Conference terri::cars_uk

    
    The bleeper idea sounds good.
    
    Personally having had my alarmless car broken into I do wonder if
    they'd think twice about raiding my new alarmed car. I doubt it, but
    I have considered the alternative of putting my new car in the same
    place and then lying in wait with a baseball bat...
    
    They MIGHT wake up when the alarm goes off... 
    
    Mark

I really doubt the usefulness of car alarms - they just seem to serve to 
irritate people...
You must have heard them going off in car-parks etc. - did you give the car a 
second look to see if the person stood next to it was breaking in or whether he
was the owner having accidentally set it off? People just ignore their wailing 
sirens (except when they go off at 2am). I suppose if I could recognise the 
sound of the one on my car I might just rush out of the house on hearing it go 
off - by that time the person breaking in would have fled; but I bet the 
damage to the car would have been done by then.

Perhaps the choice of 'for or against' depends on what you keep in the car:
an alarm may save valuables that are regularly kept in the car (eg on bussiness).
However if the alarm's used to prevent people from stealing the car you may be 
much better of with a good steering column or handbrake-gearlever lock (having 
a removable stereo could be handy too)


...art

    I'm for car alarms. 
    
    I've only had a false alarm once in 6 or 7 years.  When I picked up my
    latest new car, the alarm wasn't fitted, it was fitted 4 days later
    along with a new window and radio.  The 4 days that I had no alarm cost
    the insurance comapany dearly (and my time).
    
    Having said the above, my main reason for wanting an alarm is to stop
    joyriders taking the car.  Most joyriders can't get around the ignition
    disable circuit on alarms.  The last thing I want is a wrecked car.  A
    professional is going to take the car, alarm or no alarm.
    
    I believe most car thefts are not by professionals.

    The best car alarm you can get is two attack trained rottwiellers that
    weigh 12st each that have not eaten for a week?????.

    Re previous. I have got a shitsoo that hasn't had his tea will it have 
    the same effect
    
    

I've got one in the Alfa, but it came with it.  That said, I think I'd save
the $600 this one cost and put a blinking red led on the dash in future - same
effect.  The car was towed (when owned by the previous owner) and the alarm
went off when they jacked it up, so the tow-truck guy just cut the wires to the
siren!  Left the beeper inside going, that's all!  

With a rag-top, the only deterrent I have any confidence in is my Krooklok (or
at least the local equivalent thereof).  Highly visible and stops the joy-rider.
If they can get the stereo out of the dash I'd be really pleased - the tape
player needs it's azimuth adjustment doing and I can't get it out to do it!!

Ideal alarm?  One that lets the thief get inside the car then locks the doors
behind him and a tape starts screaming RAPE! at 200 watts, in stereo of course,
from hidden external speakers.  In the meantime, a high power transducer emits
105 dB screams inside the car.  Enough to hurt, but not harm permanently.

Brian

    Interesting topic...
    
    Personnally I'm indifferent about car-alarms for the reasons first
    stated. Who pays any attention when they go off ? 
    
    IMHO the only effect car alarm is an 'offensive' rather than
    'defensive' alarm. Big sign on, or in, the car to the effect "This car
    is protected with an 'offensive' alarm - touch it and die". Then anyone
    trying to pinch it gets the 105 Db, CS gas, and large spike through the
    drivers seat, treatment.
    
    I think the 12st Rottweilers are the same thing but for people that
    can't read. aren't they ?
    
    
    T.

    Alarm stickers and flashing LEDs are certainly an attractive
    alternative to an alarm.  I personally would worry about what is quite
    a common technique though:
          
    potential thief walks past car 
    hits side window (most alarms activate this way)
    if no alarm sounds, return to car

Shouting "FIRE!" is more effective than shouting "RAPE!" apparently.

Mark.

    In the Frogeye I rely on two things:
    
    1) a Krooklock as a visual deterrent to the passing joy-rider.
    2) a battery isolator switch stashed under the dash as a physical
       barrier. Without the key, the whole car is dead.
    
    It's true that rag-tops are more vulnerable, and my bonnet can easily
    be opened from the inside, allowing access to the back of the isolator
    switch for short-circuiting. However, it would take someone quite a
    while to work out how to open the bonnet, another deterrent for the
    casual tea-leaf.
    
