Which Alarm?
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Which Alarm?
Hey everyone, last night my car got vandalized badly and my stock alarm didn't go off when they smashed in one of my windows. Now I want a new alarm. I need help picking out one and I need to know some good brand names. I would prefer one that has motion senors that can be deactivated when I don't need it. Do you all have any ideas?
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Rep Power: 305 I was an installer for 13 years and I can totally agree that any alarm is only as good as the installer who put it in. I have fixed countless alarms that were mysteriously malfunctioning, only to take the car apart and find a rat's nest with tons of shoddy mistakes. I have had great luck at both chains and megastores. The bottom line is this.
Is the alarm a reputable company. Can you find the name in any decent magazine. Car Audio does tons of reviews, check them out. What is the warranty and how long have they been in business. If they don't have a lifetime warranty, you will get what you pay for. There are many alarms that are basically cheap Taiwan units that only have a name slapped on them and claimed to work great. And what is the shop's warranty? If they don't offer a lifetime warranty on labor, then skip them.
Check out the installer himself. Ask if he is MECP certified. Not necessarily a sure sign, but certainly the installer has the basic knowledge, his work ethic is another story. Always talk to the installer actually doing the job. Be nice, but ask questions. And be polite and friendly. It is human nature to want to do a nice job for someone nice. If he only thinks that it is one more car in a long line of cars, then his attitude can be different.
If it all possible, have your alarm installed on a weekday. Shops are always busy on a Saturday. Alarms, especially ones with lots of options take time. Do you want your car rushed? Best days to avoid, Saturday (busiest days) and Sunday-Monday (days the shop manager and best installer are off). Want to earn points. Ask the installer what he suggests. Chances are he gets commission or at least gets tracked for sales. He may offer an option that really gives you great protection for a small cost. And ask to see his car. Installers love to play. If he can do tons of things with his car, he has propably figured out what worked, what didn't, and why.
Some general do's and don'ts:
1. Remote starts are a bad idea on a manual transmission. I have seen more than one car take off and drive accross a parking lot, crashing into cars, when only one wrong button was pushed.
2. Backup batteries are a good idea. Your alarm gets it power from the same place as everything else. And how quick can you find the battery. Smart thieves use two people. One breaks the window, pulls the hood latch. The other cuts the battery cable. Total time 5 seconds. Barely enough time to wake you up from a dead sleep.
3. Same with back up sirens. Hide them and the noise just may save your car stereo.
4. Our cars have a transponder security system. It is pretty hard to steal our car, but it can still be towed. Turn your wheel sharply to one side. It makes it harder to tow.
5. Pin everything. That means have a hood switch, trunk switch, and door switches.
6. Get a good glass sensor. A center punch can break a window without triggering most shock sensors.
7. Get the alarm to flash the lights as well. Makes a big display at night.
8. And more importanly use the alarm all the time. A well adjusted sensor will not false alarm. It may seem that you have to hit your car pretty hard, but it will prevent false alarms. My alarm never went off without someone around it.
9. Always lock your doors. I cannot tell you how many people got ripped off because they forgot. Tie it in with your alarm and it is pretty easy to follow this habit.
Is the alarm a reputable company. Can you find the name in any decent magazine. Car Audio does tons of reviews, check them out. What is the warranty and how long have they been in business. If they don't have a lifetime warranty, you will get what you pay for. There are many alarms that are basically cheap Taiwan units that only have a name slapped on them and claimed to work great. And what is the shop's warranty? If they don't offer a lifetime warranty on labor, then skip them.
Check out the installer himself. Ask if he is MECP certified. Not necessarily a sure sign, but certainly the installer has the basic knowledge, his work ethic is another story. Always talk to the installer actually doing the job. Be nice, but ask questions. And be polite and friendly. It is human nature to want to do a nice job for someone nice. If he only thinks that it is one more car in a long line of cars, then his attitude can be different.
If it all possible, have your alarm installed on a weekday. Shops are always busy on a Saturday. Alarms, especially ones with lots of options take time. Do you want your car rushed? Best days to avoid, Saturday (busiest days) and Sunday-Monday (days the shop manager and best installer are off). Want to earn points. Ask the installer what he suggests. Chances are he gets commission or at least gets tracked for sales. He may offer an option that really gives you great protection for a small cost. And ask to see his car. Installers love to play. If he can do tons of things with his car, he has propably figured out what worked, what didn't, and why.
Some general do's and don'ts:
1. Remote starts are a bad idea on a manual transmission. I have seen more than one car take off and drive accross a parking lot, crashing into cars, when only one wrong button was pushed.
2. Backup batteries are a good idea. Your alarm gets it power from the same place as everything else. And how quick can you find the battery. Smart thieves use two people. One breaks the window, pulls the hood latch. The other cuts the battery cable. Total time 5 seconds. Barely enough time to wake you up from a dead sleep.
3. Same with back up sirens. Hide them and the noise just may save your car stereo.
4. Our cars have a transponder security system. It is pretty hard to steal our car, but it can still be towed. Turn your wheel sharply to one side. It makes it harder to tow.
5. Pin everything. That means have a hood switch, trunk switch, and door switches.
6. Get a good glass sensor. A center punch can break a window without triggering most shock sensors.
7. Get the alarm to flash the lights as well. Makes a big display at night.
8. And more importanly use the alarm all the time. A well adjusted sensor will not false alarm. It may seem that you have to hit your car pretty hard, but it will prevent false alarms. My alarm never went off without someone around it.
9. Always lock your doors. I cannot tell you how many people got ripped off because they forgot. Tie it in with your alarm and it is pretty easy to follow this habit.
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Joined: Feb 2002
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From: Canada, Ontario, Canada
Rep Power: 0 I was gonna say get the Clifford systems...I've had the Arrow 2 and the Sabre and no problems what so ever...
This guy sounds like he knows what hes talking about...and make sure the installer has been around a while..that way if you have problems you can go back and get it repaired.
This guy sounds like he knows what hes talking about...and make sure the installer has been around a while..that way if you have problems you can go back and get it repaired.
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From: Jacksonville, Fl
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i have a clifford matrix 1. still trying to figure it out and how high to set the sensitivity. pretty decent so far
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