Is this a decent deal? Dealer offered Toyota VIP RS3200+(w/GBS) for $335 installed

[bluemoose]

EDIT:
I also managed to knock another 15% off the $395 price, thanks to Costco Auto Program.
Participating Toyota dealers give 15% off parts & labor for Costco Executive members.
http://costcoauto.com/executive/execsavings.asp So my final cost now is $335, parts
& labor included. (plus sales tax on the part)


---------------------------------------

Is this a good, okay, or bad deal?

This is on a '07 Camry with keyless entry only. I do need a simple alarm that will trigger the horns when someone force open the door/trunk or break the glass. Not really comfortable with an aftermarket system.(Viper for example)

My dealer has offered to install a Toyota VIP RS3200+ security system with glass breakage
sensor for $395. (edit: now $335, see above) Parts and labor are included. She said it will
take 5 hours (edit: tech says he does it in 1 hour) and they will offer me a free Enterprise
rental car for the day. The system will be covered under my original 3yr/36k-mile warranty,
since it's being installed by a Toyota dealer.
I kind of already said okay to her two days ago, and she just left a message saying the
parat have arrived. Should I back out or go ahead with the install?

What doyou guys think?

Thanks!

[Punks_Not_Dead5]

sounds like a good deal to me,

[gdanaher]

I found the installation manual for one of these things on the net a while back and studied it because I had some questions. I'm handy with this sort of stuff but It would take me hours to do the job and then I would still have to take it to the dealer to get it programmed. If your time has any value at all, this doesn't seem bad, but if you have another dealer near by, get a second bid. Can't hurt and it might save you some money.

[WhiteRabbit]

sounds like a good deal

remember a good alarm has the following KEY features:

1. glass break sensor - vibration sensors = USELESS FALSE ALARMS!!!
2. proximity sensor
3. starter kill
4. fuel pump kill
5. backup battery
6. hood pin
7. trunk pin

otherwise, dont even bother with an alarm...

[bluemoose]

does anybody know if the Toyota VIP RS3200+ will start honking if the trunk or hood is forced opened?

[gdanaher]

The trunk does! I forgot to turn off the alarm and found out.

[beejay21k]

I was interested in getting this system installed myself. Does anybody know if they program the alarm to activate/deactivate with the lock/unlock buttons on the key for keyless entry, or do you have to carry an extra keychain for the alarm?

Thanks.

[bluemoose]

Originally Posted by beejay21k

I was interested in getting this system installed myself. Does anybody know if they program the alarm to activate/deactivate with the lock/unlock buttons on the key for keyless entry, or do you have to carry an extra keychain for the alarm?

Thanks.

Yes it does. You will continue using the remote key to arm/disarm the system as you open/lock the doors.

[bluemoose]

Here's something I can't figure out....

When I searched for info about the RS3200+ here, most people said the system has to be
plugged into a Toyota dealer scanner to be activated.

However, I personally spoke to the technician at the dealership who installs these systems.
In fact, his only job at the dealership is installing Toyota security systems... This dealer is
the second largest Toyota in the US.(based on the number of vehicles sold in 2006)

He said there's no need, not on my '07 Camry anyway.

I've decided to go ahead with it. Scheduled install is this afternoon. He said it will only
take him 1 hour.(saleswoman said 5 hours originally) I'll wait there and watch exactly
how he did it without having to use the Toyota scanner. They close at 3pm today,
so I sure hope he rally can complete it in 1 hour.

I also managed to knock another 15% off the $395 price, thanks to Costco Auto Program.
Participating Toyota dealers give 15% off parts & labor for Costco Executive members.
http://costcoauto.com/executive/execsavings.asp So my final cost now is $335. (plus
local sales tax)

At $335, there's almost no reason for me to do it myself...

[bluemoose]

well, I'm back from the dealer. The technician was amazing... Took him 1 hour and
maybe 5 minutes to install and adjust the RS3200+ system. I was behind the car the
whole time he was working on it.(yes, against dealership rules ) Considering that
I was chatting while he worked.... he could probably have done it even sooner if I was
out of the way. More than half of the time was spent taking apart and putting back
the interior trim pieces There were only a handful of wires to connect, plus mouting the
GBS.

Now that I've seen how it's done, I could probably do it myself in about two hours.
But it won't be worth it... and it will also not get the 3-yr warranty if I did it myself.

Oh, and yes, he was correct... he didn't need the scanner tool to activate the alarm.
Considering how few parts are actually involved, the VIP RS3200+ is a Toyota scam.
I mean, come on, the keyless entry is already in the car. It's just a matter of adding
a few more components to make it a full alram system.

Anyway, I tested the alarm with the tech and everything worked perfectly. Just like
any other alarm system, people nearby took one look and ignored us.

I paid the a total of $361.($335 plus sales tax and shop supplies) Not too bad.
(free would have been better, of course )

Now, onto the next project....

[beejay21k]

^Thanks for the info. I'm probably going to go ahead and order the system for my Camry now that I know its pretty quick and relatively cheap.

[bluemoose]

Originally Posted by beejay21k

^Thanks for the info. I'm probably going to go ahead and order the system for my Camry now that I know its pretty quick and relatively cheap.

No problem... However, I must clearly state that the tech said it was only on my Camry
that did not require the scanner. He said it got built in early 6/07. Not sure if it means
anything, but the fact that he specifically looked up my car's build date suggest that
there may be some sort of different software setting inside the care.

Worst case scenario, you'll install the system yourself, then find a friendly dealer who
will use the scaner to change "security" to "on".... from what I've read here, some dealers
have the balls to charge upwards of $90 for the 60-second job. Some charge nothing...
In my past experience, the fancier the dealership is, the less they're inclined to help out
for free. (fancier means the customer waiting area has a new 58" plasma TV, an
espresso machine, as well as a fully-stocked fridge with 10 kinds of cola) The dealer
that I went to is huge, but their customer area resembles an airport terminal from the
1950-era, but their techs and service advisors are extremely willing to help.