I can see why he would offended in a way, no would like it for someone else to bash their love one fore example a wife/girlfriend.
But like what Space said, those were not the intentions, the comments that came after were different lol.

 

Sorry If I somehow hurt your feelings. I mean its always been a little rivalry and in good fun, no one is really attacking ford saying they suck. Just poking fun. Its the internet.....

 

The article sounds a little vague- its hard to tell if they remote started it when they were going to get the car to pull it around for him (ie work was done, they parked it last)- or if they were going to get it from where he parked it to bring it in for service.

If they went to get it where he left it- then he is 100% at fault. If they parked it last, I would still say he is somewhat at fault (maybe only 10-25% though).

The thing is, the owner knows doing a remote start on a manual is dangerous, and the modifications he's made to the car are still his responsibility even if someone else is driving it, especially if it makes it unsafe to drive. If the remote start system was installed properly, it should have a simple 'valet switch' or 'valet button'- to put the system into a non-remote start mode, and he should engage that anytime he lets anyone else borrow the car, or anytime he takes it in for service.

The guys at the dealer didn't take extra precautions, but they also didn't think he had a ghetto rigged remote start either. You should always assume for the stupidest person when dealing with others (as bad as it sounds).

That said, I don't think there is a 'neutral safety' on them, but I could be wrong. I've driven manual cars before that you could start in 1st (as long as your foot was on the clutch)- so obviously bypassing the clutch switch for the remote start would make that more dangerous. What I have seen done before is remove the center console cover and make a little rack that mounts under the center console that has long arm dip switches- one for each gear, so if the shifter is moved even slightly out of the neutral gate, it trips the switch and disables the remote start. The downside is, there is no fail-safe here, if a switch fails, or falls off, you're screwed. I've also seen it done with a pair of sensors (kinda like a garage door closing sensor pair) that detected when the stick was in the neutral gate. Obviously the average remote start installer doesn't want to hassle with an extra hour or two of work unless they get paid extra.

I did have a friend in college who had both of his legs broken by a car doing this. He was working at Circuit City at the time, and he was installing a remote start on a manual with no extra safety (he had the customer sign a waiver that we weren't responsible); but it just so happened another guy was installing the same remote start/alarm on a car in the bay next to him. Well, my buddy was under the hood finishing the under-hood install (looming the wires to the siren and such)- and the guy next to him grabbed the remote off the bench and started it (he was supposed to be checking his car- but somehow the remotes had got mixed up and they were identical remotes)- so the car lurched forward (parking brake was broken- and he didn't know, but it was in gear)- and it lurched forward and pinched him between the bumper and work bench. He was out of work for awhile unfortunately.

A lot of dealers don't bother installing aftermarket remote starts either. At the small shop I used to work at, he had contracts with 3 local dealerships to install all of their remote start systems (this was back before the bulk of cars came standard with them though). He charged them about $50 than his regular price, and they charged their customers double that (I want to say they were charging almost $500 for a simple remote start/keyless)- and just pocketing the difference. Worked out good for the owner- he had a steady stream of extra cars in the dead of winter and summer; and was making extra money on each- and good for the dealer because they would just pocket an easy $200+ each time for booking a customer for remote start.

 

Whoever installed his remote start should be fired cause a good remote start has a safety feature that would prevent the car from starting should it be left in gear.

 

Yeahhh I heard about this on the Bonneville forum. People are dumbbbb!

 

I reallyyy need to learn to read through all the posts before I post lol

To comment on this, I do not hate Ford at all! Ford is my second choice without a doubt! My bestie has a electric green mustang convertible & I absolutely loveee it, not as much as my monte though Also I would not mind having the new Taurus Sho. So yeah I do not disrespect Ford at all & idk where you live but yes Ford people hate on Chevys. It's just a competition that's been going on for years & it'll probably continue for as long as the two companies exist.

Omg! If that was my monte?! I have a lil temper & I would most def be those people's worse nightmare tbh. I am hella protective of my monte thats why I only let my dad work on it or I'll work on it myself.