[BedfordForrest]

what do you guys think of this. Seems like an alarm is halfway useless with out this

 

[blackgts2002]

IMO alarms are useless anyways. When they are going off no one looks. The starter disable discount on insurance is the only real benefit to me.

 

[Boston Tundra]

what do you guys think of this. Seems like an alarm is halfway useless with out this

I know that it works instantly (thief threw a rock through passenger-side window), such that I was able to get a good luck at the guy. Doesn't have much deterrent effect, I'd say.
Wife's BMW has an intrusion (probably IR) detector, and a tilt alarm (supposed to prevent towing, jacking to steal wheels, etc.).
All of these are really only good for activating engine immobilizer. As you know, passersby tend to ignore alarms, even when someone is working on a door with a slimjim. If someone determined and experienced wants your truck, it's gone...a fact of modern life, I guess.

 

[tundrahq]

Like a couple people have said, alarms are kind of useless. They usually don't deter anyone, and no one looks when they go off.

For the money, LoJack or your local equivalent is probably the best investment you can make towards an alarm. While it does nothing to prevent the initial theft, you're all but guaranteed the vehicle will be recovered. Usually, the recovery takes place within a few hours of the vehicle being reported stolen. LoJack is the only system supported and operated by the police, but it isn't available everywhere. I don't know for sure if you can get it in Boston.

I read about a guy here in Colorado who had his truck stolen out of his driveway, and they found it within a few hours on the way to Kansas...his daughter and soone to be son-in-law were on their way to getting married. LoJack to the rescue!

Also, you might want to take a look at the various GPS based systems (I only know of one called MobileGuardian). They are a little expensive (I've seen them for $500-$800), but I think they would be great for anyone with a concern about theft and/or a young driver in the house. The system I've seen gave you the ability to login to a website and check where your car was, where it had been, and how fast it had been going. It also had a owner-controlled kill switch.

My two cents.

 

[blackgts2002]

Like a couple people have said, alarms are kind of useless. They usually don't deter anyone, and no one looks when they go off.

For the money, LoJack or your local equivalent is probably the best investment you can make towards an alarm. While it does nothing to prevent the initial theft, you're all but guaranteed the vehicle will be recovered. Usually, the recovery takes place within a few hours of the vehicle being reported stolen. LoJack is the only system supported and operated by the police, but it isn't available everywhere. I don't know for sure if you can get it in Boston.

I read about a guy here in Colorado who had his truck stolen out of his driveway, and they found it within a few hours on the way to Kansas...his daughter and soone to be son-in-law were on their way to getting married. LoJack to the rescue!

Also, you might want to take a look at the various GPS based systems (I only know of one called MobileGuardian). They are a little expensive (I've seen them for $500-$800), but I think they would be great for anyone with a concern about theft and/or a young driver in the house. The system I've seen gave you the ability to login to a website and check where your car was, where it had been, and how fast it had been going. It also had a owner-controlled kill switch.

My two cents.

glad that it worked out, but i had lojack in my 95 celica gt. it was found 4 hours later on the side of the road (not from the lojack signal, from a local cop) and was stripped and totalled. It too is also a waste. If you report your vehicle stolen, you do not need to accept it back. that might vary by state, but Its not worth it to me. GAP insurance to the rescue

 

[Boston Tundra]

LoJack was started by a bunch of guys here in Massachusetts. They recently started offering a product which would install on a motorcycle. One bike-riding friend told me that if his bike were stolen, he didn't want it back.