Cardsfan17 Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 First of all, I really like my new 2012 Focus Titanium. No serious complaints so far other than the few ocasional problems MyFord Touch gives me from time to time. However, I really don't care much for the remote start. Maybe others can tell me if I'm wrong here, but it seems that you must leave one of your intelligent access keys inside the car for it to work. Thats the only way I can get mine to start remotely. This just seems counterproductive being that you have to tie up one of your ignition keys, not to mention the fact that it just seems stupid to be leaving your keys inside the car in the first place. Not a big fan of having the extra little fob either. Kindof wish I'd never ordered the option in the first place. Anyone else feel the same? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chibana Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 I don't have to leave anything inside the car for my remote start to work. The extra fob is a minor inconvenience, but not big deal to me. The only thing I find annoying about the remote start is the fact that it does that short honking of the horn. I plan to use this in the early morning when I'm getting ready to take my son to before-care before school before I go to work, and I'm sure my neighbors are not going to appreciate that honking at 6:45 or 7:00 AM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SU-FI Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 i was going to get that installed but im leaning toward a viper starter now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emerrill Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 Your dealer messed something up - the remote start is supposed to talk to the computer directly and allow the start. I'm getting around the extra fob because I'm making a cell phone adapter - the remote start fob will stay in the car, with some electronics I'm putting together, and when you call/text it, it will start it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emerrill Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 i was going to get that installed but im leaning toward a viper starter now I would be careful here. If you have a Titanium (pushbutton start), then most aftermarket starters won't work - and I'm not sure if there are any that will. I guess they could theoretically work if you leave one of your IAKs in the car, but then anybody could get in it and press the start button. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ackbar Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 First of all, I really like my new 2012 Focus Titanium. No serious complaints so far other than the few ocasional problems MyFord Touch gives me from time to time. However, I really don't care much for the remote start. Maybe others can tell me if I'm wrong here, but it seems that you must leave one of your intelligent access keys inside the car for it to work. Thats the only way I can get mine to start remotely. This just seems counterproductive being that you have to tie up one of your ignition keys, not to mention the fact that it just seems stupid to be leaving your keys inside the car in the first place. Not a big fan of having the extra little fob either. Kindof wish I'd never ordered the option in the first place. Anyone else feel the same? You do not need the IA key to be inside the car for remote start to work. As emerrill said, your dealer must have installed it incorrectly. However, there is one thing I do find annoying about remote start in conjunction with the push-button start: when you are ready to drive the car after having used remote start, you have to turn off the engine and then turn it back on. There is no way to just leave the engine running if you have push-button start. Whether you tap the brake or touch the start button, the engine will shut off. This drives me nuts, and I pretty much never use the feature as a result (wish I hadn't gotten it). It's a big oversight in my opinion. The Foci with the regular (non-IA) key don't have this problem. They can turn the key in the ignition, and this leaves the engine running seamlessly and allows them to shift into gear and go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 You do not need the IA key to be inside the car for remote start to work. As emerrill said, your dealer must have installed it incorrectly. However, there is one thing I do find annoying about remote start in conjunction with the push-button start: when you are ready to drive the car after having used remote start, you have to turn off the engine and then turn it back on. There is no way to just leave the engine running if you have push-button start. Whether you tap the brake or touch the start button, the engine will shut off. This drives me nuts, and I pretty much never use the feature as a result (wish I hadn't gotten it). It's a big oversight in my opinion. The Foci with the regular (non-IA) key don't have this problem. They can turn the key in the ignition, and this leaves the engine running seamlessly and allows them to shift into gear and go. Say what? Having to push the button one time totally negates the benefits of warming the car up (or cooling it off) before getting in? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
transitman Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 The Foci with the regular (non-IA) key don't have this problem. They can turn the key in the ignition, and this leaves the engine running seamlessly and allows them to shift into gear and go. Not true. I have an SEL and after using the remote starter the engine shuts off when the door is opened. It's a safety/security feature of MyKey. My 2010 Fusion, which did not have MyKey did not shut off, get in, insert key and turn to start, tap the brake and go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 Not true. I have an SEL and after using the remote starter the engine shuts off when the door is opened. It's a safety/security feature of MyKey. My 2010 Fusion, which did not have MyKey did not shut off, get in, insert key and turn to start, tap the brake and go. Supposedly the dealer can deactivate the mykey feature and the remote start won't turn off the engine. Of course you lose the mykey functionality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ackbar Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 Not true. I have an SEL and after using the remote starter the engine shuts off when the door is opened. It's a safety/security feature of MyKey. My 2010 Fusion, which did not have MyKey did not shut off, get in, insert key and turn to start, tap the brake and go. I remember reading something about this in the manual. Like