Alarms/anti-theft devices

[blue_can]

Never really thought about this as I live in a relatively safe neighborhood (don;t think anyone has anything stolen in years) until the other night when someone tried to steal a neighbour's 4runner at 4:30am. The alarm woke them up and the potential thieves ran and jumped in a truck and sped off.That got me thinking about getting an alarm system and maybe some form of tracking system. Lojack? GPS tracking?Any sugesstions on devices and systems out there worth looking at?

[mixer]

I used to install Stellar alarms and Remote starters. So since I had a few left from the old days I installed the Stellar ST9900 in my Vibe. While any security system will help to deter most theives I would look for one that has a variety of features. Most alarms that have the option for power window roll-up can be made to close sunroofs as well. Another feature to look for would be what I have in the cargo area, doppler radar sensor. No it doesn't detect approaching storms, LOL, but it does sense any movement close to the rear hatch or any of the rear windows. So if someone would get close like they are trying to look inside it triggers 2 loud warning chirps one time then if tripped again the alarm goes off. Of course if you want to go James Bond style there are many alarms that come with pagers or even call your cell/house phone if someone triggers the alarm. Hope this info helps. It all depends on how much you want to spend. If you are a do-it yourselfer there are tons of alarms on Ebay. Just watch the sellers ratings and make sure it is high/reputable.

[VforVIBE]

This is why I pay insurance... it's their problem to deal with...Sadly...Quote, originally posted by a police officer »If the thief wants the car, they will get it. PERIOD. I, too, have seen cars drug off and onto flatbeds w/ winches. It's easy and takes a good tow driver 30 seconds. If their plan is to steal the veh and hotwire or break the column, a Revelco alarm won't be beat. I don't like two keys either. But, you know when and where two keys might be nice if you know what I mean. You don't have to use them all of the time.I understand the comment on pager alarms. The outcome depends on the owners actions. Does the owner look outside to the restaurant parking lot to see the thief breaking into the car and does the owner see he is a w/m 25 600/185 w/ brn hair, goatee, wht shirt, blk jeans, blk shoes getting into red Honda Civic 4dr w/ license plate ABC-123 so he can inform police right away with the info and direction of flight? Or, does the owner not call and decide to run out after the supect/s to try to stop them getting shot/stabbed/assaulted in the process? Or, another one yet, what if the owner ran outside and caught the little *******?This all depends on the owner. I know if I had a pager alarm, I'd be out the door full speed w/ my .40 in hand ordering them on the groud before I shot their @ss. I usually carry, so a pager would do me some good. On most of these car burglaries, no one EVER sees anything and we have nothing to work with unless we get lucky on a traffic stop and the driver has certain items that don't belong to him....like a wallet w/ anothers id or golf clubs, power tools, ripped out radios, a guy who has a purse, and the list goes on and on ( these items are usually combined). A good eye can catch certain things on these stops. It happens that we catch the burglars this way.On a final note. If you all don't want your car to be broken into...it's easy.BE SMART AND DON'T LEAVE ANYTHING OUT IN PLAIN VIEW!!! This INCLUDES the floor boards. Burglars look for opportunity. All it has to be is a bag. Put the stuff in the trunk. Did I say I was seriously looking forward to a trunk earlier??? A lady told me, "I thought putting my purse on the floorboard would be better than putting it on the seat." I was like, you might as well have just laid it back on the seat. They look down there too....

[WaveAction]

ya it's sucks..no matter what you do, or buy for your car, nothing can stop someone from stealing it regardless.i've wanted to by this GM security box, where you gotta use this little scanner in order to start the car.

[blue_can]

Well yes that's true - you cannot really stop it - the idea is to at least make it harder and more uncomfortable for them to steal it. How about electrified door handles at a high voltage. That would give them a nice shock

[WaveAction]

lol, that would be awesome, have it so it's set up that when the doors are locked, the handles get charged with say, 5000 watts?? not sure what a good number would be so it doesnt kill them but still gives them a good jolt.but after all if they want it..they can bust the window open and still open it from the inside..lol

[blue_can]

Yeah it's basic ohm's law - you place a voltage across the body and the body acts as a resistor. The current passing through interfers with the heart's pacemaker and also the nerves - that's why the muscles bunch up when you get a shock. I believe about 1-2 mA is enough to kill.Anything above 80V is enough to give a good jolt - enough not to want more. Since the current draw is negligible it maybe possible to power it off the battery without any significant current drain - as long as the charge is there.Of course the issue would be to discharge the handles before unlocking the car or you are going to also get it..LOL