I like to take the car out more, but am afraid to let it out of my site. I'm interested in getting a basic (but not cheezy) alarm. What are you guys doing for alarms? When putting an alarm on an older car, are there any additional considerations (as compared to alarming a late model car)? What kinds of things should you look for (shock sensors vs activated by door switches vs ?). I am interested in spending about $150 - $225.
What kind of alarm
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Use a kill switch. Run a wire from the - side of the coil to one side of a switch. Run another wire from the other side of the switch to a metal ground.
With the switch on, the starter just turns without firing the car. Turn the switch off and the car fires up. Hide the switch. Add a hood lock if you want.
Also see this Tech Ref
http://www.chevelles.com/techref/tecref13.html
Mark
[This message has been edited by COPO (edited 05-28-99).]
With the switch on, the starter just turns without firing the car. Turn the switch off and the car fires up. Hide the switch. Add a hood lock if you want.
Also see this Tech Ref
http://www.chevelles.com/techref/tecref13.html
Mark
[This message has been edited by COPO (edited 05-28-99).]
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I think COPO is on the right track. Definatly have a kill switch. I think just an alarm with a siren dosn't do it any more. Sure in front of your house where you can here it and come out blazin like billy the kid. But at the mall and what not, no body really pays attention to alarms going off any more. just my
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22 Posts
I think COPO is on the right track. Definatly have a kill switch. I think just an alarm with a siren dosn't do it any more. Sure in front of your house where you can here it and come out blazin like billy the kid. But at the mall and what not, no body really pays attention to alarms going off any more. just my
I know the cops in my area use a mercury tilt switch or equivalent on the transmission shifter lever (on the tranny). That along with a hidden switch. Flip the switch and even if they get the car started every time anyone puts it in gear.....it shuts off! You can come up with a lot of ideas that will fool a thief better than the alarms available. Time to head down to the local RadioShack for some parts.....
Great question, how you you rig the thing with an MSD setup? I'm going to run MSD inside the car, and this issue has come up. I definitely want a kill switch rigged up. By the way, my friend just rigged a solenoid up to his hood latch that, when activated, dis-activates the hood latch. Push a button and click, you can't open the hood. Really cool idea. I'd like to rig one on my '67 'Elle.
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In addition to everything else, you NEED a hood lock!!!
Even if it's an ugly piece of chain and a standard household lock, you have to keep the hood closed. Let your friends say that you have no class, if it keeps your car from being stolen, it's worth it!
Gene; If you look at the wiring diagram for the MSD unit, you will notice that there are two different "sense" hook-ups possible. On mine, I'm using the "plug-in" hook-up to the MSD Pro Billet distributor. That leaves the wires for the "standard" type distributor unused. You can run the wire off and use a simple grounding switch to disable the MSD unit. It will NOT damage the MSD unit and as far as the units conserned, the "points" are just closed all the time. (you have to read between the lines in their instructions to pick up on this)
Wes.
Even if it's an ugly piece of chain and a standard household lock, you have to keep the hood closed. Let your friends say that you have no class, if it keeps your car from being stolen, it's worth it!
Gene; If you look at the wiring diagram for the MSD unit, you will notice that there are two different "sense" hook-ups possible. On mine, I'm using the "plug-in" hook-up to the MSD Pro Billet distributor. That leaves the wires for the "standard" type distributor unused. You can run the wire off and use a simple grounding switch to disable the MSD unit. It will NOT damage the MSD unit and as far as the units conserned, the "points" are just closed all the time. (you have to read between the lines in their instructions to pick up on this)
Wes.
There is a couple things that you can do. My car is a 68 with a blower and the car is driven and shown alot. Here is what I do.
1. I have an electric fuel pump with the power switch hidden in the ashtray.
2.Take the coil wire with me when I am away from it.
3.My battery is in my trunk, it gets disconnected.
4.Put a club on the steering wheel.
I would like to see the theif figure all of these things out!
1. I have an electric fuel pump with the power switch hidden in the ashtray.
2.Take the coil wire with me when I am away from it.
3.My battery is in my trunk, it gets disconnected.
4.Put a club on the steering wheel.
