I want to upgrade to an aftermarket alarm for my 2000 SE. I want sensors for motion,windows, hood,etc. included in the system. I've heard our alarms don't go off if someone breaks the side window to reach in to pop the hood, as long as the door is not opened.
Anyone have suggestions? Which alarms are better? I'm willing to spend up to $500, as I don't want some cheap a$$ alarm, that doesn't actually work/function better than our stock ones. I posted here cause I figured I'd get more feedback, so mods please don't move this. Thanks for any and all
input.

 

check out Viper alarms

 

Good suggestion. Viper is made by DEI ( Directed Electronics Inc. ) DEI is a fortune 500 company, so you know that they have a lot of money for R&D. In any case. The stereo shop I used to work at sold these alarms, and they work great. You'll have to forgive me, but I haven't worked at that shop in like 6 yrs,( so I may be a bit out of touch ) but every stereo I have came from them, as well as every alarm system....Viper. For the money, excellent value, and very reliable. Like many things that we do in life, if done properly, will give you many years of reliability. Installation plays a huge role in how well electronics function, as well as, how long they function. Anyway, For the glass protection, I would suggest a glass breakage sensor. This differs from a shock/impact sensor because it doesn't detect somebody physically hitting the car, but rather, it's a microphone that picks up the tone of glass braking. As far as the hood protection goes, have the stereo shop use a magnetic swith rather than a hood pin. Reason being, hood pins are usually made from some sort of metal pin, but after time, this pin will rust, then your hood sensor won't open when the hood is released. Magnetic switches, at least the ones from Viper, are plastic and are sealed, therefore, taking away the chance of rusting and malfuntioning due to the elements. If you're concerned about somebody reaching their hands in the car, an interior radar sensor would work. I personally don't recommend these because they're a ***** to tune properly, and there are a few factors that affect how well they function. They also lead to a lot of false alarms. False alarms lead to you thinking that the alarm doesn't work properly and is "just going off again." Which leads you to disregard when your alarm when somebody may actually be fu--ing with your ride. Other suggestions: BACK UP BATTERY ( if power source is disconnected, alarm draws power from another battery ). INTERIOR SIRENS ( if somebody is trying to figure out how to hot wire your car, might as well try to make him deaf. Careful on this one, if the guy does go deaf, he might sue you for that....really.) RELOCATE ALARM BRAIN( 95% of car alarms are mounted under the steering column area, and theives know that. You can have your stereo shop extend the wires, wire loom everything like OEM, and mount the brain under your seat or in trunk. ) THE CLUB ( It's a pain in the a-- to use daily, but anything you do to make the thief think twice about hitting your car is worth it. ) Anyways, I hope I've helped a little. Remember that nothing and no matter how much you spend, can guarantee that your ride will not get broken into, BUT, you need to try your best. Shop around! We also used to carry Clifford, Alpine, and Beretta alarms. We found that Viper just worked the best (reliable) and was the best bang for the buck. Good luck!

 

Wow!! Thanks BRAN808 for the info. I've heard nothing but good things about Viper alarms, so that will be my first choice. I like the idea of a back-up battery. Where would be the most secure place to put it? Hidden in the trunk? I've seen some alarm remotes that have an LED screen, that shows what door,or hood/trunk is has been opened, I think I'll get that feature as well. Any other info/comments/feedback? Thanks in advance!!

 

BRAN808 - Thanks for the write-up... Now that maxima's are the 2nd most stolen cars - a nice alarm sounds like the way to go. I have seen the Viper alarms in action and they are great! I am thinking about getting one myself and will definitely use some of your suggestions.

Thanks!

 

Should I consider an auxillary hidden alarm horn? I've heard that is a good choice as well.

 

on the back up battery idea, whats the pros and cons. i was looking into it do to the system i invested in and alot of techs gave me the same answer. they said to properly install a second battery you need it to be in a customized location do to fumes, not to healthy in general. i would like to hear if anyone has installed or actully had installed this set up.

 

With all of those companies being the same DEI makes viper, valet, clifford and such..... i sell the Clifford alarms and am having one installed on my truck real soon they are great. The one im gettin has a LCD 2 way remote that will warn you of break ins. there are a lot of accessories for this alarm tho some being; remote start backup battery siren, auto window rollup, and glass break sensor. so whatever you want to add on can connect right to the brain.

