A remote start system set up specifically to keep a dog safe in a parked car. We call it the Hot Dog 1000. The name is a joke; the problem it solves isn't.
What it actually does
An ordinary remote starter runs for 15 minutes and shuts off. That's fine for warming a windscreen and useless for a dog waiting while you're in a shop.
This system runs the engine and your vehicle's own climate control for 45 minutes per start, with the doors locked and the key not in the car.
The 45 minutes never has to run out
This is the part that matters. One button press on the 2-way LCD remote resets the timer back to zero. Another 45 minutes, from wherever you're standing, without walking back to the car.
The remote also shows you the cabin temperature before you decide, so you're reading a number rather than guessing. In practice that means the runtime is as long as you need it to be.
The one condition: you have to be within remote range to reset it, which is up to 3,000 feet. That covers a supermarket, a coffee shop, a vet's waiting room. It doesn't cover being somewhere with thick walls or several floors up.
If that's your situation, add DRONE smartphone control and the limit disappears entirely — reset the timer and check the cabin temperature from anywhere with a signal.
Winter matters as much as summer
Hot cars get the headlines, and rightly so. But in Ontario a car parked at −15°C cools to dangerous in about the same time it heats to dangerous in July. Short-coated dogs, puppies and older dogs feel it first.
This system works both ways, because it's running your vehicle's actual heating and air conditioning, not a separate fan or heater. Set your climate control before you leave and the cabin holds around 20°C whichever direction the outside temperature is going.
What's in it
Built on Compustar hardware, which is what we fit and warranty ourselves:
- Compustar control module with 45-minute runtime configured
-
Q9 2-way LCD remote, up to 3,000 feet, showing cabin temperature, confirming the engine is running, and resetting the timer on a button press
- Interior temperature sensor
- Starter kill, so the vehicle cannot be driven away while it idles
- Vehicle-specific bypass and harness
The part other sellers won't tell you.
A passer-by who sees a dog alone in a parked car does not know your climate control is running. People call the police. People break windows. They are usually trying to do the right thing.
This system does not change that, and no system does. What it changes is the actual risk to your dog, and your ability to see the cabin temperature without walking back.
Telling people what is going on before they act is worth more than any equipment — a note on the glass with your phone number does more than a locked car and good intentions.
Who this is for
People whose dog comes along by default. Errand runs, the drive to a trailhead, waiting between rounds at a show or agility trial, a long drive with stops along the way. If your dog is in the car more days than not, this is a different proposition than if they go out twice a year.
It is not a system for leaving a dog unattended for hours, and we won't pretend otherwise.
Fitting it
We install these at our Markham shop with a lifetime warranty on our work. Fitment depends on your vehicle, so search your vehicle or call us on 647-439-4485 with your year, make and model and we'll confirm what yours needs before you commit.
Shipping across Canada for DIY installs, configured before it leaves us.
