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maxintosh · Sep 6, 2003, 11:05 PM

I HATE CAR ALARMS.

There is a car alarm RIGHT outside my dorm that goes off ALL THE TIME. I *think* it's a Nissan/Infinity because it makes the same weird variating pattern that our old Pathfinder did. And it is REALLY loud. I don't understand why it goes off so often!! Is it really that nice of a car that people try to steal it every 45 minutes? Does the owner habitually lose their car and hit the panic button to relocate it?

Every time I hear it at 6 in the morning I hope that it's either being stolen or towed. One of these days I'm going to go sit on Amsterdam Ave and wait for it to go off, and then FIND the car and leave a nice long letter asking the owner to please relocate him and his obnoxious car alarm to somewhere else. New Jersey perhaps.

BasketofPuppies · Sep 6, 2003, 11:08 PM

I hate badgers, but you don't see me complaining about them.

Xeo · Sep 6, 2003, 11:13 PM

I really hate car alarms too. Very annoying. They go off so often as false alarms that you wonder if someone really did steal it if anyone would do anything. What would-be thief would be turned away by a car alarm?

BasketofPuppies · Sep 6, 2003, 11:19 PM

You'd be surprised. While a car alarm is nowhere as scary as a rabid badger (and people ignore them because they constantly go off accidentally - car alarms, not rabid badgers), a thief would very much prefer not getting the attention that an obnoxious car alarm going off gives.

Same thing goes for The Club. It's just one more lock to pick, but a thief wants to steal a car as fast as possible.

Now protecting a car with a badger...

Kilbey · Sep 6, 2003, 11:25 PM

I hate car alarm also.

EVERYONE ignores them.

Actually, if I ever saw a car with an alarm going off and it were being stolen at the time I would probably ask the thieves if they needed any help.

We were at a fireworks festival this summer and there was a car with an alarm so sensitive it would go of with every firework. Some guys next to us pried the hood up and cut the battery cable. Brand new Honda somethingorother. Guy deserved it.

Did I mention I hate car alarms?

Sep 6, 2003, 11:43 PM

Audible car alarms are useless. A proper car alarm would do this:

- disable the ignition
- automatically phone a monitoring company
- montoring company warns thief to get away car
- monitoring company remotely activates some kind of "knockout" gas shooting out of all sides of the car.
- monitoring company tells police to go aprehend thief

maxintosh · Sep 6, 2003, 11:50 PM

My A4 makes a pathetic squeaking noise when the alarm goes off and flashes the hazards.

BUT, it disables the ignition, blocks the fuel lines, and locks the radio. Nothing can be reset into a properly encoded key is inserted into the ignition. It also has interior motion sensors and tilt sensors which trigger these systems.

Passive security systems:

Active security systems:

Car alarms are so stupid. Things like house alarms and fire alarms, need to alert people in the area. Nobody gives a crap when a car alarm goes off. They just want to slash the tires.

Nonsuch · Sep 7, 2003, 12:16 AM

I had an alarm on my last car; I had to get it in order to get keyless door locks. The only benefit I got from it was a nice discount on my car insurance.

signal68 · Sep 7, 2003, 12:27 AM

I like having a car alarm that prevents some jackass from breaking your windows and stealing a stereo. But I don't like the ones that go off when some ghetto car with subwoofers goes by.....>BUUUUTTT< I hate ghetto cars with subwoofers more than any car alarm, and getting rid of them would solve the car alarm problem.

- Ca$h

entrox · Sep 7, 2003, 06:40 AM

Originally posted by maxintosh:
My A4 makes a pathetic squeaking noise when the alarm goes off and flashes the hazards.

BUT, it disables the ignition, blocks the fuel lines, and locks the radio. Nothing can be reset into a properly encoded key is inserted into the ignition. It also has interior motion sensors and tilt sensors which trigger these systems.

That's German cars for you! My Mercedes W202 does the same, but without the extra sensors (they were an option). It only triggers if somebody tries to open a door or start the ignition without unlocking properly first. I just don't get why people add these cheap after-market alarms, which go off when a nearby fly farts in the direction of the car. What extra benefit is there?

Diggory Laycock · Sep 7, 2003, 06:42 AM

Originally posted by hayesk:
Audible car alarms are useless. A proper car alarm would do this:

- disable the ignition
- automatically phone a monitoring company
- montoring company warns thief to get away car
- monitoring company remotely activates some kind of "knockout" gas shooting out of all sides of the car.
- monitoring company tells police to go aprehend thief

TOAD alarms used to have an alarm that would fill the Car with an Evil smoke.

