GaryM

Had a Clifford 600 alarm installed by GAP a few months ago and thought I would give you a laugh by showing you some pictures of the installation.

The alarm was fitted by a sub contractor to GAP which I believe is the normal mode of operation however the senior GAP engineer who uninstalled it said he didn't think it was such a bad job.

I can laugh about it now but wasn't laughing at the time!!


Piccies

Big Goon

Had something very similar done to my STi by Orpington car stereo in Poole, except that as well as doing a hideous c600 install they also made a real pigs ear of a job on my Ice.

I also had no steel cage, not bolted down, no fuel guard, dual-zone not working etc etc. [img]images/smilies/mad.gif[/img]

On the Ice install they taped/grouped the RCA's and power leads together down the side of the car. [img]images/smilies/mad.gif[/img]

Then they took the new speaker cables from amp back to the head unit and spliced into the factory wiring to go from there to the crossovers in the door because it's impossible to feed quality cable thru the door hinge grommet.

Also left the crossovers dangling, the tweeters dangling and when the windows were wound down the speaker wires pinged off the speaker terminals.

And then they failed to bolt the car back together properly, at least 8 screws left from various parts of the dash/trim etc so everything was rattling. [img]images/smilies/mad.gif[/img]

Orpingtons are also VSIB approved, so I think the lesson in future is to ask around and get some reccomendations before deciding to use an 'approved' installer. [img]images/smilies/mad.gif[/img]

chiark

Bloody hell!

This sort of thing really annoys me; glad you've got it sorted.

(BTW, this is just the sort of complaint that we can and should have on scoobynet - factual, non-libellous, non-insulting)

Freak

Chiark...can i repost what you edited in my other post the other day....'potentially libelous content?'
these pics are shocking!

AndyMoody

iTrader: (2)

I've heard some bad reports about GAP too, certainly won't be using them although they are very close to me. I'm gonna travel up to Leeds to get my Clifford 500 installed to my MY03 when I get it.

Andy.

GaryM

Big Goon, you must have been gutted...I know I was...I think that upstages my tale of woe :-)
How did you get it sorted? Did you let the VSIB know about it? I couldn't even complain to the VSIB as GAP were no longer accredited by them.
When Max was checking out my installation I knew things were bad as it only took about 30 seconds for him to spot the ECU problem. I then watched him shaking his head and making incredulous noises for the next couple of hours as he meticulously examined the car. (Free of charge!! I think he took pity on me..cheers mate :-)

I did manage to get GAP to uninstall the alarm and get a refund without too much trouble once they had received a call from Clifford, which was the only good thing about the whole affair.

Chiark, I noticed your post in the other thread so was especially careful :-)

AndyMoody if you are thinking of going up to Leeds I have no hesitation in adding my recommendation of Max as an installer.

Big Goon

Gary,

Yeah I was gutted, I was fed up with being fobbed off and took the car for a second opinion to another shop and was stunned when they showed me the quality of the install.

In 15 years of installing Ice it was the worst job they had ever seen, they took pictures and filled a sheet of A4 paper listing all the problems.I think they kept the info as a kind of 'Hall of Shame' thing.

It took me 2 weeks before I could go back to Orpingtons because I was so full of rage and knew I was going to do something stupid, so took some chill out time before confronting them.

Yes I got my money back, but they are still VSIB registered and Clifford still have them down as an official dealer/installer.
If there had been any problems getting my dosh back then I would have got trading standards involved, but they decided to hold their hands up and come clean.

I got an e-mail from Max after he read a post about my troubles, he gets absolutely nothing from me and yet finds time to send me a message explaining some technicalities, if only he wasn't 5 hours away.

I see that from your post that Max even managed to plumb in your wirless fuel guard, my fitters said that they couldn't do it and that even the Clifford rep says that hardly anybody bothers to fi t it, not sure about this ?

GaryM

I had the opportunity to see one of the ways in which the fuel guard can be installed and to be honest I cannot understand how this could be considered difficult, especially compared with the complexities of installing the rest of the alarm. I don't think I am giving too much away when I say its just a small box with a few wires sticking out of it
Maybe someone with more knowledge than me could comment (any fitters out there) but I would just walk away if a fitter told me it was too difficult for him to install.
I also think its unbelievable that a clifford rep said that to you.
Were you given the fuel guard unit if they didn't install it? If so get it fitted by someone else. I think its a great bit of kit.

Glad to here you got it sorted in the end though.

Bye the way I live in Kent...about 4 1/2 hours from Leeds

Gaz Jones

A mate had gap fit him a clifford, nothing worked properly. The alarm locks the doors but doesnt open them...
also the lights on the car dont always work.

I beleive that gap have now been stripped of their vsib status,

Clifford told my friend to just get the alarm re wired and bill it to gap.
my advice is ask around and use someone that comes recommended.

gaz

philz

I had my CC300 fitted by GAP and they did an excellent job, it just depends on the individual installer, some are good - some are bad.

clifford god

I have removed your message as it was libellous with no fact to back it up.

This is just the sort of complaint that we do not need and should not have on scoobynet - libellous and insulting.

Regards

Alec

[Edited by Alec - 3/26/2003 9:10:16 AM]

GaryM

Philz, glad to hear you got a good job done and I am sure that there are some decent fitters out there that pick up jobs from GAP but as you imply the problem is you don't know who you are getting when the guy turns up.
Has he just been expelled from alarm school or is he a real pro who won't leave the car until he is happy.
If I am spending £700 on what I think is the best alarm out there then I don't want to take a gamble on whether the fitter knows the difference between positive and negative and the only way to do that is to go by recommendation and use an individual you know is an expert
The guy who fited mine had been working with GAP for months. How many others are driving around with alarms fitted as badly and as dangerously as mine was?
At the end of the day I am just adding my story to those already mentioned on this forum as it may save others some pain.