After some research and talking with some friends, I've begun wondering if it's worth it to even get a car alarm, other than for remote start or GPS tracking type features. It seems like people are generally numb to car alarm horns now and a determined thief will steal your stuff regardless of any alarm.

I live in a fairly low crime area and I've added my aftermarked equipment to my insurance policy, so I'm wondering if I should even bother with an alarm. It would be kinda nice to have remote start, but most alarms that have that feature seem to cost $300 or more, plus installation.

I'm curious to see the opinions of folks here. Thanks for any input you can provide.

 

Thats why you get an alarm with a remote pager, so you don't have to worry about anyone else responding to the alarm.

 

I can understand that, but anywhere other than my house, it might take over a minute to get to the car. Wouldn't the thieves be gone by then? =)

 

i thief isnt going to know if you have a pager alarm or not, there for you have the element of surprise. also an alarm MAY discourage a thief from breaking into your car, vs not having one at all. so i'd say get the alarm with 2 way pager capabilities. me personally on my max i have a viper 791xv. remote start, and 2 way pager alarm... ive had it for 2 yrs w/ no problems, or breakins...

 

A local place quoted $1000 average for an Avantguard G5 installed (Alarm + install with all the features). I realize this is the cream of the crop, but is that a normal price? Seems like a grip.

 

wow...python 881xp from CC=500 plus accessories and tax. find a local place and have them do it up with a clifford matrix 3.5rsx. For $1k better come with a guard dog IMO.

 

Unless they have a tow truck they won't be taking your 99. The alarm is a deterrence only. It should only go off if something impacts the car (shock sensor), opens the door, trunk, or hood. I would at a minimum get a glass sensor. It's very easy to break your window (w/out triggering the shock sensor), pop your hood (most installers will not voluntarily install a hood pin), and pry your battery cable off the battery. It can be done quick enough to keep your pager from alerting you. A perimeter sensor is nice too but can become annoying in certain areas.

 

It is a great deterence, but nothing will stop someone that is truly determined to steal it. Although in a parking lot full of course, the one that would be targeted last would be the one(s) with the alarm. No thief in the world wants to draw attention to themselves, regardless if any bypassers care or not.

I think the G5 would be overkill for you, unless you have some really high end equipment that your overly concerned about. A simple RS3.5 would do the job fine.

 

Currently I have around $3k or so in car audio equipment, but I'll be adding the Alpine NVE-N872A at some point soon. I like the gps recovery feature though, but since our ignition uses those chip keys, I wonder if it would be necessary.

 

I believe they also make alarm systems with sensors that can detect the car being towed, but I would think only people with late model cars and/or thousands of dollars of mods would have to worry about a tow truck stopping by. My car is worth about 5k or so with 800 worth of audio equipment so simple 2 way pager with shock sensor and starter kill does the job.

It would be a good idea to spend some extra time with installing the alarm or find someone who is highly talented at alarm installs that won't just slap the brain under the dash and duck tape some wire together. Also you should relocate the inside hood switch and trunk switch; make sure everything is bolted down and well hidden and sleep good.

 

take the white part of the spark plug, put in a bag and throw it against a windshield. the windshield or glass will shatter without setting off the alarm.

Hop in and your free to take whatever you want

or you could flat bed it

Best thing to do is have some nice hidden/multiple cutoff switches, or a steering wheel column lock.

 

Thanks detective Avi...

 

I just learned how to break in a car. Thanks a mil. You should see how easy it is to break into probes. I locked my keys in there and it took me less than two minutes to get them back. Without scratching or breaking anything.