Do you have an aftermarket car alarm?

[nzwasp]

I feel like everyone I know relies on the factory car alarm, I don't even know what would trigger my car alarm on my kia or my toyota (both newer than 2013).

When I lived in NZ everyone had a aftermarket car alarm - mainly due to older vehicles on the road and the constant fear of having your wheels stolen.

[mr2mike]

Around here if they really want your wheels, they'll take your car.

Car alarms are useless, fake piece of mind. The sirens are annoying and no one bothers to even look when they go off. They annoy shops too when car goes for repairs.

If you really are concerned, a concealed starter kill switch.


My car alarm version is just keep the motor out of the car. No one can steal the car then. :angel:

[nzwasp]

I dont know how big the market is in Canada for stolen parts off average cars either. In NZ I once had a toyota trueno and I had installed chrome wheels on it, I came back from work one day and some idiots had broken into the car - disabled my cheap cheap alarm and taken all the wheels off, I found my cars axles on top of winter rims essentially. That happened in a underground carpark too.

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

My truck came with a Viper alarm and starter. My S2000 has the factory alarm.

[lilmira]

I think most cars are stolen with the actual keys, either cars running unattended or home break-in. Now that you mention, I don't remember the last time I heard the sound of aftermarket alarm. It's a dying product like the fax machine.

[revelations]

Car alarms act as a deterrent to the night time prowler looking for change, phones, wallets in the consoles, etc.

Crackheads dont care what alarm system your car has. They see 2c of change and will break a window to get it.

Professionals will hire corrupt tow companies.

[mikestypes]

I put a remote starter on my MS3 so I guess that would also include an aftermarket alarm. Car prowling has gone up big time in my area but I haven't had any issue with that little blue light flashing and the doors locked (knock on wood!).

[nzwasp]

Originally posted by revelations
Car alarms act as a deterrent to the night time prowler looking for change, phones, wallets in the consoles, etc.

Crackheads dont care what alarm system your car has. They see 2c of change and will break a window to get it.

Professionals will hire corrupt tow companies.

Doesnt an aftermarket alarm have a window sensor to make it go off if the window broke.

[lilmira]

Originally posted by nzwasp


Doesnt an aftermarket alarm have a window sensor to make it go off if the window broke.

I dunno if there is a sensor specific for glass breakage. I used to have an add-on vibration sensor to my factory alarm. You can adjust the sensitivity but it can get annoying with false alarms.

[Murray Peterson]

I have an aftermarket system on my S2000. I turned it completely off when I bought the car, and it has never been turned on since. Useless pieces of junk; nobody goes and checks out a car when the alarm is going, and the only calls to the cops are to complain about the noise.

[revelations]

Originally posted by nzwasp


Doesnt an aftermarket alarm have a window sensor to make it go off if the window broke.

Some do and some dont. Most just have an impact sensor on the steering wheel column under the dash which will detect strong forces like a window shatter with a hammer - but may fall short if the perp uses something smarter to shatter the window that creates less pressure.

[?????]

So many types of sensors and configurations for aftermarket alarms. Glass, Shock, Tilt, etc.

I use an aftermarket (Compustar with Drone) in conjunction with my factory. I don't use a siren so its only hooked up to the factory horn.

Any warning shocks will not make a sound but I will get paged on my phone or Fob. But if I do get a page that my door is open then I know something is wrong.


Its mostly for theft deterrent weather it be factory, aftermarket or just a LED.
I disagree with no one noticing. If the horn is going off for a little while someone is going to look. If your alarm is going off whenever a car drives by and people are complaining/ignoring then it should be set properly.

[Swank]

Main reason I got mine was for the notification on the remote at night. If someone triggers it I'll know, and promptly greet them with a shotgun and a shovel. Also helps me find my keys if I misplace them, haha.