pretty much title says it all...i want to know how hard it was to install your first alarm....complicated, did you get lost...or was it just the time consumingness of it all?

 

I installed an alarm on my first car. I will never do that again. It was a PITA.

 

lol, if you have no clue what you're doing, very hard, if you have someone there helping you, it's still damn hard, lol, i did my first one when i was 16 with someone telling me what to do, and it was still hard, make sure you have a wiring diagram and a test light if you're gonna do it, and make sure you sauder, good connections make a world of difference

 

I just installed one in my 94 Civic.

It is time consuming, if you want to do the job right. If not, it isn't hard.
1)You will need a tech manual, or wiring schematic. Just knowing the colour isn't enough, because if you do it the good way (i.e. don't use the steering column harness), the wire colour may change.

You want to connect the wires in the most difficult places to access.

Furthermore, you want to rewrap and electrtical tape/wire loom all the wires, so the potential theif doesn't know where they are. This takes ALOT of time, as you are usually in tight space under the dash.

Furthermore, if you are doing hood/trunk pins, door locks, etc..etc...it increases the time.

If you have a weekend to blow, aren't scared dismantling your dash/fusebox, and understand wiring stuff...it isn't a big problem.

I suggest using a digital multimeter, vs a test light.

 

I just put in my new pager alarm, it's not so difficult just time consuming.

 

has anyone done this in particular in a gen3 teg..im planning on installing a new clifford avantguard 4 basic setup...im sure ill have more ?'s as im in the process...maybe ill just pay to have someone do it...but then again they will just install it most likely at the ignition because they are always looking to save time because time is $...and thats why i want to do my own instal so i can hide the wires the best i can...but then again i hate working w/ electronics and i hate tight spaces...so maybe ill have to search around for a good installer

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by vteg &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I installed an alarm on my first car. I will never do that again. It was a PITA.</TD></TR></TABLE>

My first was a 900 IQ (not the 9000) in my own car. I think I swapped it to three different cars. I let it go with the last one and won't do it again. It's really not that hard just a lot of frikin work!!!!!!! I used to do friends alarms until I got smart and added up the hours I had into them. I think I made $2.00 an hr

 

It took me over a week to do my first one, that was by myself with no help, and I only killed on ecu. Do not stick multimeter or tests light probes into the ecu. The second alarm i installed only took 4 hours.

 

i installed my first alarm from 4pm to 4am
then i made a wrong connection and blew out the brain
but i know what i did wrong and i got the new brain now from warranty so i gotta put it in again

 

BEFORE YOU PLUG THE HARNESS INTO THE BRAIN, check the connections with a voltmeter.

YOu should check that the red (12v constant) is at 12 volts when using the black ground wire from the harness.

You shoud check that the yellow (12v ignition) is 12 volts when the key is in the ignition position, and 0 volts when not.

You should connect the red wire to the siren + wire to see if the siren works.
You should check that the door ground wire works.

Basically, check all the wires at the harness first. If you do that, you shouldn't end up blowing anything, and you can make sure everything works before mounting the brain.

 

Well, I am 17 and last year I installed an alarm on my civic. Real cheap alarm, but bought a good sensor. didn't install power locks, lights, or auto start (has to be automatic transmition anyway) And It took me like 2 hours with my friend. Still works, attempted installing power locks didn't work that took 3 hours with no product. Attempt it, great learning experience! I can garuntee that it won't turn out like it would if a pro did it, I did function not form, and I'm glad cause it looks ghetto!!!

 

nothing much too it...just check your connections....my first alarm install I did locks, lights, kill, remote start, and four windows up and down and sunroof open and close...took me like two days...but easy...lots of time....now I'm faster....

 

ya i have a reg. soldering iron but i think ill pay the extra few bucks and buy a soldering gun...make things easier to do...all in all looks like its just time consuming....anyone have good ways to tap into a wire...or tricks to splice the wire mid section and thread it like a needle thru..i dont know if they make a special stripper that does this or just use a knife?...thanks

 

I use the connectors that you can buy at auto zone, 3 bucks for like 15 or somthing. You put both wires side by side and then fold this metal piece over and it cuts through the insulation and connects the two wires.

MY 0.02

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Torridcivic &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I use the connectors that you can buy at auto zone, 3 bucks for like 15 or somthing. You put both wires side by side and then fold this metal piece over and it cuts through the insulation and connects the two wires.

MY 0.02</TD></TR></TABLE>

Another good type of connection is a "T-tap." It's a smaller version of the above that clips around a wire. Then, a male spade is inserted perpendicular to the wire.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by drumking15 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">ya i have a reg. soldering iron but i think ill pay the extra few bucks and buy a soldering gun...make things easier to do...</TD></TR></TABLE>

sometime soldering guns can get too hot and melt the insulation. I have used a gun and an iron, IMO the iron is ten times easier and quicker for this application.

 

GUNS SUCK! They end up not working or not heating the wire because the "element" tarnishs up. Iron's are 1000X better.

And don't say they aren't difficult. It depends on the brand of the alarm, what model, etc, it's all going into and what functions you are hooking up. For example if you're going to use a DEI alarm and want to hook up the siren output to your horn rather than the siren so you have that "factory sound".. you should understand relays or read up on them ahead of time.

If you have a Civic and want to keep the progressive door locks (IE&gt; first press of unlock opens drivers, 2nd press opens the rest) you had either better really understand relays or DEI's 451M, and the whole concept on how to do this. (BTW&gt; This "mod" is a HUGE PITA) I've seen people try it and do it wrong and smoke the ground trace off the keyless entry model. Either my co-worker or I have fixed the grounds on atleast 2 I know of

If you're doing a straight forward basic install, then it's not too hard, just very time consuming