Im constantly worrying about my car because we have no garage space, therefore i have to park it in the street of my neighborhood. My paranoia probably comes from it being my first self purchased vehicle and all the hard work i've put into its details and maintenance. Not to mention my once peaceful/safe neighborhood has gone downhill growing up with lower class "thugs" moving in. Nothing like DUB'd pickup trucks parked on front lawns, Corona's and wife beaters...

It pains me to walk away from it every day on my walk to my door step, I choose to park it about 4 houses away because there are no tree's in that area to shed pollen/sap/leaves. (really ticks me off after a detail)

Anyways, what are some of the things you've done to keep your baby safe and easy your mind with a sense of security?

YOU NEVER WILL!

Air horns on the viper alarm ...done deal

I lie in bed at night, worrying about whether I remembered to set the alarm because I do so every day out of habit and often don't definitively remember doing it. For about 10-15 minutes I lay there thinking about it, then I get up and arm it again just in case. Then I lay there listening to every tiny noise hoping it's not car thieves.

I wasn't this paranoid until our neighbor across the street's boyfriend's car was stolen - and it was parked in her parking with fence on two sides, her house on the other side, and her car parked behind his. Those thieves even ran over an electrical box to get his car out, so since then I've been extra paranoid that they'd be back for either my or my husband's Max.

I don't think there's really any way to still the paranoia.

works for me!

Full coverage insurance plus additional equipment ins.

I cry myself to sleep. Then I'm thankful once I see it again in the morning.

a good alarm(with an immobilizer), loud *** horns, backup battery(for alarm not car), lojack. other then that there isn't much you can do.

the easiest way to defeat a car alarm is to crawl under the car and wack off the + battery terminal from underneath. it's honestly not that hard. no power no alarm sounds.

Haha, I have all of this. And I'm still paranoid because if my car gets stolen, it'll get paid off, and that's it. I'm technically upside down, so I carry GAP, but I'd still have to come up with a down payment for another Max, and the chances of finding a well cared for manual trans in my area are slim.

You could always move.

any maxima from 99 on really isnt going to get stolen because of the NVIS system unless they put it on a flatbed or they have a key chip on the sensor for remote start.

there is a civic up the street that has been broken into like 3 times in the last 10 months, it just pray they dont want to mess with the max.

any of you guys remember the guy who got his 5th gen torched a few months back? that is my real worst nightmare

I have AIG who recently changed to 21st century ins.I'm gonna throw them to the curb b/c they like to take gov't bailout money,AND MINE to use for their company massages,facials and such.Any ideas?recommendations?

i lay in bed and listen to every single noise. and like the other member said, i sometimes get up and re-arm my alarm. im a light sleeper too so that makes me happy. lol.

I sleep in my car.

i have a garage.

Alarm with pager with a good cutoff, a RUGER or be nice and get a sluger LOL....

You can't be serious lol. If you have insurance and a decent alarm you'll be fine. Etheir way if someone wants to vandalize or attempt to steal your car. Very little will stop them.

Me too.

honestly, all i've done is the club and a prayer.. i have a stick, so chances are most of the young thugs in my neighborhood don't know how to drive the damn thing.. so that's a plus.. but if you're really paranoid, i would have some kind of aftermarket alarm system with an immobilizer and a KILL SWITCH.. i think that will help the most

I guess your not the only one that sleeps in the car.

i live in a safe neighborhood.

for you, make friends with the cholo's living next to you so they can keep an eye out for your car when youre not there. buy em a case of Corona's each month for watching your car lol. think of it as extra security.

well i live in a place similar to that but it have a bunch of college apt complexs around my house..so their are students and their cars everywhere but i have a driveway..and a back yard..to get into my back yard i have to drive thru my neighbors driveway cause the sapce between my house and the house next to me is to close for me to drive thru..so if someone tries to take my car one its a stick not to many folks now a days can drive one and my car is a headache to start and if they et it started the have to drive past my window to get it outhe back yard and thr a sea of college kids crap..in my prime i ran a 4.2 400 and a 47 sec 400 meter run so being that form my house to the ends of eachside of the block is 200 meters i can pretty much catch em before they get to far away..and make their face beat up my hands

drive a beater, problem solved permanently.

I live in a gated community, but I still worry about my car. More that somebody will hit or scratch the car. Without it in my garage, I don't think I will ever be at ease. And the Corona's can get expensive. Just add a train horn as your alarm siren....

Agreed. Besides, Maximas aren't in the top 10 most stolen car list anyway. I was a lot more worried when I had my Accord. The Maxima is a nicer car than my Accord was but most years the most stolen cars are Accords.

The castle law here in Texas would allow me to shoot anyone who breaks into my car anyway.

I have Liberty Mutual and I really like them. When the Max was hit by a truck in a parking lot, they were really helpful and sort of walked me through what to do with the other driver's insurance company. Any time I call them their reps are polite and helpful which is definitely rare these days.

If you are eligible though, hands-down go with USAA.

As far as security goes, we're friends with the people across the street and the people next door to us, so we have a sort of watch group which is nice. It's just that we've got a abandoned building behind us which causes some wandering, drinking juveniles and we've also got a ghetto gas station across the street from our fence. It's enough to make us nervous WITHOUT the neighbor's boyfriend having his car stolen from her house.

I don't worry since I know everyone in my neighborhood, the good and bad people. If someone tries to steal my car, and wakes one of my neighbors up, they are liable to get shot at. Very reassuring if you ask me

i have to park my car across the street from me because all the parking around my building is either permit parking (which due to stupid laws i cant get) and metered parking. the spot i park in has a meter but its broken lol so i dont have to worry about getting up at 8 and moving my car to avoid tickets. but also a plus to that spot is that its parked at a perfect view from my bedroom so im at ease. i check to make sure its fine ever so often lol

get a mossberg

"safe" is the worst kind. Coming from living in a LOT of differant neighborhoods i learned that the theives usualy live in the "bad" areas and steal from the dults that think that they live in the "safe" areas cause they are easy targets.

