[evmel1]

I am considering purchasing the factory alarm package and installing it myself as it seems that all of the wiring is already in place. Any comments from anyone who has tried to take this on?

[evmel1]

test

[msenkbeil]

I did this... bought the system from Classic MINI in Ohio (search the forums... referenced many times) for $300, installed the guts myself and then my dealer charged me one hour labor to program it. Saved about $200 doing it this way.

The install wasn't too hard except for the hard to reach area under the hood where the siren goes. Took me about 90 minutes to install all the pieces.

- M.

[Dark Silver S]

Now tell me again what the factory system does that LoJak doesn't? I've used alarms before, and they are a PITA.

[bicoastal]

I also bought the alarm system from Classic and installed it. It was simple; hardest part was getting the tape off of the harness in that awkward under-hood spot mentioned above.

You'll need to pull down the knee bolster, so you might as well install the parcel shelf at the same time...

$50 at the dealer to activate the alarm.

Motion and tilt sensors seem quite sensitive; "admirers" triggered it accidentally at the Minimania event in Nevada City on Saturday.

[jim_t]

Bought mine from Classic and did the install myself.
When I asked my dealer to program it on, they didn't
know what I was talking about. My MC is in for some
other work, and they marked it for alarm turn on. I'll
see in a day or two what happens. Charge to activate it
was quoted as being one hour of work. Wonder how they
come up with the one hour and not know what needed to be
done.

[Prof]

For the self-installers...

Did any of you have any problems installing the motion sensor correctly? I'm trying to do this, and for the the life of me, I don't see how it will install right-side up like in the instructions. There's some metal pieces in that area that are in the way.

It will install upside-down, however. Would there be a problem with installing it this way?

[msenkbeil]

Prof - you probably already figured out your install, but anyway:

I didn't have a problem installing the motion sensor. If I remember correctly, the unit snaps into the plastic grille which is removed from the roof, it is then reinstalled onto the roof. I thought the picture showed it pretty clearly as long as you remember that the sensor goes onto the grille first, then gets installed onto the roof.

[scooterboy]

I'll be installing mine this weekend. Dealer quoted me 1/2 hour labor ($45) to activate it. FYI: Activation is done by hooking up their computer to the car, going through a couple of menus and telling the car it now has an alarm. Probably 5 minutes to do that, plus maybe 5 minutes testing?

[Prof]

Actually, I should have said tilt sensor (the one that goes in the boot) not the motion sensor. I just installed the tilt sensor upside down because I couldn't find a way to install it like the illustration in the instructions.

It seems to work okay. To be honest, it probably works too well because it goes off just about every time I set the alarm. So this afternoon, I just disconnected the tilt sensor because I was tired of the thing going off.

Maybe installing it upside down had something to do with it going off all the time. I don't know. But if someone could tell me if it is possible to install the tilt sensor right-side up, I'll reconnect it and see if it becomes less sensitive.