Remote Car Starters – Are They Worth It?

Picture it: It’s 15 degrees outside. The wind is blowing furiously and there are several inches of ice and snow on your car. Do you pull on gloves, a hat, a scarf and run outside to “warm up the car” before you run back to the house to stand in your doorway now sweating under the winter garments? What if you’re late that day? Do you just run outside, start the car, and drive away with no heat for the first 10-15 minutes of your ride?

Picture this instead: You casually stroll over to your window in the morning in that same 15-degree, wind-blowing, snow-filled weather. You press a button on your key fob. The car starts! Ten minute later, you go outside and drive away in a warmed up car from which the ice and snow have melted off the windows. No scraping necessary.

Pros: See scenarios above! Similar concepts also apply in 100 degree weather when you can put your car’s air conditioner on from inside the house. Also, all your friends and co-workers will be jealous when you can start your car from inside while they have to brave the elements. There isn’t a day that will go by that someone will not comment when you are using it. There’s also a psychological advantage to starting your daily commute by getting into a comfortable car rather than being miserable for the first 10-15 minutes of your ride due to extreme temperatures.

Cons: The initial cost can be steep. When I bought my car, the dealer offered a remote starter for an extra $400 dollars. That could be worth a month’s payment depending on your loan. You can do better than that. I did. I went to Best Buy and purchased one for under $200. I had them install it; the total came to slightly over $200. For the mechanically/electrically talented, you can also install it yourself. They come with instructions and some models even come with an installation video. The other con, especially with gas prices what they are these days, is the extra gas that you use by turning on your car and leaving the engine idling during the warm-up phase.

Remote Car Starter: Is it worth it? Yes – worth every penny. It’s the best $200 I’ve ever spent in my life.