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Best Buy Install-Don't go here

Discussion in 'Southern California' started by TheFang, Jul 21, 2014.

  1. Jul 21, 2014 at 2:26 PM
    #1
    TheFang

    TheFang [OP] No Big Deal

    Joined:
    Jul 15, 2014
    Member:
    #133985
    Messages:
    2,642
    Gender:
    Male
    SoCal
    Vehicle:
    Tacoma TRD Sport
    TRD Exhaust, URD Short Shift, TRD Supercharger, Hellwig rear sway bar, TWM shift knob, limo tint, URD Y-pipe, URD LT Headers, URD Rear O2 Sim, Custom tube front and rear bumpers, LED spot pods, K&N CAI
    So I recently purchased a Viper remote start/alarm for my 2014 Taco and decided to have GeekSquad over at best buy El Cajon install it for me.
    Address for the Best Buy:
    149 Fletcher Pkwy
    El Cajon, CA 92020

    After quoiting all of the necessary relays and extra wiring I was going to need, the tech David got to work. After 7.5-8 hours I finally got the call from David that he was done, and having worked about an hour past his shift he had gone home and I could have another employee unlock the auto bay and give me my truck. I arrived and having never owned a Viper system before I gave it a once over look and drove home.

    That night my alarm went off. No one was touching my truck. I reset the alarm. About 5-10min later the same thing happened. Again a reset. By the third time I investigated fully as this was not a random glitch. Turns out that David had placed the hood sensor in such a way that it did not seat well into the 'off' position with the hood closed. I added a small chunk of weather stripping foam to the hood and managed to keep the sensor down.

    The next day I went to Best Buy in Otay (2015 Birch Rd #2300, Chula Vista, CA 91915) and Robert, whom I had worked with on my previous car to great success and quality of work, took a look and pointed out three other things that David had failed to properly install. First, the brain of the system was placed in such a way that if I wanted to steal my truck all I would have to do is pop the driver side door, reach into the foot well and easily yank the brain out, totally disarming my truck. This part of the system should be hidden somewhere deep in the truck, harder to reach than its current location.
    Second, having a manual taco, I should have received a 'Neutral safety switch' that would allow me to turn off the remote start application if I was to ever allow someone to borrow my truck. This switch ensures that while in the off position, the remote start won't work, keeping someone from unknowingly remote starting while in gear. It did not appear I had one.
    Third, to remote start my truck, I had to put it in neutral, step on the brake, set the parking break, push the remote start, remove the keys, exit the truck, shut the door, and 'arm' the system. This ensures that the truck is not in gear but is a pain to do every time. Robert explained that a simple clutch bypass tells the system that it is in neutral, and then it's up to me to make sure. That way, all I have to do is leave the truck and the remote start works just like in an automatic.

    Needless to say, I returned to David with my concerns. The hood sensor was in the "stock" position he stated. Well, stock doesn't work here bud. The brain was were it was easiest to put as he, "didn't really know anywhere else to put it." The neutral safety was there, it was just zip tied to the wiring on the brain, "cause it looked all neat when I was packing it away." How am I supposed to use it like that!? The clutch/parking brake sequence to remote start was that way cause he, "couldn't get the clutch relay to work." David apologized and said he was just having an off day. I can totally get that as we all have off days, but for that many mistakes on an alarm system is pretty unacceptable when I'm paying you an arm and a leg to install it. David was booked the rest of the day so couldn't fix it right then. I told him not to bother and I plan on having Robert fix it all. I also talked to the managers about this, and got nothing better than a "lets see what David can do to fix it."

    Needless to say, I will never again go to the Best Buy in El Cajon for work on my truck. Robert down at the Chula Vista Best Buy has been awesome though. He installed the sound system in my last car, subs/amp/wiring, and the window tinting. I plan on having him redo the viper. This guy is good to go, and won't do something to your car that he wouldn't do to his. He knows whats going on, and takes some pride in his work.

    Hope this helps y'all in SoCal. Thats my n00b rant for the day.
     

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