In February, I traded a 2010 Prius for a 2018 HEV EX Touring Graphite Edition. The new Prius interiors just did not do it for me. So far I have been very satisfied with my purchase except for one detail. The dealership I bought from has told me the warranty may not hold up if I have an aftermarket remote start installed. So I asked them about an OEM remote start. Kia stated there is not an OEM remote start available for the Niro. So I should not have an aftermarket remote start installed and there is not an OEM remote start available. Does anyone else have a Niro with remote start or know when an OEM remote start will be available? I was looking for a 2-way which gives a remote start fob indication that the vehicle had started. It was very convenient on the Prius and I do miss it.
Remote Start
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You can get something similar with the plug-in hybrid, UVO eco lets you pre-heat the seats or pre-cool the interior of the car. But other than that, no, nothing yet. Not sure how much sense it makes to remote-start a hybrid anyway, I'm surprised Toyota did something like that. Did it start the engine itself or just activate the climate control systems?
It makes perfect sense, especially for a hybrid like a Prius. Once the remote start in energized, the engine turns on and runs until warm and heats up the interior of the car. The engine turns off once it reaches operating temperature but the car is still "running" and keeps the interior warm. The engine starts up again if it begins to cool and more heat is needed. This is more efficient than a pure gas car with remote start which has the engine run constantly.
Couple reasons why remote start would be completely pointless...
1. Since the whole purpose of remote start is to heat the vehicle up in winter or cool it down in summer, the app based pre-heat and pre-cool pretty much replace that.
2. When you 'start' the car, the engine doesn't start anyway. It starts up the HVAC and such but not the motor...so trying to remote 'start' the vehicle would pretty much do nothing that isn't already being done by the app.
Ok, first off, a pre-heat or pre-cool app is not available with the 2018 HEV EX Touring Graphite Edition. Second, the ICE does start after a short time to bring the engine up to operating temperature. Once the temperature is reached the ICE turns off if not required. So you see, an OEM remote start for the 2018 HEV EX Touring Graphite Edition would be a nice addition as was installed on the traded-in Prius.
There is a difference between an HEV and a PHEV. There is not a remote start option in the UVO eco app app for the 2018 HEV EX Touring Graphite Edition so pre-heating using that app is not an option. Let me re-state my original question to the forum - Does anyone else have an HEV Niro with remote start or know when an OEM remote start will be available?
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I repeat: No, and no.
You have to state it a first time for you to repeat it. Anyone else have any useful information?
HEV? Never. No point. I assume what you are really interested in is cabin HVAC preconditioning, not merely having the car run through system checks (which is what happens when you hit Start). Kind of defeats the purpose of efficiency other than for cars with a plug. For ICE only cars, sure.
I traded in a 2010 Prius which had a remote starter and believe me, it was a luxury to go out to the car after work and have the cabin warm on a cold winter evening. The Prius ICE would start to warm up and the climate control would then warm the cabin. Once the engine reached a certain warm temp it would turn off until the engine temp dropped at which time the engine would restart. This has to be more efficient than an ICE only car that has the ICE running continuously and worked on the Prius for over 7 years. I would think the Niro would work in a similar manner.
Let me use your terminology... Car starts and runs through system checks and the ICE starts to warm up because it is cold outside, warm cabin HVAC preconditioning is achieved by the car's climate control system, the ICE turns off when the ICE is at operating temperature but the car is still 'on', repeat from 'ICE starts to warm up because it is cold outside'... All I need is a remote starter for the 2018 Kia Niro...anyone heard of one being available?
I just got my 2019 Niro in November 2018 - - there is a Dealer Installed Remote for the Niro. But it's around $450 or $500 and you add another remote device to the smart key device. So now you carry around two remotes. I would have paid the $500 but I can't put 2 remotes into my pocket - - to much bulk.
Would you be able to provide additional information on the Dealer Installed Remote for the Niro? My dealer stated one is not available. I am not sure if this is because I have a 2018 HEV Platinum Graphite Touring package or not. I can at least give the info you provide to my dealer and see what they have to say. Any assistance/info is appreciated.
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We had an Arctic Start remote start added as a dealer option when we bought our 18 hev. Works like a champ. Under 300 installed.
Yes I did it in this thread. Works great.
https://www.kianiroforum.com/forum/9-kia-niro-general-discussion/7565-added-remote-start-kia-key.html
https://www.kianiroforum.com/forum/9-kia-niro-general-discussion/7565-added-remote-start-kia-key.html
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