Best Place to Install a Car Starter in Duluth

Jane Pederson Jan 02, 2014 14 Comments

I am a former Duluthian who has made the move back! I am very happy to be in Duluth, but of course I did not choose the warmest winter for my return. I was lucky enough to be the recipient of a car starter for Christmas to help with the tundra-like weather. Now I just need to figure out the best place to have it installed.

I am hoping that my fellow Duluthians can help me out. What recommendations do you all have for the best place to have my car starter installed at?

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14 Comments

Paul Lundgren

about 11 years ago 

This subject came up on PDD two years ago, so in addition to the recommendations that might follow you can also refer to the 2011 post "Remote Car Starter and Installation."

The most important piece of advice, however, is to keep in mind that leaving a vehicle running unattended is illegal in Duluth according to chapter 33, section 91 of the city's Legislative Code.


Keys to be removed from unattended vehicles.

No person shall leave a motor vehicle, except a truck which is engaged in loading or unloading, unattended on any street, alley, used car lot or unattended parking lot without first stopping the engine, locking the ignition and removing all ignition keys from the vehicle; provided, however, that any violation of these provisions shall not mitigate the offense of stealing such motor vehicle, nor shall such violation be used to effect a recovery in any civil action for theft of such motor vehicle, or the insurance thereon, or have any other bearing in any civil action.

Whenever any police officer of the city shall find any such motor vehicle standing in violation of the foregoing provisions, such police officer is authorized and directed to remove therefrom the keys left therein and to deliver the same to the officer in charge at police headquarters. (Ord. No. 6838, 6-12-1950, § 68; Ord.
No. 7049; Ord. No. 7265, § 1.)

Dawn Marie

about 11 years ago 

Paul (honest question), most car starters don't require the keys to be IN the car (that I am aware of).  Every one I've ever had or used didn't require keys to be in the vehicle and if the vehicle was attempted to be driven before the key was placed in the ignition, the remote start automatically shut off and rendered the vehicle useless.  Is there a law against remote starts?  

That said, I'm having Options Auto put one in in a couple weeks.  I don't know much about them other than they were recommended to me, so I have no idea if they will put one in that you already own but it is certainly worth a phone call.  218-391-1715  and his name is Jason.

TimK

about 11 years ago 

My Sister-in-Law and her husband both have new-ish cars and neither uses a key. They have electronic fobs and push-button start. When I intend to warm up my cars without being in attendance, I use my spare key to lock the vehicle and then go have another cup of coffee....

Paul Lundgren

about 11 years ago 

Since the intent of the ordinance seems to be to prevent theft, one could argue that it doesn't outlaw remote starts. The raw language of it, though, seems to pretty clearly state that it is illegal.

The odds of a ticket actually being written for that are infinitesimal, however, so it's not really something to worry about -- but it is something worth being aware of.

Rij

about 11 years ago 

I went to D.A.D.S. on the recommendation of the dealer I bought my car from and have been very satisfied. Not a single issue. As to the intent or effectiveness of the law, my nephew went for a joyride a few years ago in a car he found running on Park Point.  To the dismay of my sister (she wanted him charged) and the owner of the vehicle, no charges were filed because the car was left running and unattended.

Nobody

about 11 years ago 

Every time you park your car and shut it off before you use your remote starter you satisfy the ordinance:
You stop the engine
you lock the ignition
and you remove your keys from the vehicle.

With a  remote starter, as pointed out by Dawn, the keys are not in the vehicle (and the ignition is still locked from the last time you parked after driving).  

The officer that finds your car like this would spend a lot of time looking for "the keys left therein" and delivering "the same to the officer in charge at police" HQ.

Paul Lundgren

about 11 years ago 

I bow to Nobody's superior logic. That's damn good reasoning. (Dawn basically made the same point earlier, but didn't spell it out clearly enough to register with my dull brain.)

Dorkus

about 11 years ago 

Can we get back to the subject at hand?

Anyone have an good recommendations for remote start installers? I have one I purchase a year or so ago, with the intent to install it but never did. 

Now I am regretting it and I have no garage in which to install this device myself.

TimK

about 11 years ago 

D.A.D.S. Electronics

heysme

about 11 years ago 

Careful - I was told a car's warranty could be void if you install an after-market car starter. There was no mention in my warranty so I was safe.

Dorkus

about 11 years ago 

I am looking for more personal experiences rather than just a list of places that perform the operation.

Chris

about 11 years ago 

I'll second Jason Sater at Options Auto. He's installed three starters in various vehicles of ours over the years. Been very happy with the service, never had an issue with any of them.

Dawn Marie

about 11 years ago 

Dorkus - Options Auto came recommended by a coworker who had nothing but excellent things to say about their work.  This coworker is VERY particular about their choices, so they would have told me if they had any doubts or issues at all. 

I had a friend have an awful experience at DAD's last winter.  Long story short, she bought a brand spanking new vehicle with zero issues (her husband, a major car guy himself, would not have let her take it off the dealership's lot if it had even one iota of an issue).  She took it straight to DAD's the next day for I believe a remote start, they said a couple hours, it ended up being a couple days and they messed up the electronic system and half the interior/exterior lights stopped working.  This led to her having to take it back to the dealership for work, which started another chain of events at the fault of the dealership that ultimately lead to her purchasing a completely different vehicle instead.  

DADs was obviously only half the reason she ended up with a different vehicle, but if they hadn't started the problems, the vehicle would not have had to go back to the dealership and it would not have encountered more issues while they were trying to fix it.  Her experience was enough to make me decide not to go to DADs.  

Wherever you go, good luck and I hope you're able to get it done soon! Stay warm!

Rae

about 11 years ago 

My SO purchased and installed a remote car starter through Auto Audio in Hermantown.  I completed the same transaction at Elite Tinting & Graphics in Duluth.

We both had good experiences with installation and would have no issues revisiting either business.  

However, if I had to purchase a starter package (which you say you already own), I much prefer the durability of the key fobs that Auto Audio was offering to Elite at the time.

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