    The big-boys, in my opinion will steal your car if they really want it,
    whatever you do to it. Truth is, I'm more worried about losing my tax
    disc!
    
    Laurie.

    
    A couple of weekends ago I had to wait about 15mins for Autocross to
    open after lunch. There shop is under the multistory carpark in
    Bracknell. There was a constant sound of car alarms, and kids laughing,
    I assumed they were running round rocking the cars. I didn't do
    anything about it because I assumed the Police wouldn't have been in
    the slightest bit interested. We don't have a car alarm, and I think
    they are only worth having if your car is normally kept where there is
    a specific history of stolen vehicles, and where you are in a position
    to hear it. No-one else is going to do anything about it......, and as
    a deterant you might as well have a red flashing light.

>    to hear it. No-one else is going to do anything about it......, and as
>    a deterant you might as well have a red flashing light.

	Aha, but a blue-flashing light might have more impact!

	Heather

    Thanks for your reply's but has anyone had the experience of being kept
    up late with a siren going on down the street from someone's car.
    
    " Not another alarm "

Yes, and it wasn't even in the same street.  It was 
going off between 11pm and 3am due to the wind.  I called	
the Police who could just confirm that it was a car 
alarm (great help that was).  They are not allowed to	
break in and stop it and couldn't trace the owner.  I was
very tempted to go and turn it off myself with a hammer :-)

The law requires that any alarm shuts itself off after no more then 5 minutes
and the the device which does this shutting off is kept in good repair.

I believe that the law should be changed so that a Polica Officer (or any
person operating with the authority of a Police Officer) can take any
action they see fit in order to silence a car alarm that goes off without
obvious cause.  The owner of the vehicle would be liable for any damage to
the vehicle necessary to silence the alarm.

jb

    re .20
    
    Good idea. Should apply to all alarms, not just car alarms !
    
    Andrew

    
    Well, after another bungled attempt to get my car/contents of, I feel
    I've got no other alternative but to get an alarm fitted.  A bit back I
    had the lock drilled out of my Volkswagen Santana (not a very flash car
    to want to nick at all, maybe that's why they went for it!), and a few
    days back I had the front quarterlight window smashed.  In both cases
    the would-be-thieves had gained complete access to the car and I reckon
    the only thing that stopped them completing the operation was that they
    were disturbed by someone.  Both attempts were literally less than
    thirty (no I didn't measure the distance!) yards from where I was
    sleeping.  I don't know how bad the inconvenience of having an alarm is
    going to be (false alarms etc.), but if it can wake me up when someone
    is trying to nick my car I don't care...if it wakes everybody else up
    in the street that's even better - OK I know that's a dodgy blanket
    statement, but you must know what I mean!  (In other words I don't want
    an argument starting up around the fact that alarms annoy other people
    more than they help!  =;*)    ).
    
    All I've got to do now is find an alarm that I can fit myself and
    doesn't cost the best part of a fortune...
    
    
    Chris.

     I have a few articles on Car alarms, in some f.fwd's.
     
     Mostly high end stuff, the magazine is obviously trying to cultvate the 
     market.  But the information contained within is very useful.
     
     Let me know if you would like to read them.

    
    Ta Robert, I'll have a look the next time I'm in DP.  I'm looking for
    summat about a hundred quid, if there are big benefits in getting
    something more expensive I may go for it.  I'm going to have to fit it
    myself, 'cos I can't afford to have it fitted!  (By some of the replies
    in the other notes on alarms I think I'm doing the right thing!)
    
    Chris.

    Beware of cheap alarms that monitor movement, I had a friend install
    one in his car, thieves broke in at the back, nicked his jacket and the
    alarm never went off - seems it was only powerful enough to monitor
    the front!!
    
    
    Greg

    On the theme of Car alarms, does anyone know the answer to this.
    
    When we have car alarms install by VSL, my understanding is that DEC
    pays for the alarm. Therefore, when the lease expires, would it be
    possible to take the alarm off my current car and put it onto my next
    one, hence saving DEC money. Or does Both the car and alarm have to go
    back to the lease company?
    
    Eric
    
    
    

I know someone who did this.

VSL Seem OK about it.