Mazda MobileStart vs. Aftermarket Remote Start

J

jcpharm

Member
:
2016 CX-5 GT AWD/ 2016 CX-9 GT AWD
Wondering if anyone has experience or knows (better than me) the pros/cons of going with Mazda Mobile Start (MMS) vs. an Aftermarket remote start product like Viper SmartStart. the local dealers here will charge $800-900 for the install (incl. parts) for MMS whereas i can get a Viper SmartStart installed for $500. seems like a no brainer to do aftermarket based on price, but wondering if i am missing something they both have subscription fees (Mazda $65/yr - 1st year included in install vs. Viper is $69/yr or $139/3-yrs). Both can done from your smartphone so no extra keyfobs needed.

Appreciate any advice.
 
If you don't want extra keyfob and don't need the Mobil app start feature there is a module by fortin that will allow you to remote start from factory keyfob. It's limited to the range of the keyfob though, so basically line of sight.
 
Howdy JCPHARM,

I have the 2016 CX-5 GT with both packages and had the MMS installed at Port. It was something that I'd wanted
for a long time so I made sure to have it when negotiating the deal. At the Time I didn't want the older style remote start
with a 2nd Fob, nothing wrong, just wanted the new style and thought it would be neat to have the phone app. The Phone app
takes about 4 mins to get the car started after signing on, and then typing in a 4 number pin number. It works really well and I've
been pleased with it. I have to say I've not used that much, hoping to give it a good workout on an upcoming RoadTrip.

Having said that, I think if I were to do it again, I'd certainly look into the one that Ride 92 brought up that uses the main Fob and if I remember correctly
you push the lock button 3 times to start it up. No annual fees, no 4 min wait, and I think line of site is plenty of distance for control. I'm not sure of the cost, but I don't
think from what I remember it was more than the MMS from the Dealer when buying.

Also, the MMS is very intrusive as far as Installation, so that was another reason why I didn't want my Local Dealer to even attempt it, and so
glad after I saw what was involved in the install. Just another thing to consider and I'd certainly not pay a local that kind of money to do it. I had one of the bidders
try to add that in on me and I was like why would I pay you to do something that you've never done and can have installed at port for basically nothing more than the
original cost.

You might search an see if you can find who was getting the Fortin unit. Also, the Viper Unit sounded really good as well, still had the annual fee but I don't think the
install was as intrusive as the MMS plus the cost of the Unit was much, much less than the MMS.
 
MikeM. said:
4 minute wait?? (boom02)
Click to expand...

Howdy Mike,

Yes, it takes about 4 mins to get it to start.

When you click on the app, and then sign in, it takes a min or so,
then click on what you want to do, Start, Lock/Unlock/ Def On/ after than
it takes a min to connect, then it comes up with a 4 digit pin, after putting
that in, it takes about a min and the car starts. So, I think the best was 3 mins,
the worst 4 mins.
 
I have the remote start with the extra key FOB. Mazda price is $825.00. I plan only to use it at home on cold, snowy mornings, so the extra FOB will sit on a shelf. It was part of deal when I bought the car. There is no monthly fee. The Mazda remote start app is only about $350.00 install with first year free, then you have to pay a monthly fee, which I found really stupid and 4 minutes to start, now I'm really glad I didn't go that route.

Again, I didn't pay a dime for mine, got that and rain guards thrown in for free, plus other stuff.

You have to watch aftermarket electronics installed in cars nowadays. Make sure you use a shop that really knows there stuff.
 
Last edited:
When I got my 2016 GT in late July, Viper did not have a working mobile start solution for the vehicle. Maybe something has changed there; Not sure. Vipers website did indicate it would work on the 2016, but it did not, and when calling them out on it they said " well, the security part works but not the remote start" Awesome. I ended up going with the Compustar security plus remote start. Very happy with it. The phone app feature works great, and there are some cool add on's like having the car unlock when you approach it. I find that very helpful, but it's not required.
 
andyg said:
When I got my 2016 GT in late July, Viper did not have a working mobile start solution for the vehicle. Maybe something has changed there; Not sure. Vipers website did indicate it would work on the 2016, but it did not, and when calling them out on it they said " well, the security part works but not the remote start" Awesome. I ended up going with the Compustar security plus remote start. Very happy with it. The phone app feature works great, and there are some cool add on's like having the car unlock when you approach it. I find that very helpful, but it's not required.
Click to expand...

