hello,

i just bought my mini yesterday and i wished i had gotten the alarm. instead i got the extended mini maintenance warranty, run flats warranty and lojack.
my question is can i get the alarm installed else where or should i have the mini dealership install it?

 

Just my .02 but you spent your money wisely. My wife and I were talking about alarms the other night. We were at a mall and one was going off. NO one was even looking in the general direction of it. An alarm is just like a lock it’s just to keep the honest people honest. If you leave your Ipod or laptop in the car and someone wants it they WILL take it. When was the last time you heard one go off and actually saw someone going to check it out? Save your money and spend it on something fun. Just remember to take the valuables out of the car.

 

thank you....that makes sense!

 

OldGameFreaK couldn't of said it better. My husband and I didn't order the alarm system for my MINI either because we thought it was rather pointless. You can't start the car without the key anyway, so just hide your valueables and you should be fine .

 

IMO an alarm is only work having if it is 2-way and will alert you while away from sight of the car. The reach-in feature of the MINI alarm is nice but not a necessity.

 

Yep, we're always chuckling when we hear a car alarm and everyone totally ignores it. I put anything tempting in the boot when I leave the car in a mall parking lot. My husband and I also train dogs for K9 work, so sometimes I leave my little dog in the car. My husband trained him as a "Pocket Protection Dog", it's pretty hysterical to see him coming absolutely unglued when anyone gets within 5 feet of the car. Of course I have to clean the windows when I get home.
Seriously, save your money and put it into some other mods or graphics.
Oh, and here's a pic of my "alarm dog", all 18 lbs of him.


Annette

 

And what kind of doggy is that? Mini Doberman?

 

@bocron-oh how what a cutie! that is a great alarm...haha!
thanks everyone for your comments and so fast too. it all makes sense why i shouldn't get the alarm. it is so true when an alarm goes off everyone ignores it.

 

Nope, he's a Lancashire Heeler. A small British herding dog that is on the "vulnerable" list. Only about 60-70 of them in the United States. I'm on a quest to help save the breed from extinction.
Here's a pic of an adult, Sergeant was a youngster in that pic.


Annette

 

Has anyone done this retrofit for a 2010 and newer mini?? I am wondering how long it actually takes the dealer. There is a huge variance on labor the dealers here in SoCal want to charge for this. One dealer wants over 1200 dollars labor and another a little over 700 labor. What is the actual time Mini says this takes start to finish?

 

Definately a pretty dog Annette. Smart? I have a herding dog, a Sheltie. Great dogs. Our first lived 14 years. And now our Sheltie is 10. Great pet, friendly to those she knows. Will shy away from strangers. She will bark but keep her distance.

Your lancashire heeler looks like about the same size as a sheltie...maybe a little bigger than a sheltie.

 

It's interesting that you can find dealers interested in this. I actually ordered/bought a factory alarm system with my Clubbie, but Mini had pushed this install out to the dealerships without any factory pre-wiring, so the install is a royal PITA for the dealership. Most won't touch it. The difference in price is the higher price is a dealership who THINKS they can install the MINI integrated alarm system (the PITA install). The other dealership is probably out-sourcing to a local auto electronics shop who will install some third-party version, Viper or such.

My dealership chose option 2, they wanted to out-source. I didn't want to keep track of a separate key fob. I thought ordering the MINI alarm would prevent it. I just got a refund.

 

I have heard the alarm retrofit takes about 10 hours of book labor to do and that realistically it would take more likely 20-30 hours to do. Apparently if not prewired you have to pull the entire dash and steering column to get to certain areas for the factory alarm.

 

Even at $500 cost to build it with the car new I think it is a waste of money. It might be good if you had a convertible and parked with the top down for the reach-in feature but I could easily spend that $500 on a better option. Surely retrofitting it would be a huge cost and not worth it without some huge explanation. I know it's a personal choice but so not worth retrofitting.

 

Hey folks,

I appreciate the advice you've given re install of an alarm system. My problem is that I camp in a teardrop camper and I want something to alarm folks should something untoward occur. I don't anticipate this but would really like any alternative solutions if you've run into this issue.

thanks, Rockin