The 96 hatch I picked up has a DEI viper c70hf. First how to I know if it even works, I dont want to buy remotes for a POS alarm that doesnt even work.

 

the previous owner didn't know if it worked either? ask him.

 

to much of a language barrier

 

You could try playing around with the valet switch, setting options etc., see if you can elicit any sort of response from the siren/LED. That'll give you some sort of insight on whether it's worth it to even try to salvage the alarm.

If no luck, just keep the brain and wires around. Use it as a decoy for when you get a legitimate alarm setup (toss the dead brain and shove wires around plainly visible under the dash) for laughs. :-)

E: Just did a little searching; Found a new transmitter for $32 shipped, then you could program it with the (presumably existent?) valet switch and have somewhat of an alarm. That is, assuming brain seems responsive, which is the intention of this thread.