ever since i got the scion, people have been telling me horror stories about stolen tires, how easy it is to break into toyota cars...etc. so i'm wondering, should i buy the "alloy wheel locks" from scion, as well as installing that "famous" lo-jack car alarm? http://lojack.com if not then what other types of alarms do you guys suggest? cuz like, the key only has an unlock button, lock button, and panic button...so the car doesn't have an alarm then? its only purpose it to lock and unlock the door? cuz i tried using the spare key to unlock my car and no alarm came on....sorry i'm really a newb with cars...

 

Yes, you should get the wheel locks.

 

All locks and alarms are pointless. They just make thieves want your car more. I'd say leave your doors unlocked and drive without wheel locks. People always want what they can't have. If someone wanted your car, they'd take it no matter what.

 

very good point. that makes a lot of sense. kinda risky isn't it? my parents and bf split the price of the car, so i'd get BS from both parties.

 

What are you talking about? If you wanted to steal someones rims, and there were 2 cars with equally nice rims, would you go for the one with wheel locks on it, or the one without any type of protection? Sure if they Reallllly want your rims they will get them, but atleast make it a b*tch for them to get. As far as leaving your car unlocked, if you do that your just inviting someone to steal your car. People are way more willing to steal a car that is open than one that they have to smash the window and set off the alarm to steal.

If someone wants to steal my car, they better first be ready for the ear piercing siren that goes off alerting anyone in the area whats going on, and secondly they better be ready for me running toward my car with a bat, once I get the page on my 2 way system (I have the Clifford Responder) that alerts me ifsomeone is effing with my car.

 

Well, lo-jack is something no thieves can see by just standing next to your car! I got lo-jack from the dealer!

Wheel locks? I think its good to get it, if you got nice wheels, but not for the stock wheels!

 

lol.. i wish they can have those things where you touch the car itll shock u to hell.. id leave the car open and free to get stolen... ^_^ then ill have fun watching the idiots gets fried up

 

Yea, lets get some chairs and popcorns, and enjoy!
Record it with a camcorder, we'll get $10,000 from AFV! Yaaaahooooo!

 

leaving your car unlocked may fool some thieves...

if you buy wheel locks... go for after market... w/ maybe 2 different sets... if you're that worried about getting your rims jacked...

lo-jack won't do anything for you if you get your rims jacked =P

 

In general LoJack is not worth having unless you live in an area where they are well extablished and the police monitor and do something about it. Research that before you do anything so you do not waste the money and have a false sense of security. I am not even sure if they are all that great overall. I would get a good aftermarked alarm and after market wheel locks and keep your insurance paid up, that is the best you can do. A paging alarm is great but only if you are willing to investigate what is going on.

Also, park where your car is in public view as much as you can, do not play your stereo loud where you park your car, do not leave valuables in site when you leave it, etc, etc.

There is no really sure way to keep a thief from taking your car, just slow them down and hope they find an easier target nearby.


Unfortunately we are not allowed to use deadly force to protect our property.

Rick

 

i think lo-jack is a good idea. if they steal your car, you are most likely be able to recover it before they strip it down and take your parts.

 

nail in the coffin for this stupid idea... once i was sitting in my car, on the phone with this girl outside her home (don't ask why.. ) anyway. i was on the phone around midnight, and out walks this shady guy from some shadowy alley. he walks up to a WRX, checks out the rims, touches the tires, and scopes out the rest of the car. me and the girl on the phone were talking about him for 15 mins or so. he didn't care that i was right across the street, sitting in my car. but he ends up going into her neighbor's driveway, and pulls on the door handle so hard, that my friend heard it behind a closed window. so... point is, dont leave your car doors unlock. that is just plain old stupid, and if you say you do that, i will fly to you and _____ slap you, because you deserve it.

Also, if your alarm goes off, and its parked right outside, go check it. my friend was stupid enough to ignore his alarm going off 4 times, only to come back and find that someone ripped out his alpine HU, and undid all the wiring to steal the sub.. geez.. and he had to do was look out the window. so stupid..

anyway, get the 2-way pagers. its a lot easier to hear the alarm since the pager vibrates.

 

thanks for the feedback guys and gals! i'm still a newb to scion but i'll definitely get the wheel locks now...as for the alarm...are there any others besides lo-jack that is worthy?

 

Clifford Responder www.directed.com is a 2 way system which means that if something is happening to your car, you'll get a page on the remote telling you if someone broke into your car, or whatever.



As you can see, the remote tells you exactly whats happening to your car and gets updated every 5 seconds.

 

I spoke to LOJACK rep and they said for $1k installed they can add a killer alarm. If anything happens without your key in the ignition, LOJACK calls you first and then the police. If your car moves, gets tilted (ie; steal the rims), etc without your knowledge, the thief is going to jail. A baseball bat or Ninjitsu isn't going to save you against a pawn shop or stolen gun. Your life is worth so much more. Take it from someone with more than one black belt.

 

Forgot to add that $1k includes the LOJACK and the alarm.

 

I ended up buying the Viper 791XV (retailed at $599.99) off of the web for $200 and had a friend install it for another $200 and it's an awesome car alarm so far. The specs are listed on this site: http://viper.com/security/viper/viper_responder.asp



looks like the Clifford Responder above

 

my dealer is trying to pass me a better monthly but i'm curious is there issues with installing a aftermarket alarm when u have lojack installed?

 

just get a lo jack sticker. might help since there's no way to tell if your car has one or not. an alarm with pager is a better buy. also, get the wheel locks!

 

lol.. yeah i kno that would be better but if it lowers my insurrance a bit.. every lil thing matters.. but i'm just worried about installing an aftermarket alarm my self in a lojack system. All the alarms i've installed my self were never installed in a lojack system. Kinda also would make u feel better having one imop i just sign my contract last night for my tc, so i'm very excited it comes in the harbor today