IUJHJSDHE · Sep 7, 2003, 07:44 AM

Originally posted by hayesk:
Audible car alarms are useless. A proper car alarm would do this:

- disable the ignition
- automatically phone a monitoring company
- montoring company warns thief to get away car
- monitoring company remotely activates some kind of "knockout" gas shooting out of all sides of the car.
- monitoring company tells police to go aprehend thief

What happens if something happens that makes the knockout gas go off while I am driving the car?

Give me my loud annoying car alarm anyday. They almost never go off around here. Except when some idiot hits the wrong button. DON'T TOUCH THE RED BUTTON!!!

Cipher13 · Sep 7, 2003, 08:53 AM

There are far better options out there, but alarms aren't so bad. Sure, they're annoying, but I think you're all overstating how often they accidentally go off.

What I'd do to my car is add a few engine bypasses; turn the cigarette lighter into a bypass, so that the car would not start unless the lighter was in. It looks totally inconspicuous, being disguised as a lighter. Hide another one under the steering wheel or something.

THEN add an alarm, if the car didn't come with one...

Jellytussle · Sep 7, 2003, 09:10 AM

an ex-neighbour of mine had a old Ford Granada - base model. He obtained a centre console from a much higher spec version with about 8 switches in (to operate stuff his car didn't have eg a/c). He wired the ignition through these so to start the car you needed to know the combination. Clever, i thought.

He later drove it into a tree.

Cipher13 · Sep 7, 2003, 09:23 AM

Originally posted by Kilbey:
I hate car alarm also.

EVERYONE ignores them.

Actually, if I ever saw a car with an alarm going off and it were being stolen at the time I would probably ask the thieves if they needed any help.

We were at a fireworks festival this summer and there was a car with an alarm so sensitive it would go of with every firework. Some guys next to us pried the hood up and cut the battery cable. Brand new Honda somethingorother. Guy deserved it.

Did I mention I hate car alarms?

Deserved it? Hardly. I hope somebody does the same to you over some minor annoyance.

signal68 · Sep 7, 2003, 12:23 PM

Originally posted by Kilbey:
We were at a fireworks festival this summer and there was a car with an alarm so sensitive it would go of with every firework. Some guys next to us pried the hood up and cut the battery cable. Brand new Honda somethingorother. Guy deserved it.

If it was a brand new honda I'd like to know how they popped the hood from the outside of the vehicle, considering all cars have hoods you have to pop from the inside....

Also, by that rational can I slit a baby's neck if its crying in a theater? Grow up. Disconnecting the guys battery cable would have been one things but slicing it? That's just vandalism.

- Ca$h

Zimphire · Sep 7, 2003, 12:28 PM

Originally posted by signal68:
Grow up. Disconnecting the guys battery cable would have been one things but slicing it? That's just vandalism.

- Ca$h

Unless said driver threw a cig butt on the floor, then turned without using his turn signals.

Kilbey · Sep 7, 2003, 12:49 PM

Originally posted by Cipher13:
Deserved it? Hardly. I hope somebody does the same to you over some minor annoyance.

I am more sensitive to my environment, friends, and family to have caused such an annoyance.

Deserved it? I will admit no one truly "deserves" to have their property damaged. But it was not a "minor" annoyance in any respect of the term. Believe me, it was not minor.

Kilbey · Sep 7, 2003, 12:52 PM

Originally posted by signal68:
If it was a brand new honda I'd like to know how they popped the hood from the outside of the vehicle, considering all cars have hoods you have to pop from the inside....

Did I say "popped". no, I said "Pried". As in damage to hood and hinges. Much worse than cutting the cable if you ask me.

Originally posted by signal68:
Also, by that rational can I slit a baby's neck if its crying in a theater? Grow up. Disconnecting the guys battery cable would have been one things but slicing it? That's just vandalism.

- Ca$h

Do you truly compare a child's life and a battery cable?!?!

I need to grow up?!?! Check your self bro.

Zimphire · Sep 7, 2003, 01:21 PM

Damaging someone's property because you are upset IS immature BTW. You COULD serve jail time as well.

Kilbey · Sep 7, 2003, 01:35 PM

Originally posted by Zimphire:
Damaging someone's property because you are upset IS immature BTW. You COULD serve jail time as well.

I agree. However, I am led to believe that you think I did this vandalism. I would never damage someone else's property. Heck, I even obey the speed limits when it is safe to do so.

I quote my self:

Originally posted by Kilbey:
Some guys next to us pried the hood up and cut the battery cable.

wdlove · Sep 7, 2003, 01:52 PM

Luckily we are not bothered my car alarms in our neighborhood.

Our Volvo doesn't squawk when in the unlock mode, like the RAV 4. Only the lights flash.

The major part of our alarm system is Lojack, which 99% are found.

I agree that alarms are annoying, everyone has gotton used to them and so pay not attention. It's because so many are false, at least from my experience!