Subject: CAR ALARM

>From: cyamamot@jpl-devvax.JPL.NASA.GOV (Cliff Yamamoto)
Date: 28 Aug 89 15:56:37 GMT

In article <562@hsi86.hsi.UUCP> you write: >I just purchased a Ford Probe 89. I wanted to install a car alarm. I don't
>know the first thing about alarms and was counting on someone out there in
>net-land. The type of information I am looking for is:

>             

>           Price?
>           Can I install it?
>           Brands?
>           Are the beepers a good deal?
>           Which brands are most effective?
>           etc...

PriceThey
range from cheapo $50 noise makers to >$1000 do everything but repair the car for you alarms. It depends on how much security and convenience you want. The cheap stuff might flash a LED for you and honk your horn if someone tries to start your car (i.e. he/she has already broken in anyway). The expensive stuff will make a siren wail, honk your horn, flash your lights, kill the ignition, cut the fuel, and page you when someone *LEANS* on your car. Suffice to say the price depends on *three* major things: 1) How many and what kind of sensors you use 2) What does the alarm do when something sets it off 3) The types of conveniences you get with system to make it easier for you to use.

  1. consists of motion sensors, shock sensors, shatter sensors, ultrasonic sensors, microwave sensors, pin-switch triggers, etc.
  2. consists of sirens, horns, hi-beam flashing, parking-light flashing, pagers, hood locks, ignition kill, fuel cut-off, etc.
  3. consists of remote arming, passive arming, power lock control, power window control, trunk release, fuel cap release, remote starting, sensitivity controls, log of sensor status, etc.

Can you install itSure,
it all depends on the complexity, your knowledge of electronics, and if you know how your car is wired. Some manufacturers, like Derringer, do not provide installation instructions and will only warrant the system if an authorized dealer installs it for you. That's what turned me off from them. If it's simple, it can take only an hour, if it's complex (or you don't know what you're doing), it can take a few days.

BrandsWell,
there are really so many I can't remember (if I had my magazine in front of me I could). The one's that come to mind are the popular ones: Alpine, Clifford, CrimeStopper, Derringer, Kenwood, Safeco and Ungo.

BeepersI
presume you mean pagers. They are a neat idea, but none of the people I know have or use one. Having a pager means carrying another box on your belt or carrying a larger remote/pager combo. It's annoying to have it go off in a resturant or theatre when it's a false alarm. Also to get any decent range, your antenna will have to be up all the time (bye bye power antenna) or you'll have to get an extra antenna just for the pager. Besides, if you do catch the guy in the act, what are you going to do? Bystanders won't get involved and the thief will probably shoot you.

Which brands are most effectiveI'
m going to give you a biased answer because I own an Ungo. But I will tell you that Clifford and Alpine probably have the most "intelligent" brain boxes around. Intelligent meaning that, if someone breaks in, gets scared away but leaves the door open, the alarm won't keep retriggering forever. The brain can tell the door has been left open. Of course now someone can enter the car without the alarm going off because the brain thinks the 1st thief has left the door open and will ignore that fact. It's a matter of whether you want to save your battery or save your car. The less "intelligent" alarms will wail forever *IF* the thief leaves the door open (presuming he gets that far).

But why should the thief even get the opportunity to open the door? If you get the right kind of sensor, he won't even get that far. That's why I like the Ungo. Maybe it's not as intelligent as the Clifford, but Ungo has THE BEST motion sensing you can get. You can adjust the sensitivity so that if the thief even leans on the car the alarm will trigger. So while he's pulling out your lock or slim-jimming your lock the alarm will be triggered. He doesn't even get a chance to open the door in the first place.

I will admit the others have motion sensors as well, but they don't come close to the reliability of the Ungo. The Ungo's motion sensor has NO moving parts, and thus never wears out, freezes (if it's cold where you live) or needs periodic adjustments.

If you'd like more technical info about it's sensor or other technical info on the Ungo, let me know. A month ago this topic was discussed in Rec.autos and some other folks asked me for some info. I have a nice 15K file with all the info you'd probably need to know about the Ungo.

Happy alarm shopping!

Cliff Yamamoto