Why does it cost so much to have someone install a car alarm. I read all the posts on here about the viper 791 xv how its the best there is. But i called the local shops around here and the cheapest install they say is around 300 dollars. Why is it so high? Any of you all from georgia or south carolina know somewhere where i can get it done reasonably?

 

My friend expertise and labor costs money. Not to mention working upside down in a cramped space is no picnic either. To that add the complexity of todays electrical systems and the answer to that question should start to become clearer.

 

Try to do it, or at least check it out, on your own. I did, thanks to this forum and 12v.com and have not had any problems.

 

What kind of vehicle? Im guessing a Scion possibly, if you go to a Circuit City, you will pay right around $100 for install plus what ever the alarm cost.Now this only applies to basic labor, so if you dont have power doorlocks or you want the alarm to do somthing special or your vehicle has a weird system in it, then your going to pay more for this. But go in and look at the alarms, there resonable in price and the price you see on the tag is the installed price, unless your vehicle has somthing like mentioned above. Most of the time i say do it yourself, but when it comes to electrical, sometimes its best to pay to have it done.

 

read up and try it yourself.....

 

I just got a Viper 5000 & installation in Rock Hill SC for 420ish.

 

I installed a Python in my xB well easy.... just make a good plan before hand, it took me about an hour to install mine, little longer to hide the valet switch, kill switch and siren. I was priced $300 at a local dealer also so I thought for a couple of hours of my own time I can save BIG bucks..... Just install everything off your door lock relay - simple dash and stereo come out easy nealr y everything you need can be found to the left. Save even more money and get the alarm that uses your own remote locking control.

 

I paid close too 600 for the clifford 2 way alarm system with install. I know it sounds rather steep but the install work is guaranteed for life and these guys do this for a living.

 

Difference with a dealer fitting your alarm they often have to cut or score your wires to probe the right ones, you do it yourself using the many guides on these forums your wires all stay perfect. I had an alarm fitted on my last car Honda Si - when I installed a new stereo and JDM electric mirrors I found all this black tape on my wires I removed the tape to find where they scored to probe extremely disappointed hence the reason I fitted my own alarm this time, was done without scoring a single wire, I didn't even have to cut a single wire as I used those 3M wire clips. On the xB they really aren’t that hard to install, an you can custom fit which makes it harder for people to steal, dealers have to follow alarm manufacture fitting instructions as not to void the warranty this makes the install generic and much much easier to steal I guess after so many bad experiences the only person I trust to work on my car is me; now if only I had the knew how to fit Turbo’s. But if you have the money and trust use an ‘authorized’ dealer….. gee old age is making me paranoid.

 

The main reason to get an alarm installed by an authorized dealer is because if you try and do it yourself, the warranty is immediately voided. Normally this might not be a big deal on a cd player or something bc the factory warranty is only 1 year...but most alarms have a lifetime warranty. Also, I know DEI offers to pay a certain amount of your insurance deductable (depending on the model you get) if the car is stolen/broken into with the alarm being installed by a professional.

I believe Best Buy will charge around $250 to do an alarm/keyless/remote start. Like others have said, if you need an ignition bypass or want anything special done it will cost extra...but if you're getting it done on a scion none of that should be necessary.

 

This is not necessarily true...any company who installs DEI products has access to the database with wire codes that DEI provides (this is also where most of the wiring code charts come from that you see on these forums). Sometimes this database isn't 100% correct and different wires need to be probed. No matter whether you have a wiring chart or not, one should always probe the wires before they're connected so you don't send current somewhere it shouldn't go.