R56 Alarm or no alarm on new car order?
#2
I ordered the factory one and have no problems with it. I chose to get the factory one because I didn't want to have some aftermarket shop chop up my brand new cars wiring. In my opinion, 500 for an installed alarm system is cheap anyways.
It works fine, it goes beep beep and flashes the lights when I lock the doors and the little led on the dash blinks. But we all know that if a person really wants to steal our cars bad enough they will, no alarm system can stop a professional car thief.
It works fine, it goes beep beep and flashes the lights when I lock the doors and the little led on the dash blinks. But we all know that if a person really wants to steal our cars bad enough they will, no alarm system can stop a professional car thief.
#4
Plus I don't think it is a bad alarm system. Seems to be of pretty decent quality at least from what I can see and tell. But I'm not expert by any means. I agree with coyle996. The last thing you want is some shop messing with your brand new car. Most I've found don't do the best work anyway.
Regards,
Pat
Regards,
Pat
#7
Factory is the way to go, IMO. I actually had mine installed by the dealer after delivery. It does what I need it to do not a lot of bells and whistles though.
I really like the fact that I can leave the windows down with the alarm on and when you just stick your hand in through the window the motion sensors set the alarm off.
I really like the fact that I can leave the windows down with the alarm on and when you just stick your hand in through the window the motion sensors set the alarm off.
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#16
Just yesterday I was reaching into my car (windows were barely cracked) to see how hot it was. I forgot the alarm was enabled and I BARELY got my hand in the window to see how hot the temperature inside the car was when the alarm started going off. I'm glad I got the factory installed alarm and that the motion detector is so sensitive! Even tho another poster stated that no-one pays attention to car alarms anymore, the MINI's alarm light will flash differently than normal to let you know that the alarm had indeed gone off. Another great feature IMO!
#17
I didn't order the alarm on my '09 MCSC. Since you need the key to make the car start (or you need to fool the computer to thinking the key is in range) no teenager is going to take my car for a joyride. Having an alarm will just let me know that someone smashed my window to grab whatever was in my center console, it probably won't stop them from grabbing it though.
#18
Think of it as a deterrent and notification system.
I personally feel that it is a deterrent and prevents some a-hole from breaking in in the first place.
The good thing is that you saved $$$ by not getting it at first and you can always add it later by the dealer if you wish. It's not like the bluetooth option is that is huge cost/pain to add later on.
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#20
I ordered alarm with my car. Until this friday I would have said don't bother. Last friday my car was hit and the alarm went off while I was eating lunch at a restaurant. I went out to investigate and found that the person who hit my car had just pulled in and hit my car with their gigantic SUV door. The driver was still in the car and I asked them to inspect my door as they hit it hard enough for the alarm to go off. They declined saying it wasn't them. So I opened the door and the hit mark matched perfectly to the end of the door. At this point I demanded they give me their insurance information (the damage is through the clear coat and some paint is missing exposing the primer). I wrote their drivers license information and insurance information down.
#21
I did not get my 09 MINI with an alarm, but I'm curious what's the difference between the two prices listed on MINI's site $226 vs $500. Maybe only one of them comes with its own power source? I agree that an alarm is more of a deterrent. Get it before you "actually" need it, so that's my plan.
Last edited by trinigladiator; 10-26-2009 at 10:29 AM.
#22
I did not get my 09 MINI with an alarm, but I'm curious what's the difference between the two prices listed on MINI's site $226 vs $500. Maybe only one of them comes with its own power source? I agree that alarm is more of a deterrent. Get it before you "actually" it, so that's my plan.
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my dealer wanted about $700 for dealer-install.
i ended up going aftermarket for the 2-way remote (i do like having a visual reminder on the fob that i actually did lock the car, and visual cues as to which alarm got triggered), but if i had to do it over, i'd go with factory or dealer install.
i ended up going aftermarket for the 2-way remote (i do like having a visual reminder on the fob that i actually did lock the car, and visual cues as to which alarm got triggered), but if i had to do it over, i'd go with factory or dealer install.