Okay - I have a 2002 Ford Focus, considering a Prius C2. On the Focus, if the windows are fogged up in the morning, I will start the car manually, turn on the front and rear defrost, lock the door (with mechanical key - engine running) and then wait inside until the car warms up (I have two keys for it, obviously). Is this feasible on a Prius since the car decides when to run and turn off the ICE?
in most cases, when its cold, the prius will run the engine for a while. if you turn the heat on high then the engine will run even longer.
If you have the Smart Key, the car will beep at you when you exit the car and close the door. Ignore it, and just lock it with the mechanical key.
I had an aftermarket remote starter put in my 2012 c when I first bought it. Think I paid about $600 for it. Had to get a third key fob that they installed into the car, though that fob by itself won't let you drive it. Ended up not using it much because I forgot at the time that I was trying to minimize gas usage, and remote starting it would defeat that purpose. The second issue was that the way the remote starter worked, it would shut off the car after I got in it. Was annoying to have it shut down, only to have to start it back up. Needless to say, I didn't get a remote starter for my liftback. That's not to say it wouldn't have its uses, especially up north in the winter. But I figure I'll just put up with the cold for a while, and there's always the heated seats function...
aftermarket remote start paired with the original keyless start is a real pain in the back. the remote start will turn off as soon as your enter the door.
I have a Compustar remote start installed on my 2012 PiP. It turns on the system, and the engine then proceeds to warm up. I'm not sure it's possible to program it to keep the engine running longer. I usually run it twice just to make sure it warms up the car when it's very cold. It doesn't seem to be possible to get the defrosters to stay on when the car starts, so I select the manual mode which splits the airflow between the floor and the windshield. That's easier on the glass anyway; less chance of thermal cracks.
I looked into adding a remote start on the Focus: (There should be a link to a Bulldog RS-1100 on Amazon above, but I'm not seeing it.) Least expensive I could find (someone had it clearanced for $20), but I didn't want the hassle of wiring it in. On the Focus, for the front defrost - it would work automatically, I just would need to put the (manual) HVAC in that mode on shutdown the night before. The rear defrost is more complicated (Bulldog's tech support said): I could wire in a relay and then the defroster would come on with the remote starter, but ... It woudln't turn on the indicator light on the dash, and it wouldn't automatically turn off after 15 minutes - so I would need a toggle switch to turn it off, and then I would need to remember to turn the toggle switch back on when I stopped so the defrost would work next time. It would ALWAYS turn on the rear defrost with the remote start, so I would need the toggle switch anyway - (if for example I used the remote start in summer to cool the car off - which I don't do).
On the newer cars, it's best to bite the bullet and hire an installer to do the job. There are modules and over-rides required, which may be beyond the expertise of most self-installers.