Thanks everyone....Andyg, was it Viper themselves that told you the remote start doesn't work on the 2016 GT or your aftermarket dealer? my aftermarket asked for my model year and make and he said it would work....but i didn't specifically ask him which Viper system he was talking about (i assumed SmartStart, but we all know what happens when we ASSuME).
 
andyg said:
When I got my 2016 GT in late July, Viper did not have a working mobile start solution for the vehicle. Maybe something has changed there; Not sure. Vipers website did indicate it would work on the 2016, but it did not, and when calling them out on it they said " well, the security part works but not the remote start" Awesome. I ended up going with the Compustar security plus remote start. Very happy with it. The phone app feature works great, and there are some cool add on's like having the car unlock when you approach it. I find that very helpful, but it's not required.
Click to expand...

Howdy Andy,

I'd completely forgotten about the Compustar that you'd found, and were happy with,
after the problems with the Viper install.

Glad to hear things are working good !!!
 
jjp735i said:
The Mazda remote start app is only about $350.00 install with first year free, then you have to pay a monthly fee, which I found really stupid and 4 minutes to start, now I'm really glad I didn't go that route.
Click to expand...

Its $65 annually, not a monthly fee. It also only takes ~1 minute for me, its going to be dependent on your mobile phone connection at that time as well as the location and surroundings of your vehicle.
 
It was Viper via their Twitter account. The aftermarket dealer spent a few days trying to get it to work, and could not. They were on the phone quite a few times with Viper as well to no avail. Finally, Viper said it wouldn't work. Again, that was in July so it is certainly possible they have come up with a solution by now, but I would be very certain before moving forward. I do think the Compustar is a great system and has been flawless since installation.
 
andyg said:
It was Viper via their Twitter account. The aftermarket dealer spent a few days trying to get it to work, and could not. They were on the phone quite a few times with Viper as well to no avail. Finally, Viper said it wouldn't work. Again, that was in July so it is certainly possible they have come up with a solution by now, but I would be very certain before moving forward. I do think the Compustar is a great system and has been flawless since installation.
Click to expand...

Thanks andyg...which model Compustar did you get? and how does the smartphone connection work? is that called DroneMobile? is that separate from the module installed or is that the name of the module to install?
 
interesting update: talked to the Compustar dealer near me and he says the firmware for the 2016 CX-5 has not yet been released so it cannot be installed yet. Would it be any different than the 2015? they have the same powertrain (or so i thought).
 
efini said:
Its $65 annually, not a monthly fee. It also only takes ~1 minute for me, its going to be dependent on your mobile phone connection at that time as well as the location and surroundings of your vehicle.
Click to expand...

Morning Efini,

That's great to know about the Speed of Start, we're out in the Country a little and
have AT&T so not sure if that's why our's was so slow. Hope so, cutting the Speed
down 50-75% would be great.

Thanks for the Info !!!
 
I have dealer installed MMS. Was around $400. It's great. With the FOB you at least need a line of sight. With this I can start my truck from anywhere.For safety sake the car will shut off as soon as you open the door, by that point car is comfortable. You can also locate vehicle on map. I negotiated for this in the deal. It turned out the dealer put in the wrong one with the extra key fob. I complained, they removed the first one and installed the MMS.
The time it takes is simply the app communicating with your vehicle from whatever sattelite it is using.
 
Sorry for the delay-- I have been on vacation. I chose the Pro 1-Way G7. The phone app is called DroneMobile, which is an Android or IPhone app that incurs an annual fee, several choices depending on how much functionality (bells and whistles) you want. check out compustar.com -- there is a lot of good detail there. Also some good videos of the DroneMobile in action on youtube.
 
jcpharm said:
interesting update: talked to the Compustar dealer near me and he says the firmware for the 2016 CX-5 has not yet been released so it cannot be installed yet. Would it be any different than the 2015? they have the same powertrain (or so i thought).
Click to expand...
Compustar and their mobile app been working fine in my 2016 since July. o
 
UPDATE: went to my aftermarket vendor/install place: they sold and installed an aftermarket remote starter and the Viper Smartstart for $500 not including the SmartStart subscription (which is $69 for one year, or $149 for 3 yrs). it works fine. the only slightly weird thing is if you remotely start the engine with the smartstart or remote keyfob, the mazda keyfob is overridden and cannot unlock the car. you must either use the app or remote keyfob. but at least this remote keyfob is pretty small and fits on my key chain easily unlike the ones that Mazda was using prior to promoting MMS. all-in-all it is a nice system and i'm glad i can remotely start my car now with the Viper system.
 
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