Help with car alarms????

my_gorgeous_ellie-belle

Hi all,

Ok i have no clue what to look for but i am in need of a car alarm for my '97 R reg first car. It is old so nothing fancy needed. But honestly i have no idea where to look or what to look for. I have seen prices ranging from £35 on Ebay to ones costing hundreds elsewhere.

Please can someone help this girl in need and guide me to what is decent and what is really no good :D

Many thanks in advance!

my_gorgeous_ellie-belle

Anyone? Please

maninthestreet

How much is your car actually worth? You may spend more on an alarm system than the car is worth.

my_gorgeous_ellie-belle

Hi, thanks for your reply - Its only worth £1100, so really not wanting too much - but was thinking at least something might be better than nothing!

stef73

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FLASHING-LED-DUMMY-CAR-ALARM-TOAD-SECURITY-STICKERS-/190388480947?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item2c5409abb3

How about £5 for a dummy light and stickers ?

my_gorgeous_ellie-belle

Lol, good deterant!

I was thinking of spending anywhere up to a max £100 for something though.

We don't have much of a prob with cars being stolen here at all but just thinking as it's an older type Polo i have been told going back into London (which we do alot to stay with family) these often get picked up for a joy ride.

maninthestreet

A 13 year old Polo is worth £1100 ???

iamana1ias

£1100 for an R reg polo? They saw you coming!

anewman

I recently saw an easy fit alarm for £19.99 at Maplins. http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=347077 It would go off if the car was hit sufficiently to trigger the shock sensor, or if a door was opened (voltage drop caused by the interior light coming on). The most difficult bit installing it will be passing the wire through the bulkhead and fixing the led, you could forego this but would lose its deterrent effect and not know when the alarm is armed.

EDIT: instructions say to drill holes in engine bay, in many cars you will often find pre-existing holes in areas where you can fit the siren and you can just use one of those instead of drilling.

Any other type of alarm, unless you're comfortable with reading wiring diagrams and car electronics, will need a professional installer which is where most of the money would go.

I'd have thought a 97 reg Polo would have an engine immobiliser anyway, which means if they don't have your keys they'll have a heck of a time trying to drive it. So if joyriding is your primary concern you probably don't have much to worry about. If the car is to be left for any period of time there are some free anti-theft measures that can be taken, such as removing the battery, or distributor cap and leads (do not forget which order the leads connect in).

lucylucky

I would question the point of a car alarm, on virtually any car to be honest.

You hear so many going off that they seem to be ignored.

A flashing led may well be just as effective.

I personally would not bother

my_gorgeous_ellie-belle

No no no....it's coz it's an auto. And a nice kitted out one in actually extremely good nick with good millage, lol! Had to travel far away to get it too as down here you can't get one cheaper than £1500 for something actually in good running condition. It's nuts but they seem to keep their value better than most cars like fiestas and corsas.

We have looked at some for £900 range but they ALL have something wrong or over 100,000 miles and looked a bit !!!!!!ed inside. We took 3 diff people all really knowledgable in cars to check it over and all said deffo a good car.

I know if it were manual we'd have easily got one for a good few hundred less.

Lol - i searched hard for this please don't tell me i got stung, lol! It's a nice little motor all kitted out so wanna at least put some kind of alarm on it -even if it's just a simple-ish one.