitors the key fob being present during startup/shutdown is essentially "put to sleep" when you remote start a vehicle. When you depress the brake pedal, the take over feature wakes up the ECU and the remote start module communicates that everything is checked out and is okay to operate. Since we don't have that take over feature, you'd depress the brake pedal and the ECU will "wake up". It'll know that IT wasn't the one that started the vehicle so it'll shut everything down for safety protocol.
However even IF you are able to somehow get the truck to stay operating after depressing the brake pedal once sneaking through the window, the remote start module is still dependant on a timer of 15 minutes or a door opening, whichever comes first. After 15 minutes of you driving around, the module will turn off which is what powered everything in the first place. The truck will already be powered and running so you *shouldn't* come across any errors, however, the module is telling the truck's ECU that it's ending operations and so should the ECU which could cause some issues either in the short or longterm.

 

Lol god people I didn’t say it was a deal breaker or the worst thing in the world.

It’s just a minor inconvenience that I believe toyota should have designed differently, and was hoping there was a piece of aftermarket equipment I could install to assist with the take over.

The way some people react you’d think I insulted your mother or something.

 

The human element. It only takes one time to forget to turn that switch off and somebody jumps in. Keep in mind a LOT of auto thefts are simple crimes of opportunity. Thieves go after soft targets, and adding that potential point of failure can create that opportunity for them. Even if they don't get the car, it might get their attention. I don't like it when something I own or care about is on some shitbird's mind.

 

The remote start locks the doors, so it's not like the truck is sitting there unattended, running, doors unlocked and ready for someone to jump in and drive away.

The bypass switch just tricks the truck into thinking the door is closed, doesn't affect the locks.

 

Yep. Experienced the same thing on my Land Cruiser. Searches to no avail for a bypass option.

 

Actually, with remote connect, the doors must be locked first before the remote start feature will work. If you select the remote start option and the doors are unlocked it will not work.

Are those vehicles using remote connect? Or is it a remote start on the key fob?

 

My remote start is plug and play, aftermarket. It automatically locks the doors when using the phone app (cell module required) or when using the fob by pressing the lock button 3 times.

 

OP is talking about factory remote start via remote connect.

 

Yea, I know but the problem is the same - the engine shuts off when a door is opened. My idea of a door switch bypass switch still applies.

 

From a liability standpoint it is to protect the vehicle from being driven by an unauthorized person.....be it car thief, toddler, etc.

Also, you can start the vehicle with the door open, but any movement of the auto transmission will shut it off.

You can expect every vehicle with a remote start to get a SW update that turns the vehicle off after the door is opened, after the car is shifted, or after a set time. Too many people dying.

 

You have a source on that?

 

The third party remote starts installed by dealers and or distributors function after the lock button is hit three times......so how would a bypass work? The door is actually locked, and putting your hand on the handle unlocks the door....a bypass would trick the door into thinking the door was open, but not trick it into thinking it's unlocked.

 

I am not sure of the outcome of individual litigation, but there are a few independent lawsuits that will likely give way to a class action suit regarding remote starts, attached garages and people dying in their sleep due to carbon monoxide poisoning.

The issue is that the key fobs can unintentionally be triggered to start a vehicle in the garage....if left unnoticed, it can leak the gas inside through the attached garage.

The liability is for wrongful death, and no amount of disclaimer is sufficient to provide indemnification against lawsuits brought by relatives of the deceased.

My statement about the SW coming is not based on insider information, but instead based on predictable reaction from manufacturers who see a small annoyance such as auto shut off as a way to reduce monetary payouts.

Various industry groups have urged action and only a few companies have taken action.

As litigation mounts, companies like Toyota can't claim ignorance and so the risk of jury award causes settlement payouts to be higher, which shifts the decision point.

 

I have never heard of a fob entering door lock, remote start, all by itself.

Source on that?

 

Not by itself, more like user error, hitting lock, lock, then Lock again as they enter the house ...never hear engine kick on.

The majority are hybrid cars with quiet engines that users forget to turn off.

There are definitely two large payouts on Toyota where the claim was for inadvertent engine start, but as they were settled, nothing I know of to answer how the engine was started.

My money is on people over locking their vehicle who forgot or were not aware of remote start.

I bet half the people with this feature are not aware that locking your car three times starts the engine