Start your car with your iPhone thanks to Viper SmartStart

Yes.

There is an app for that.

It is flippin’ genius.

Here’s how it works.

It’s 7am and you’ve just been woken up by some gentle harp strumming from your iPhone.

You have a look at your email.

You check out Twitter.

You put your iPhone down and you head off for a shower then get dressed.

[You live somewhere crazily cold — somewhere in Mid-America, right?]

You look outside and see it’s a gloomy, ‘orrible, flippin’ cold day.

As you put your bread in the toaster, you reach for your iPhone and bring up Viper SmartStart.

Here’s what the app looks like:

Yup. It’s connected to your car.

COME ON.

You tap the START button on the application.

Outside you can hear the roar of your Range Rover as it starts up, gently humming.

You butter your toast and have a look at the news on the Telegraph iPhone app.

You pick up your briefcase, iPhone and car keys (just.. you know, for the fun of it) and you head out to the car.

Your car, having been humming away for 5 minutes, is beautifully warm, de-iced and ready to rock.

You smile.

Love it.

Absolutely LOVE it.

You can, as you’ll have seen from the app itself, control the trunk (or ‘boot’ as we say in the UK), along with the car’s central locking (LOVE IT!) and the always-useful panic mode.

And of course, you can control *multiple* cars from one iPhone.

All you need is a car that has a compatible ‘remote start’ function. If you’ve got that, then you need to pony up $299 for the extra module and — bish bash bosh — you’ll be able to control your car from your iPhone with the free app.

If, like me, you don’t have remote start on your car, then you’ll need to get the $499 option. Fair enough.

You’ll also have to pay the $29.99/year service charge (the first year is included in both options).

You’ll probably also want to get somebody to professionally install the system.

If you’re in the States, pop over to your local Best Buy for more details.

And if you’re not in the States… tough. Although I’m sure this will go international shortly.

Check out the site for more details: http://www.viper.com/SmartStart/

I think this has shot straight into my top ten brilliant iPhone applications.

Provided you’re in the mood for a very ‘American’ introductory video, check out the Viper SmartStart product video here (“iPhone… check!!!”):

Cheesiness aside, this is brilliant. Just brilliant.