Hey, all...

So my black wagon should be here in a few more weeks, and I'm still debating the dealer options that are available. Can someone tell me what exactly the "security upgrade" is? I know that the car will come with keyless entry. I also know that the factory alarm in my '98 VW is supposed to be pretty good since it has a difficult-to-defeat ignition kill -- is the Subaru system similar?

Thanks,
--Matt

My mom has it on her Forester and all it seems to be good for is going off in the middle of the night. Avoid it.

My wife's forester alarm has never gone off.

(IMHO of course)

Factory alarms being all the same, once a thief learns to defeat one he can defeat them all. So all they amount to is a lot of annoyance for very little security. Best thing to do is go to a good security shop that can do you a custom install so bizarre than nobody will figure it out (within a reasonable time at least). http://www.i-club.com/ubb-files/smilies/smile.gif

I was advised by the dealer NOT to get the factory system. He said it was very poor.

I very much like the idea of financing my options. Going to a private shop means I either need to pay cash, or use a credit card -- and cannot have it serviced by the SOA warranty.

rsr911 - could you elaborate on your statement? What exactly makes the factory system poor?

I'm not a fan of factory alarms, either. The alarm on my GTI is pretty goofy. If it goes off, the horn just beeps, and not very loud, either.

I had a Clifford alarm installed on my Prelude, and it was a pretty psychotic alarm system. It was pricey, but worth it, since I lived in a dicey neighborhood at the time. If you're excessively paranoid, Clifford is the way to go I think.

I've had a Die Hard security battery in my Jeep Cherokee for about 9 months. It's simple to use, and the only way I can think of getting around it would be for a thief to replace the battery. It's only 150 bucks. I'm going to put it (or if not compatible, a new one) in the WRX when I get it. That said, I got the security upgrade, mainly so that I could get a discount on insurance, although now Amica is saying that it needs to be auto arming. Whatever; I don't think I'll use it at night, but probably during the day, if I go to a really crappy part of Baltimore.

I think that the $150 I spent on the alarm will be made up in the first years insurance payments. I talked to one agent and the alarm made a difference of $200/year - sounded like a good deal to me...

JJH

A determined thief will get past ANY system. An alarm, stock or otherwise, will keep a random thief from stopping by, but once a thief wants in your car, he'll get there.

I don't know what the WRX alarm has, so aftermarket may offer some extra features, but your average aftermarket install won't give a thief any more trouble than the factory installed alarm.

Do any of you guys know of a good one that lets the windows go up and down and has a remote starter.

Window controls and remote starters are add on options to alarms. There are a couple of systems with remote start built into it, but the window controls are going to be an add on. DEI (Viper, sidewinder) has those available. Try Circuit City and Best Buy, when they install alarms you get install warrienties. I know that Viper alarms installed will have a lifetime warranty on the alarm and the install. I worked for Circuit for 5 years doing custom installs, and I have had the best luck with the DEI stuff.