I first want to throw out that i am an full fledged novice when it comes to car electronics. I'm curious though what would be involved with installing a radar alarm unit. My questions are, would i need an entire aftermarket system to install a radar sensor? what are some good brands, and are there any resources i should look into as far as a good place to start getting knowledge on alarm systems?

 

if you are thinking about installing it yourself I would have to ask you to reconsider. Security is one of the more difficult areas in installation and I didn't even start alarms till I had been installing for almost a year and done hundreds of the basic installs you need to know before you get into alarms. A great alarm with a bad install can leave your car unable to start and you stranded in the worst case scenario. Security means you will be cutting into the critical circuits in the car and if you do not know the right wires or how to make good connections you can make a hell of a mess....

As for prox sensors, I guess you could power one up with out the alarm but with out a siren or something to trigger the sensor really doesn't do much good. I had a prox sensor in my truck years ago and would only do it as long as you have the option to turn that sensor off from the remote if you need too. All you need to do is park under a tree on a windy day or some of the sensors can actually react to the heat waves that are created in a really hot car. The worst thing your alarm can do is to constantly have false alarms as you and others will just not pay any attention to it after a while.

As where to learn about them I do not know where to direct you there either. There are a number of great manf from compustat(I have now) to dei which has been around for ever. Honestly if you want to learn what alarms have now, go check out your local shop(not best buy)