Eluzion

I recently had a Clifford Matrix RSX 3.5 alarm installed on my vehicle. The other day I had a friend wire up the remote start and all was working well. This morning I used the remote start... I put the key in the ignition and turned the remote start off using the pager so I could drive my car. Got to where I needed to be and now my remote icons do not seem to work. I can arm the car, but it will appear as if it's still unarmed. When I remote start it, no icons appear. It also doesn't beep like it use to. When I switch it to vibrate mode, the vibrate icon appears, so I'm confused.

Any ideas what might be causing this? I tried "resetting" the alarm by removing the battery and putting it back in but that didn't seem to help.

90sedan

On the lower left side of the screen on the LCD remote, there are numbers, 1,2,3,4. Only 1 number will be shown because thats the car the remote is sending the signal too. Most of us only hace one car hooked up to the remote, and its normally car #1.

That may be the problem, and in order to switch cars press the program button on the rear of the remote, just press don't hold down.

If that was the problem, then when you switch to car number 1 you'll be able arm and disarm the alarm.

fcm

You may also have put it into "valet".

After starting your car with the remote start, you should not need to use it, ["the pager"] to turn it off, just step on the brake, it should "turn off " the remote start.

Also DEI alarms alarm/starters come with a lifetime warranty, [if you got it at an authorized dealer] 94

Eluzion

I had the alarm installed at Car Toys, but I basically have all the wiring/mounting re-done and remote start installed.

We didn't get a chance to hook up the brake switch so that's why I used the remote to turn off the car. I really should probably hook it up real quick, just that switch is way up there on the Integra.

I'll try pressing the program button to "switch cars" and see if that works.

Oh, and speaking of which the pager no longer communicates with the car what so ever. I went tried to remote start my car this morning, nothing. Tried disarming the alarm, nothing. Couldn't start the car because the alarm is armed. I thought to disarm the alarm using the valet switch you're suppose to have the key in the "on" position, but I called Car Toys earlier and they said to just switch it "on" then "off" and press the valet switch... so I guess I'll try that when I get home. They're going to reprogram my remote for me if I can make it there...

Hopefully that is the problem. Thanks for the replies.

Eluzion

I went to Car Toys and was told they couldn't help me because I had the remote start installed and because I basically cleaned up their shitty install. So I guess my warrenty with Car Toys is void and they refuse to help me what so ever.

So I guess I'm stuck on my own. $500 down the drain with an alarm that doesn't even work.

The remote does not work at all. I press a button and it just flashes the "no signal" icon and beeps a few times (like when you're out of range). I took apart everything and made sure no wires were disconnected or anything and everything looks fine. I tried reprogramming the remote (key in on position, door open, press the valet switch once followed by a second time which you hold, press button on remote, release valet switch)... but when I press the button on the remote it just gives me the no signal.

If anyone has any ideas, please post them up. The reason I bought this alarm is because my car was broken into twice in the past few weeks, the second time leaving a bent steering column and an igition shattered into pieces. I had everything fixed at Acura and would really hate having to go through the hassle again. The car is a stock 98 Integra GS.

fcm

OIC, we will not even install that unit, or any unit for an auto trans. in any manual trans car anymore, even if we don't hook up the remote start, and DEI voids warranty on any of their units that are installed into a standard.

To turn alarm off without the remote, turn on the ign. and press the valet/program switch the preset number of times, [1 to 5] within 15 sec.

I would have a very close look at the ant. remove it and inspect for damage, make sure that the pins aren't bent where it plugs into the brain, you may have to "pop" open the head, [mast] and make sure there are no bad solder connections in there, [I have found a few on the DEI ant.] 94

ice_nine_h95

My remote was going south so I bought a replacment on ebay for 85 bucks. Try a 'clifford remote' search and it will pop up. You can all so buy a one pager for the 3.5. This is cheaper than
a purchase through a dealer. The setup procedure is simple. Also look on 12volt.com for a viper
791xv install manual pdf. A replacement remote will work for you.