... somthing to think about next time you think you live in a "safe" neighborhood


P.S. - i park 2 in my garage, 1 in the driveway.

This is my favorite answer so far. Also what i have always done. If everyone is watchin out, then the likelyhood of anything happening is slim. ESPECIALY if you befriend the "bad" element as they will tell their friends not to mess with your stuff!

We install extra blue LEDs in the a-pillars. They flash whenever the key is out of the car. Doesn't matter is the alarm system is off, or the doors are unlocked. There is a simply LED hack for 5th Gens and we use a little homemade circuit for our 4th and 7th Gen Maximas.

Most of the A-holes in our town will pass if they think the car is alarmed. Why risk it when so many others aren't.

Quote: Full coverage insurance plus additional equipment ins.

I know this thread was originally intended for non-garage owners, but the obvious solution for anyone concerned about leaving his car parked outside is to stay in school so you can eventually afford to buy a home with a garage (preferrably in a nice neighborhood and at least a 2-car garage).

Of course this is a long term solution, since getting a decent degree and building a career to be able to afford a nice house will take several years to accomplish. Although, in our current market, homes are still super cheap in lots of places. And interest rates are at (almost) all-time lows, so this is a great time to buy a house with a garage.

Oh yeah - I apologize for sounding like your dads.

Oh, wait, I'm sorry. So you are saying here that those of us who don't have garages 1) are ghetto 2) are uneducated 3) don't park in the garage because we don't HAVE ONE. and 4) haven't completed/dropped out of/etc of college. You're also assuming that those of us without garages "can't afford" a house with a garage and you're assuming that if we all go to college (which you've previously assumed we didn't) we'll make enough money to buy a house with a garage. You don't sound like MY dad, that's for sure - my dad has the good sense to not make moronic assumptions based on a couple things people posted on the interwebz. ANYWAY!! Since I wanted to make a point here.

1) Just because a house doesn't have a garage it doesn't mean it's ghetto. Here in Albuquerque, a lot of older houses were built in such a way that they don't have garages. They're not cheap and they're certainly not ghetto. They just don't have garages.
2) Plenty of educated people don't want to live in a house with a garage because they don't want to deal with the yardwork and whatnot. Sure a garage would be great, but then you have to deal with maintaining the yard and landscaping. They joy of education = you get to decide where you want to live.
3)Personally, I HAVE a garage. I need that garage for additional space. I would love to park my car in there every night, unfortunately I just bring myself to store our toolbox in the street along with our Christmas tree and all of it's ornaments. I can't say for sure, but I bet it'd a lot easier for someone to steal our mountain bikes and roller blades if we stored them outside, too. Most houses in New Mexico don't have basements; therefore if you have a good amount of stuff to store, the garage sometimes has to be it.
4)Plenty of college graduates choose to live in homes that require little to no upkeep like apartments and townhomes. While secure in the knowledge "I COULD buy a house if I felt like it... but it's a lot nicer to live in this townhouse and not have to deal with mowing the lawn, raking leaves, etc." Plenty of people who can afford a house "in a nice area with a nice 2 car garage" DON'T WANT THAT. The perks they have by not living in a single family detached may overrule the desire for a garage. If that's the case, more power to them. Who the hell are you to tell anyone how they are/aren't living their lives, spending their money, etc. You're making some pretty big assumptions here in your response, which, OH YEAH isn't on topic with what the original poster was going for. And one final thought - what about people who have their garage full of project cars? Should they go to college and get their degree so they can buy ANOTHER house with ANOTHER garage and use that?! Read this freakin' thread pls. Most people sound like they're doing better than some others, financially, like "I live in a gated community." /rant

Hey, I admitted that I knew this thread was intended for non-garage owners in the first place - not you NOR I. I was merely providing the obvious solution as to how to get a garage IF you want one for your car.

If you want to live in NM and leave your car parked outside where it is exposed every night to the elements and vandalism, knock yourself out. It's still a free (well, sort of, thanks to GWB) country.

Reread the OP's post, SBPM. He's the one `worried about his car because he has no garage space.' You obviously don't care about garaging your cars. Many of us do - just one of the many reasons my cars last so long and look great. Again, it's a free (sort of) country.

I used to park my cars outside in lots a LONG time ago while I was saving for my first house and paying back those college loans. Now, I can't imagine living in a home without a two car garage (nor a full basement and attic, for that matter). To each their own.

I live in a military neighborhood here in NC. Vandalism/Hooligans not found.

Vandalism/hooligans can and will be found in all races/classes/sections.Including Neighborhoods.


http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/01/15/...=ib_topstories

http://www.wnct.com/nct/news/crime/a...dealing/26180/

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpag...53C1A961958260

http://www.wnct.com/nct/news/local/a...pearance/26330

http://www.wwaytv3.com/node/10168

Those are Marines .. and in Camp Lejeune. Most of the folks that I know that's stationed there have said that it's one of the worst in terms of shady activities.

I live near Fort Bragg (soon to be Fort Bragg Army Airbase FTW). The Army folk here are much more timid than the ones over there in Camp Lejeune.

Neighbor to the left: Retired Army Master Sergeant
Neighbor to the right: Retired Lieutenant (sp?) in the Medical Corps
Neighbor across: Tank Commander
Neighbor across to the left and right: Currently deployed, Army, 82nd Airborne
Neighbor two houses down: Apache Pilot
Neighbor six houses down: A10 Pilot