you said, it must be a MyKey feature, otherwise putting the key in the ignition should allow you to drive without restarting, as in the Fusion. Say what? Having to push the button one time totally negates the benefits of warming the car up (or cooling it off) before getting in? No, but it does add wear and tear on the engine to start it twice every time, not to mention the AC and MFT turning off and back on again and going through their startup cycles. It would be nice just to hop in the car, shift into gear and go. If it's for security, it's one of those things that honestly should be left to the driver/owner's discretion. You're typically going to be within visual range of the vehicle to initiate a remote start, and the system requires that the doors are locked in order to start. And of course you can't shift into gear unless the IA is in the car anyway, so there seems to be little to no security issue. It is an annoyance though, as I'd rather not double the number of times I have to start the engine up. So out of care for the engine, I don't see using it very often unless I find a way to change it. I did check all the settings, but doesn't appear to be something the owner can change. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ackbar Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 Supposedly the dealer can deactivate the mykey feature and the remote start won't turn off the engine. Of course you lose the mykey functionality. Good to know, I will ask my dealer next time I go in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 Even though Ford says it's for Security, I don't believe that. I think it's because they built the mykey functionality into the engine start process and it was too hard to get it to work after the engine had been started. So the easy solution is to just shut off the engine and force the user to restart with the correct key in range. That also explains why turning off mykey circumvents the problem. I'm sure they'll eventually fix it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ex220 Posted July 31, 2011 Share Posted July 31, 2011 Wow...has me rethinking this. Maybe I should not have gotten it. I hope to have mine in a month and will post my experience. Thanks all!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zetasoul Posted August 3, 2011 Share Posted August 3, 2011 (edited) I got the remote start option. It is different than all the after market remote starters that I had in the past. First, you hold the button for about 5 seconds and the car will honk once to indicate that it received the signal. The car will start normally. If you try to open the door, the car will shut off. The dealer said that this is normal and that all newer cars do this. I'm not sure if this is true or not. I have the push-button start Titanium, so I don't don't know if that makes a difference. The range is very good. Helps a lot on those super hot days we had. Edited August 3, 2011 by Zetasoul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CourtneyNYC Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 New Member with a question . . .. My dealer has offered to put the REMOTE START in the 2012 Focus Titanium that we picked up on Saturday. If . . those of you who have it . . you had to do it over . . . Would you? Thanks for any help or advise you can provide. Courtney Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zetasoul Posted August 16, 2011 Share Posted August 16, 2011 New Member with a question . . .. My dealer has offered to put the REMOTE START in the 2012 Focus Titanium that we picked up on Saturday. If . . those of you who have it . . you had to do it over . . . Would you? Thanks for any help or advise you can provide. Courtney I would get it if you want your car to be warm in the winter or cool in the summer. Nothing beats starting the car from your warm house and then run out to a warm car in the dead of winter. That is, if you remember to turn the heat on before leaving the car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgretch44 Posted August 18, 2011 Share Posted August 18, 2011 (edited) is it really that difficult to walk to your car? I wish my house was big enough that i couldn't bear a trip to the garage... Edited August 18, 2011 by jgretch44 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chibana Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 I would get it if you want your car to be warm in the winter or cool in the summer. Nothing beats starting the car from your warm house and then run out to a warm car in the dead of winter. That is, if you remember to turn the heat on before leaving the car. Agreed. I haven't used it much in the summer (I also have tinted windows, which helps quite a bit in keeping the car cooler). I got it for the winter, since my Focus sits in the driveway (garage is full of minivan and RX-8). I'm hoping this will help with the fight to get the car windows scraped off in the mornings. I wish the system wouldn't honk the horn when it's started remotely, though. That may keep me from using it, since the yards are small in our neighborhood, and I don't want to wake neighbors every morning at 6:50 AM. When I have the car in for its first oil change, I plan to ask them if the honking feature can be disabled. I always start it when I'm looking at it, so the flashing of the lights is enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ihalterman Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 I got the remote start option. It is different than all the after market remote starters that I had in the past. First, you hold the button for about 5 seconds and the car will honk once to indicate that it received the signal. The car will start normally. If you try to open the door, the car will shut off. The dealer said that this is normal and that all newer cars do this. I'm not sure if this is true or not. I have the push-button start Titanium, so I don't don't know if that makes a difference. The range is very good. Helps a lot on those super hot days we had. I have a 2012 SE with mykey. My remote starter is the same way. Hold the button unitl the car honks, but if you read the instructions that come with the starter, it says bush start button twice to start, and hold it to shutdown. On top of this, you are supposed to be able to do a "quick stop" With the engine running hold the start button until it honks, turn the ignition off and get out of the car leaving the engine running. That feature does not work. I also have the common unlock the door and the engine shuts off issue. I'm not sure if these can be fixed by reprogramming it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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