Dealer Forgot to Take Off Their Alarm

I wasn't sure what this thing was under the dash so I called the salesperson. He said it was part of their alarm system and they forgot to take it off.



I was a little miffed that they drilled holes in the lower dash to install this thing, but I didn't make an issue of it since it's not that noticeable. The salesperson said just go ahead and yank it off.

I looked underneath to see how it is connected (it's tapped into some wires), but there's a module underneath with a red flashing light which suggests it's still active. I'm afraid that if I take it out it might immobilize the engine.

I called the service department who said they could take it out for me, but I bought it a state away from me and had it shipped here (they had the exact color and package I wanted). The service department guy didn't know what to do. He wants me to call next week to talk to a certain tech.

Has anyone else seen one of these? Any ideas?

Thanks!

 

I could ask the dealer here, but it doesn't look like anything Toyota makes. It looks like the dealer used some third party to provide their security.

 

It would have been a dealer breaker for me had I known about it (It's Right Toyota in Scottsdale, AZ).

I called the dealer's service department and they referred me to the guy who installs the systems for them. He told me it was better to just leave it because if it is disconnected incorrectly it will immobilize the engine.

There is no way I wanted a non-functioning alarm system in my new car, especially one that has the potential to immobilize the engine. Years ago I bought a truck with an after-market alarm system and when it failed it left me stranded.

So he gave me instructions on how to take it apart without immobilizing the engine. Basically he said to trace the wires to a black box inside the dash and disconnect them first, then take out the rest.

I found TWELVE electrical taps for this thing. I followed his directions, BUT NOW THE CAR WILL NOT START. Even if it did I now have two holes in my dash and a bunch of wires to cover in electrical tape to repair the nicks.

I am going to have to have it towed to my local Toyota dealership next week. Of course they are not going to cover the repairs under warranty because it was caused by an after-market system -- or possibly by a mistake I made.

I emailed the original dealership and told them what happened. I didn't want to talk to anyone because when I'm upset I say things I later regret. I image they will offer to pay for the repairs, but at this point I really don't care I'm so disappointed. It's such a beautiful car -- I paid 32,046 for a 2013 Prius Five with Adv Tech Pkg (plus a few add-ons) and was so thrilled when I got it.

 

Thanks for your input. I forwarded my email to the salesperson, general manager and service department manager. I'll see what they have to say and then decide what to do.

 

After taking this thing out I found that is is labeled "Pursuit Remote Security Systems" and did some research based on the model number. It appears to be this:

http://www.voxxintlcorp.com/docs/corp/other/NADAPursuitPreload.pdf

The dealer installs it for their security. When they sell it, they can program it for the consumer as a remote start and/or security system.

This explains why the dealer was so reluctant to install a Toyota remote starting system for me. The salesperson kept pushing an aftermarket system but I did not want two remotes. Of course he was pushing it because it was already installed. I finally told them to forget about it and planned to have a Toyota remote start installed at my local dealer.

Because it's not programmed and I do not have the remotes, the system is useless to me. I'm sure a more tech-savvy person could replace the remote and program the unit, but I've yanked it.

This may explain why Right Toyota is not answering my emails . . . they certainly did right away when I was buying it.

I guess my only solace is that I had three different dealerships competing with each other over identical cars so they kept lowering their price. Then after I agreed to a price I refused to sign the paperwork because the taxes were $650 more than I was told so they lowered it again. They also threw in a few accessories [ok I'm trying real hard not to regret this whole thing and make the best of it]. Plus I didn't pay for the system that will end up in my garbage.

 

Good idea thanks. I didn't know about brush-on wire insulation.

To me this is about honesty -- if they would have said "we have a security system installed in all our cars to protect our dealership. We can easily reprogram it as a remote start and provide you with the remotes" I might have said ok.

The original price was $350, half of what the Toyota remote start costs. But again I didn't want two remotes. At least I could have made an informed choice.

 

True, but I don't have that option. After all this trouble I found that the seats and interior warm up pretty quick and I probably wouldn't use a remote start much anyway . . .