I find it interesting that I too thought that the Remote Start was for cold regions, but I bought my car in the San Francisco Bay Area at Hayward Toyota and it is NOT a "cold region" by any stretch. So I can't figure it out... except that I am out the $595.00 because I'll never use the feature. Oh well, I guess it's the price I pay to get my TCH now and not in 4+ months.


Rod

remote start is not included in my region, OR. The funny thing with the Camry, I wonder, is if remote start just turns the electric system on or if it actally starts the ICE.

The two times that I have tried the Remote Start, it just starts the electric system and not the ICE. I'll let you know what happens when the temp. dips down and I attempt the Remote Start this coming winter. It may take a while since the temp here in the San Francisco Bay Area doesn't get that low most of the time! Which is sort of my point on why my TCH came with Remote Start when it was shipped to the S.F. Bay Area? I was told by the dealer it was because of the other options I got (leather, nav system, moon roof) that they "all" come with Remote Start when you get those other options. What options did you get on yours?

Rod

I cannot recall if Toyota includes CA into the same "region" packages that OR is but on the high end packages here, heated mirrors, heated leather adjustable seats, moonroof, are the notable options, and NAV. I asked why in Oregon would they ever include heated mirrors since most of the state gets at most 2 days of weather that freezes on the mirrors. The response was that my region package was made to suite OR, AK, WA, ID, MT, some seven states and that heated mirrors are a must in Alaska.

Several of the dealers insisted to me they were getting a lot of piecemeal option packages, not consistency with things smattered all about. I don't know if this is true or only that they haven't figured out the packages yet.

Personally, I decided to go with the Prius so far. Strange, I know, and I have a post upcoming for those that may be curious as to why one would ever choose the Prius over the Camry.

As I said, my base model came with heated side mirrors, and I'm in southern California! But the dealer didn't request the $30 mirrors to make any money, believe me. That's just how Toyota ships it.

My loaded TCH ($30,589 MSRP) does not have remote start, only the standard keyless ignition. I can't see the advantage in a remote start when the ICE never kicks on until you put the car in gear, if then.

I'd be curious, when you do start the car remotely, will the electric A/C kick on to cool the car?

That is an interesting point. I had been thinking about the remote start for wintertime, rather than summertime. It seems that the electric A/C would be able to run in that situation.

I am curious about the activation of the remote start. Is it built into the standard keyless entry fob? Or is it a seperate remote?

CGameProgrammer, the Remote Start is available even on SoCal cars. I found it on a couple of dealer allocation sheets while I was still shopping, even though it is rare.

Steve Villatoro
www.stevenvillatoro.com
“An enlightened guide to small business mastery.”

The remote start is built into the standard keyless entry fob. The instructions say: To Start Engine, press the Lock button twice within 2 seconds, then press & hold the lock button for 3 seconds.

To Stop engine, press the unlock button or press & hold the lock button for 2 seconds.

Rod

Okay, I guess ya'll need an Alaskan to help out on this subject

Remote start could easily be a dealer added option. There's an aftermarket installer up here on every other street corner. I'm sure a dealer system would be substantially more integrated, and given the SS/SE system might be as simple as a software feature "enabled" by dealers. That being said, I've read aftermarket systems are even possible on the Prius.

They work by turning the car "on" - then whatever you had the climate control set to, whether auto, heat, or A/C, will cause either the ICE to kick in to generate heat, cool the prius, or use the electric A/C compressor to cool the Camry.

By the way, quite a few of the new GM cars (like Impala) are coming with this feature as well, built into the key fob. These are really good because they'll kick heat or cool up to MAX automatically, then when you get in and insert the key, they'll revert to your own settings.

Aftermarket systems also have two-way paging features, to tell you the status of your car while you're inside the office. They also have have modes to automatically start the car if the temperature drops below a certain point. I've heard in national media like "Car Talk" where people call in saying their car starts automatically, and the host doesn't beleive them and can't figure it out. It's usually due to a car that's migrated south, and the new owner's don't have the fob or know anything about the system. Pretty funny, unless the car's parked in a garage!