factory alarm system

[tonster]

Hello guys
I just got a 2001 Camry it did not have an alarm so I was going to go online and get an OEM one.
Question-Is it very difficult to install? It looks pretty much plug and play. Thanks for the noobie help. Tony

[Xenon]

The OEM alarm is pretty expensive for what it does! It connects to your horn and honks only when the door is open!

Maybe you should consider getting an aftermarket alarm so you can have more features possibly for the same price or less than an OEM alarm...

just my 2 cents

[Luc]

I agree, you are better off getting an aftermarket alarm. The OEM alarm will not protect your hood or trunk. Just last weekend, a bunch of Toyota/Japanese-made cars were broken into by thieves, since all of us were inside a gym participating in a basketball tournament. They knew that OEM alarms don't have the glass-sensing or trunk-sensing detectors, so they break the glass, rip the dash apart, and take the radio and whatever is in the trunk, without having the OEM alarm ever going off!! One of my friends was a victim of that. Fortunately, the thieves didn't know how to take the radio out ('97 Camry), though it was a bit pryed out from a screwdriver, and I was able to salvage the radio and dash panel.

Though OEM is plug-n-play, but it doesn't offer the protection that aftermarket ones do.

[fungke]

that sucks for your friend luc.
i was actually considering the OEM alarm for my car as well, but only because i can still use the OEM remote. i'm not really into the cheasy looking remotes. but i guess it's what's worth more to you.

[Xenon]

So you're sacrificing the security of your car to have a nice looking remote! That doesn't make sense...

[fungke]

Originally posted by Xenon
So you're sacrificing the security of your car to have a nice looking remote! That doesn't make sense...

yeah i know...sounds really stupid...but at the moment, i don't really have anything to secure.