Eluzion

Thanks for the information.

I guess I'll pick up a new remote. Very frustrating to think this alarm is brand spankin' new and the remote is already toast. I called CarToys to see if maybe they could exchange the remote since it's pretty much broken from the looks of it but it looks like the answer is no.

Whole reason I purchased a DEI is for quality and I was expecting some support when it comes to a warrenty, especially since it has failed in less than two weeks. Guess next time it's better just to purchase it off of Ebay for $200 and install it myself. Live and learn I guess.

suspendedHatch

It worked fine, then you and your friend put the remote start on and now it's messed up. Hmm. Blame DEI? Blame Car Toys? You and your friend need to take everything out again and do it over. That's actually easier than trying to track down a weird problem on such a complicated alarm.

The alarm power input needs to be on a seperate 12v constant source than the remote start power input. Fix that, then replace the fuse you blew. If not the alarm fuse than the fuse for whatever of your car's circuits you overloaded.

Eluzion

I'm not blaming DEI or CarToys.

The alarm worked perfectly fine after the remote start was installed. It was days later the remote started acting up. Like the first message says, the icons were not being displayed properly then the next day, the remote stopped working all together.

"The alarm power input needs to be on a seperate 12v constant source than the remote start power input. Fix that, then replace the fuse you blew. If not the alarm fuse than the fuse for whatever of your car's circuits you overloaded."

Why are you telling me this? Have you read any of the thread? The alarm is fine, no fuses are blown, and everything with the alarm functions properly (doors unlock/lock when the car is turned off/on, able to go into valet mode, etc.). However, the remote does not seem to want to communicate with the alarm no matter what I do.

Oh and I've already taken everything apart to ensure no wires were disconnected/cut. Again, no fuses are blown and all connections are soldered.

Everything was fine. I came home one night, armed the alarm and went to bed. Woke up the next morning and the alarm remote would no longer work. Pager wasn't dropped or anything, just sitting on my desk.

fcm

I agree, if you have checked everything, and its all good, it only leaves the remote as the problem, but before you go and buy one, try Car Toys one more time, there is a one year warranty on the remotes also, and as you have not done anything to it, it should still be under warranty, if they still don't want to help you ask for the name of the manager/owner who will not help you and tell him/her that you are going to e mail DEI, and tell them that just because you rewired the messy wiring they had done on the install, and wired the remote start, they are refusing to help you now, tell them you understand you have lost warranty on the alarm/starter, but your not happy about it, it's a better install now then when you got it installed at Car Toys, but you want it explained how any of that would effect the warranty on the remote.

There is no reason for Car Toys not to replace the remote, it will cost them nothing, you may also want to tell them you will write the BBB and complain and you are prepared to put a sign on your car stating how shitty their work is and how poor their customer service is.

Although I agree that they have a right to void warranty on their install, if it has been modified or changed, [I would do the same] and even void it because the starter is wired, [I would have to also, not because the starter is wired, but because it was wired by a "non authorized person"] but if they try and void the warranty on the remote, [I would not] let the chit fly, I would raise as big a stink as I needed, to have them replace the remote, in fact in my spar time I would park in front of their store with that sign on my car, till they replaced it.

It would be bullshit, if after buying the unit and having it installed at an authorized retail dealer, [even if you rewired it] for them to refuse to replace the remote under warranty. 94

coasterlvr

did you get a chance to try to reprogram the remote? not often but sometimes they lose code. i would try that first before you buy a new remote.

wrx-killer-Sti-eater

iTrader: (1)

^^^^^ did you try that. That sometimes works, also make sure that the ant wire did not get pinched in the install process, If this fails, ship me the alarm and I'll warennty it for you. pay for send and return please. Car toys is also full of crap. You should of lost ur warrenty on your install but not on the product. Rasie a biggggggggggg fusssssssss.

wrx-killer-Sti-eater

iTrader: (1)

