Car alarm recommendations

[zoedragon]

We traded in my sweetheart's Xterra for the new '05 Nissan Pathfinder over the weekend. We had Lojack on the Xterra, but found out that it isn't transferrable. Big bummer because it cost us around $500, and now when I check the prices they're at $695 - ouch. So now we're looking at car alarms.

Now I personally HATE car alarms. All they do is annoy people and no one pays attention to it. But it might not be too wise to live in Inglewood and and have a new car with no security on it. So now I'm researching which alarms are a good price AND the least annoying.

Here's what I consider annoying:

1. Alarms that sound off at the slightest provocation, such as a noisy car driving by.

2. Alarms whose controls buttons start to lose effectiveness after a few years (meaning you have to press hard and wiggle it different ways to get it to work).

3. Alarms that lock your car when it's in the car wash.

#1 by far is my biggest gripe. It makes the alarm completely useless because it's always crying wolf. #2 is my friend's old "Viper" alarm remote. Stupid thing. #3 is my sweetheart's past car alarm. It would lock the car about a minute or two after it's been unlocked. It's useful for someone who forgets to lock the doors, but very annoying because it can lock you out easily. I like my BMW's auto-locking feature -- it only locks the doors after the car drives past a certain speed. Are there any alarms that do this?

With all this in mind, do any of you have any recommendations? I personally have no car alarm experience, so any advice would be useful.

[ak]

Viper is the #1 brand (Well, along with all DEI products).

I have the 350HV...

The Good :
-Remote is effective up to a block away (I don't need to be 3ft from my car to un/lock it)
-It has an adjustable shock sensor (meaning you can make it less sensitive to vibrations, which means less false alarms)
-It has a valet function (Meaning that disables the alarm or prevents it from being automatically locked during a car wash). I don't think this alarm has the "auto-lock" feature... the one that automatically locks your car if you were away for a few seconds. That would be an annoying feature for me.
-Very effective. Has different tones to let you know if the alarm was triggered. A "smart" built-in feature prevents the alarm from sounding all night if it detects excessive "false" alarms.
-Doors are auto-locked only when all doors are closed and car is moved from "P" setting.
-It's a DEI product. Highest reliability.

The Bad :
-It's not the special $89 alarm. Installed, it may cost you anywhere from $175-250.
-Not all alarm shops carry Viper because most people just want cheaper alarm systems.

Additional cool things:
-Remote start: Available for $100-150 extra (Allows you to start your car with the remote control)
-Windows Up/Down: Available for $40-75 extra (Allows you to open and close your windows). It also closes your windows when you lock your car... good feature.
-You can also add the start trunk open features if you don't have the solenoid already installed.

I'm not sure what you mean with the Old "Viper" remote of your friend. Mine seems to work fine.

http://www.directed.com/security/viper/viper_esp.asp

[zoedragon]

Originally Posted by ak

I'm not sure what you mean with the Old "Viper" remote of your friend. Mine seems to work fine.

I've had to move his car and his little remote says "Viper" on it, so I assume it's a Viper system. I don't know how old it is, but you have to really mash the button and wiggle it, sometimes even tapping the unit against a hard surface, in order to get it to work. Maybe he dropped in in some soda or something, who knows.

But anyway, thank you for this excellent information! I like to read about what current customers think, it's much more reliable than going by store recommendations. Anyone else have an opinion?

[ak]

No problems with newer Viper alarms. The 350HV is the entry level and the remote doesn't require a ton of pressure. One press always works.

Another thing, don't go for unknown alarms (their prices and features might be great, but you know it's crap), Prestige, BlackWidow, Excalibur, Pyle.

Ok ones are Crime Stopper and Clarion.

Do go for Viper (or DEI branded), or Clifford.

[Admin]

3. Alarms that lock your car when it's in the car wash. LOL
LoJack system is a great investment because it lowers the insurance rate (insurance discoutn) depending on your insurance carrier and LoJack also has a 2 year warranty for 24hr recovery. And if you purchase your brand new car from the dealer, you can make a deal with the salesperson for the LoJack.

I have a Viper alarm system installed and not a problem after 2 years. It carries a lifetime warranty and if for any reason the system is being faulty and acting unusual, I can simply take the car to the shop where the alarm system was installed and they should take care of it right away. I got a package deal which included car tinting and the Viper alarm system plus installation.

[ak]

All in all, honestly alarms won't prevent theft. The difference between a smart ($$$) and dumb ($) alarm is that the "smart" alarm will take longer to decode or discramble. Meaning, let's say if it takes 30 seconds to decode a dumb alarm, it might take 5 minutes to decode the smart one........ and in those 5 minutes hopefully someone will see the thief and deter him.

If i had the money, I'd put LoJack since it will actually get my car back in case of theft. However, I've heard that LoJack turn around averages 2-3 hours per car......... and in that time a professional thief can pretty much strip my Civic to its chasis.

The best combination would be a smart alarm, LoJack, and some flamethrowers (N/A in the U.S.)

More about the latter here: http://www.gettingit.com/article/69

[zoedragon]

Flamethrowers! LOL!

I want the Batmobile's armor. It even locks up your tires!

[Admin]

Tip: If you do decide to install a car alarm system, request that they install the alarm brain in another area inside your car rather than the passenger side.

[zoedragon]

Originally Posted by iKwak

Tip: If you do decide to install a car alarm system, request that they install the alarm brain in another area inside your car rather than the passenger side.

Why is that? Is it because that's where they're normally installed and thieves know to look there to disable it?