After Market Alarm Problems
 

I bought my Miata in 1989 in California. When I moved to the midwest years ago and the temperature gets into the lower teens the aftermarket TDS alarm system drains my batters. I'm tired of dealing with it. Mfg seems to be out of business. Does anyone know how to completely disarm the alarm. I unhooked the connection to the battery years ago and didn't know until now that even though I don't hear the alarm anymore it is what is still draining my battery.

Really appreciate any input that will help.

PS I love my Miata as much today as I did 23 years ago when I had to wait 3 months for it to get the blue one.

I had the same problem with a Clifford Intelligard 8000. It drained the battery because it would occasionally take 640 mA whereas the dark current from the battery (the current with nothing on) should be around 20 mA.

First, locate the unit. Mine was zip-tied to the hood release cable. But you can't just unplug it - the ignition switch start and run is usually taken through relays in the alarm so it can stop the car from being started. Find the connections and put them back as they were. You may have to add wire to splice them together - the wiring to the ignition switch does not have any excess length. Then at least, it will not keep you from starting your own car. You can unplug the unit after this.

This left three connectors hanging down from the unit, but since one was a four-pin connector for the starter and ignition, I could remove it immediately. I put up with connectors hanging down by the clutch pedal for a while then decided to remove every trace of the installation. I went through every connection and found that the wires in the car's harnesses were stripped back and the connector wires were wrapped around them then wrapped in tape - no solder or vampire taps. Because of this, I can't say whether the installation or the unit was faulty, but I don't care - the 2001 has an immobilizer and that is enough protection for me. And thunderstorms always set off the alarm, so I don't plan on putting it in anything again.

My car came with a Viper that I haven't had the guts to try to remove because of the immobilizer functions that are wired into the harness. One day I will, but not yet. The best bet would be to try to get an installation guide for the particular unit you have and then work backwards through the installation process without missing a step.

The site for everything electronic on a car is:

Car Alarm, Car Stereo, Mobile Video, and Cruise Control Info for Installers

They have a section on car security with a forum where I found the installation guide

Car Alarms, Security and Convenience

The site is difficult to navigate, but almost anything you could want is in there.

You can also look here:

Technical Manuals Online! - Telephone Manuals - Comdial, Norstar, Mitel, Trillium, InterTel, etc...

They have 7 entries for Viper alarms.

Amptramp, you just made about a thousand friends. Thanks for the tip.