Wait a min. you said that you set the remote to vib mode. I think I know what you did. Go back into the controlers program mode. press all four button that will get you into program mode press the trunck button. that will put the controler back into page mode. I think you prob hit the wrong button on your first attempt to turn on the vib. I did it by accident while turn on the back light feature. Check with ur manual and it will explain it in greater detail, I will look for one of my manuals if you cant find yours. But I am pertty sure of this. The back light on the controler will also wear down the battery faster but the orange light is cool.

suspendedHatch

It held together for a few days after you tinkered with it? Sounds highly suspicious to me. It could be something just got jostled around or some insulation got scraped or pinched in the reinstallation process. Sometimes a bolt or screw holding the interior is to blame. I'm not making any negative assumptions about you and your friend, I'm very much pro DIY, but at the same time I'm willing to bet it's your fault.

Not communicating with the alarm in my limited experience is caused by weak power to the alarm or problems with the antenna usually having it plugged into the wrong slot since on some alarms it will fit into more than one slot. Often times other functions on the alarm work fine since things like door locks and remote start have their own power feeds, or the alarm gets enough power for it's basic function but not enough to get a good signal on a high powered antenna. Take from this what applies to you.

Knowing that those remotes go for $120+ retail (or 70+ ebay) I would take a closer look at the other probable causes. I know that both companies are going to try their best to void the warranty, that's just how american companies are these days. It seems like this guy might have your problem though. Good luck.

Eluzion

The first time I went to CarToys they said they could not replace my remote. Of course I talked to some punk kid who seemed to just be more worried about getting me out of the store so he could continue talking with his friend. I went back today and talked to the guy who I bought the alarm from. He is much more helpful and exchanged my remote with no questions asked.

At first it didn't work. When I got home I disconnected the battery and took off the antenna to make sure it was fully plugged in (really wish it would lock in place, just sort of slides in). It fell out while I was trying to get the antenna out so who knows if it was all the way plugged in or not. Anyways, connected everything back together and it still didn't work (tried to reprogram the remote using the valet switch/remote as instructed in the book). Before giving up, I figured what the hell and took the battery out of the remote for a few seconds and stuck it back in (heard this is another way to reprogram it). To my surprise, it works.

So what fixed it? I think it was the remote since it started acting up first then stopped working all together.

suspendedHatch - Yeah, I understand where you're coming from but if you would have seen the wiring they did at CarToys, you would be surprised the alarm even worked to begin with. We seriously spent 6+ hours cleaning everything up, remounting everything, and relocating the brain. It's still not done (the shock sensor is zip tied to some wires... I would assume it would work much better on the actual body of the car like it mentions in the install manual). A few days ago I took everything back apart and went through all the wiring to make sure nothing was pinched or disconnected. Everything looked fine so that's why I really didn't think it was anything I did. All connections are soldered/heat shrinked and/or tapped versus the butt connectors CarToy uses (not to mention butt connectors only using one side).

But regardless, I appreciate everyones input. I seriously thought I was SOL but I guess being patient paid off. Now I can finally install my second backup siren and a backup battery. Pretty sad I have to do all of this for a stock Integra but then again, people in this world are pretty sad (thieves).

Again, thanks for the help everyone and I'm glad it finally works. Lets see if it holds up for the next few days... if you don't see me bitchin' on here then all is well.

Eluzion

On the topic of this alarm, anyone know what the wire color is for the defogger switch on a '98 Integra GS (for wiring up the defogger function on the remote start)? Should be a few of them. Thanks.

fcm

I just checked my Haynes repair manual, and the only reference to the rear window defog switch is in the wire schematic for "Interior Lighting System" and it is for the "back light", [red/black 12V+ in ] and [red ground from "Dash Light Brightness Controller"] and I checked with both bulldogsecurity.com and the12volt.com and, nothing. But should not be hard to figure out, it is a momentary switch, that latches a relay, [like in most cars], relay will delete if ign. is turned off, you turn it off and/or timer runs down or whatever system is used that tells it window is defogged, so all you have to do is pop out the switch, and with a multimeter find the lead that shows a momentary 12V+ or ground when the switch is pushed, then use the defog or "pulse after starting" output from starter to to trigger it, [if it's a low currant ground] or a relay if it's high currant pos. (+) or neg. (-) or if it is momentarily closing a circuit 94

