Viper alarm issues

479xv remote. Alarm/remote start. Got it installed back in 2005. Old battery kept going dead and randomly alarm will only arm and disarm, but not lock or unlock doors. Got a new battery today and same problem. Just unhooked ground and now it works. Also, remote start won't fully start engine when locks not working. Just keeps trying. Before battery replacement 3 led flashes and now 5. Sound like an ignition wire problem? Audio shop changed the ground wire bc I went to top post and just left old one clipped still in there. Is that dangerous? Don't really have time till next week tou address issue. Thanks.

What vehicle?

Shouldn't matter about the old ground in there, as long as they changed it on the other end too.

Might be a program issue. Is it a GM car or truck? May be a bad mod. Where are you located?

2004 gmc Yukon. Mobile,al

That Yukon required an interface module that would control the doorlocks, and the Passlock II system. It may need to be reprogrammed. it could be made by DEI, idatalink, Xpresskit, or any other company. You'll need to find it and get the model number. If there are any local shops around, check one of them out, they should know what to do with it.

Some mods can be programed by had and some need to be flashed with a computer. Best thing would be to have a good car audio shop check it out for ya. They might hook you up for free to gain you has a customer. Some shops will charge around $50. to do it. If you need a new mod you may be looking in the $100. range

I doubt the module lost it's flash. Probably needs to be reset, then ran through the programming portion, which is done at the end of the install.

RM, I keep the idatalink modules in stock. If you don't have any luck locally, I can hook you up with one of those. You'll have to wire it in, the press a button to program it, but I can send it to you flashed for the Yukon.

Hey John, how are you guys doing out that way? Did you guys have a good Christmas rush? Things are kind of slow out this way, even Christmas sales were down this year. The car audio market doesn't seem to what it used to be.

I can't keep up with the remote start installs. Car audio is dead in my town, and most of the local shops have closed up, if they don't have anything else to fall back on, such as custom home audio installs. My shop is a little different though. Me and my partner do this on the side from our normal jobs. I'm on a swing shift at an industrial facility, and only work half the month. I have weeks off at a time, so I can schedule around that and keep everybody within a 2-3 day waiting period. The beauty of the whole situation is that our shop is private, by appointment only, and there's no extra overhead of a storefront, etc.... We've got several car dealers, a local boat dealer, and other places that refer business also. I say we're doing good, but it's not enough to support the extra costs we'd encounter with a separate building, insurance, power bills, and payroll. Especially when everyone know's how to use Google and ebay. Most of the brands we carry are exclusive to dealers only and are very strict with internet sales, so we don't have much competition with the products we carry.

What area are you in? With what I said about Google, it's killing the car audio market. I've got an Escalade out there right now that I'm in the middle of installing a Pioneer Z120BT into. He bought every single part off the net. Came in with an extra OEM harness, then was missing part of the Axxess harness that he bought. He may have saved a few bucks, but now has extra parts, and will have to find the other part of the interface harness and then spend more money. That's what I hate about people buying off the net. NO warranty, wrong parts, and no customer service to tell them they're buying the wrong parts.

Thanks for the help. For now it's working and a new. Stinger 725cca battery isn't going dead so for now I'm good. I could have gone to auto zone but went to audio unlimited here in mobile bc I wanted to support a local business and the only one in town who hasn't screwed up an install for me.

I hear ya John, eBay and online slums are killing the market. We are out in Northern California and it's getting hard to keep up with all the online junk. Try to give above average customer service to please the consumer and keep people coming back through the doors.

I hear ya Chas, that's exactly what keeps us going. Lots of "word of mouth" in our area that expands our customer base. Mojo must've picked the right place, I've heard a lot of negative things lately on teh forums about the local shops ripping them off. The thing is, the local shops take care of all the questions, tech support, and any small things for nothing.

If you know anything about south east car audio you know who 404 motorsports was. They did my install and did a great job. Sadly they were shut down for transporting blow coast to coast. I found out a few months after I received my truck back and wanted to doi more but couldn't get anyone to answer the phone. So don't build hidden compartments and use your shop to launder money