 

No problem, that's what we're all here for...to help each other. Also, the b/u battery can be mounted pretty much anywhere. It's different from a regular car battery, so from what I remember, ventillation is not an issue. I would probably suggest somewhere out of sight/out of reach...ya know what I mean. As far as the remote, yeah the newer and higher model Viper alarms come with the LCD display. If not, all alarms can show you which sensor was triggered by the # of times the LED light flashes. 1 flash for doors, 2 flashes for shock sensor, that kind of thing. I have my LED's mounted on the doors, so if any theif looks in, the LED's are flashing right there in his face. It also shows that the alarm in my car is not just your average hook it up and mount the LED on the steering column cover kind of alarm. The back up siren is kind of cool too, because usually the first thing thieves do is break in, and pop the hood, then cut either the power wire, or the siren. In which case, you got both of those backed up! Hope this helps. Also, a good way of checking what alarms work well, is when you're shopping for alarms, ask the owners and employees of the shop what they use on their own cars. Let them know that you're willing to spend the money for a quality alarm and installation, what would they put on their own car. If you got any other questions, let me know. I'll try and help in any way possible. Too bad you don't live in Hawaii, I could get you the hook-ups at my old shop. They do great work and back up their customers.

 

I've talked to a friend of mine who has a Valet alarm system, it looks and works good. LCD remote shows which part of car is being tampered with: hood,doors,windows, trunk.His opinion was that Alpine made some of the best alarms, and that they cost $$$$. He also thought Viper and Valet were very good choices. He suggested the following options when buying my alarm,

1.) Motion sensor
2.) Wheel/suspension sensor- if the thieves start jacking up the car,alarm goes off.
3.) Window sensors.......breakage and shock
4.) Back-up battery.......placed in unusual/secure location
5.) Back up siren...........placed in hard to get at location under car
6.) locating Alarm ECU in unusual location inside car
7.) Hood lock

What else should I consider?

 

does anyone have the clifford aventguard G5?

 

from what ive been researching, g5 technoogy, while good, isnt AS GOOD as g4. after DEI took control of clifford, they kinda streamlined things. i have a g4 on my old car & am trying to decide whether to take it off or buy g5. the avantgaurd is a great alarm, just not as feature packed as its g4 counterpart. IMO

 

i know its an OLD TOPIC...But how is python?

i know DEI owns them as well as viper, but my cousin just had a python 2way system installed in his car a few days ago, and im thinking of getting one installed as well..i also see that on the viper and python models...i dont see a keyfob with the trunk latch release button. I was wondering if i would use my capability to pop my trunk latch remotely

 

Computar !!!!

 

Python,Viper and Clifford Matrix are all one in the same. They have dedicated trunk release outputs.

 

Personally I feel you could probably do without the motion sensor and go with just the tilt sensor (option 2 on your list). If they tweak that motion sensor you could be in for along night. I had one installed along with the tilt sensor and it got very windy the night it was installed. Needless to say being woken up several times of the night due to false readings was not good. I instantly had the motion sensor disconnected (it is still in the car) and just left the tilt sensor. I also have the battery back up and window sensors. As far as an additional hood lock, I think of it in this way, the only way they can access your engine bay area is by either getting inside the car (at which point your alarming should be going off) or somehow popping it from the outside (which will require enough force to trigger the shock and set off the alarm),it's an available option but is completely up to you if you think you need it.

I think you have all your bases covered with what you listed.

 

Personally I feel you could probably do without the motion sensor and go with just the tilt sensor (option 2 on your list). If they tweak that motion sensor you could be in for along night. I had one installed along with the tilt sensor and it got very windy the night it was installed. Needless to say being woken up several times of the night due to false readings was not good. I instantly had the motion sensor disconnected (it is still in the car) and just left the tilt sensor. I also have the battery back up and window sensors. As far as an additional hood lock, I think of it in this way, the only way they can access your engine bay area is by either getting inside the car (at which point your alarming should be going off) or somehow popping it from the outside (which will require enough force to trigger the shock and set off the alarm),it's an available option but is completely up to you if you think you need it.

I think you have all your bases covered with what you listed. I have a Clifford Matrix 3.5.

 

thanks alot for all the insight fellas, ill probably get the Python alarm system installed with that Color LCD....the local shop in my area is charging 700 bucks for EVERYTHING, even for the remote starter bypass...u think 700 bucks is a bit steep?..........or is that about right?

 

Its a fair price from a retailer that you trust.

 

dunno if u have went with an alarm yet..... but i have an 03 mustang cobra vert that i use the clifford g5 and had a 75 impala that u could steal with a screwdriver on 22s that i had a clifford g4 protecting..... both alarms do what u mentioned u want and have a cool feature called black jack that requires a code to be entered to drive the car or it wil die after about a minute and be dead in the water with the alarm blaring even if the theif has the keys....install for me was 5-600 bucks.....