90sedan

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Eluzion &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">suspendedHatch - Yeah, I understand where you're coming from but if you would have seen the wiring they did at CarToys, you would be surprised the alarm even worked to begin with. We seriously spent 6+ hours cleaning everything up, remounting everything, and relocating the brain. It's still not done (the shock sensor is zip tied to some wires... I would assume it would work much better on the actual body of the car like it mentions in the install manual). A few days ago I took everything back apart and went through all the wiring to make sure nothing was pinched or disconnected. Everything looked fine so that's why I really didn't think it was anything I did. All connections are soldered/heat shrinked and/or tapped versus the butt connectors CarToy uses (not to mention butt connectors only using one side).

</TD></TR></TABLE>

That is exactly why i installed my alarm by myself, because i knew that CarToys would do a shitty job. Not to mention charge to much for it all.

How much did it cost you out the door?

Eluzion

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 89-civic-DX &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">That is exactly why i installed my alarm by myself, because i knew that CarToys would do a shitty job. Not to mention charge to much for it all.

How much did it cost you out the door?</TD></TR></TABLE>

$500 out the door. I should have just done it myself. I've nearly redone all the wiring they did and it doesn't seem like anything too difficult (just time consuming). This alarm goes on Ebay for $199.

If I could do it again, I'd probably go with the Compustar 2WASS-AS. The range on the Clifford Matrix is horrible, but besides that it seems like a good alarm.

fcm - Thanks for the info. I spent a good 3 hours soldering up some more connections and rerouting stuff. Also installed the backup siren...still have a little bit of work left so I think I'm going to try to hook up that rear defrost whenever I get around to finishing up. My problem is pulling off the rear defrost button without breaking it. Any tips for popping them out on the Integra?

90sedan

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Eluzion &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If I could do it again, I'd probably go with the Compustar 2WASS-AS. The range on the Clifford Matrix is horrible, but besides that it seems like a good alarm.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

I'm not really pleased with the range either, but oh well.

Costed me $300 with back up siren, tilt, and audio sensor.

eastsidekustomz

yo man, is car toyz out here in Cali?? or you close to the bay area?? if you are swing your car by my house ill diagnose it for you. more than likely you didnt reset it correctly or the code hopping is mismatched with your remote. Happend to me a while back as well. let me know wassup my AIM is TRENINESEV let me know man. p;z

90sedan

He got it fixed, if you read the entire thread you'd notice that he said he replaced the remote under warrenty and the new remote worked.

And the Car toys that he was talking about was up here in washington

fcm

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Eluzion &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> My problem is pulling off the rear defrost button without breaking it. Any tips for popping them out on the Integra?</TD></TR></TABLE> According to Haynes, and word for word' " To remove switches for testing or replacement remove the cluster bezel, depress the locking tabs to remove the switch, (see illustration) shows a pix of 2 hands, [pointer finger of each] "depressing" the "locking tabs" on the top and bottom of switch, [sorry can't post a pix of that] 94

brent1223

My remote is doing the same thing! The battery removal thing worked a few times, but it still won't communicate. If i tap it a few times, it works (one way) but is still doesn't give me any info on the screen... I've taken it apart (maybe a bad idea, but I'm good with electronics) and everything looks peachy... The only thing I can think of is that the curcut board that's plugged into the other one gets loose (but I don't think that's it)... It just seems weird that it only works if i tap it, and only if i tap on the screen, not the side... It gradually went out too, not the whole thing at first, like it stopped recieving, but it would send, the nothing without the tapping..?

Another thing: The wonderful people at Best Buy installed it and didn't tell me the number of presses (1-5) I needed to disarm it and all that, can I reset that? Anyone know?