I would like to see the theif figure all of these things out!
Thieves love the club- it gives them a leverage point to break you column lock.
my .02
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1BADS72
Robert Anderson
pages.hotbot.com/photo/1bads72/
WIDE OPEN 'TIL YOU SEE GOD, THEN BRAKE!
my .02
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1BADS72
Robert Anderson
pages.hotbot.com/photo/1bads72/
WIDE OPEN 'TIL YOU SEE GOD, THEN BRAKE!
Definitely go for some simple theft protection, such as a kill switch and a hood lock. They make locking hoodpins, a friend of mine had them and liked them a lot. If you have an alarm, all a theif has to do is reach under your dash and rip the little box out. Besides, do you really wanna butcher your stock harness trying to insall some kind of cheesy alarm? The only thing car alarms are good for is annoying the neighbors.
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Ian McDermott
1970 Chevelle SS 396
Columbia University
New York, NY.
E-mail: [email protected]
Web page: drive.to/chevelle
ICQ UIN: 3923441
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Ian McDermott
1970 Chevelle SS 396
Columbia University
New York, NY.
E-mail: [email protected]
Web page: drive.to/chevelle
ICQ UIN: 3923441
Joined
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151 Posts
Im sure glad all the car thiefs out there don't know how to use a computer, because you people just told them about ten ways to steal our cars. Not to bright.
Kill switches to the coil suck. Any (bad guy)or anyone who has built a car,will see that extra wire at the coil. Owners are always asking on the site, (what's that extra wire for?) Nobody wants their car ripped off, so lets not write a "HOW TO" book. You couldn't pay me to tell anybody why my EC stays home....
Kill switches to the coil suck. Any (bad guy)or anyone who has built a car,will see that extra wire at the coil. Owners are always asking on the site, (what's that extra wire for?) Nobody wants their car ripped off, so lets not write a "HOW TO" book. You couldn't pay me to tell anybody why my EC stays home....
I agree (in principle) with Patrick. However, the idea for this "forum" is to give ideas on what others have done. When I wrote the Technical Reference section on alarms, I didn't go into the specifics as to what I've done to my car. IT'S NOBODY'S BUSINESS!
I think that the "Club" is overrated and the prior post gives a good reason as for why.
The "shocker" club is a neat idea, but I bet you could get sued if he has a heart attack. (think I'm kidding? I'd bet that's why you can't but "threshold of pain" noise generators for the interior of your car! They were available for a while.)
Coil kill switches do nothing other than make the thief spend more time. It may be a deciding factor if time is tight, but if they see you go get in line for Star Wars, they know they can play around for two hours. Heaven forbid they tag your car when you are going into Disneyland for the day.
If I was the thief, I'd bet that the "kill" switch is within reach while sitting in the drivers seat. Put it somewhere else!
As far as mounting the "unit" under the dash, mount it somewhere else (I did). You could mount it in the trunk (not where I did) and run the wires up front. The trick is routing the wires where they can't be gotten to. In other words, not just under the carpet. The door sill cavity runs the full length of the car. (hint, hint) This is NOT an easy location to run wires, but it's even more difficult for a thief to realise that they are there. (of course, if the unit doesn't have a remote antenna reciever unit, the location is given away by seeing the antenna)
For those trips to Disneyland, get a battery disconnect switch (Summit has them for around 20 bucks), and then make it so that the hood can't be opened. When you get to the park, open the hood, turn off the car, then lock down the hood. (I don't care if my date thinks I'm paranoid! How would she like having to call for a ride home at 1 in the morning?)
If using a battery disconnect switch, make sure that it doesn't turn off the power to the alarm! Put a fuse (or circuit breaker) on the alarm feed line that is only big enough to run the alarm. That way, they don't have enough current to run the starter! (on my car, with the rest of the car turned off, the alarm works, can lock and unlock the doors, and roll up the windows)
Could a thief get past my alarm and take my car? SURE. But the only way he could do it fast would be to show up with a tow truck. It's all a matter of making him spend his time!!!!
Then we could talk about "back-up" batterys, but I've got to stop somewhere.
Wes. Vann
I think that the "Club" is overrated and the prior post gives a good reason as for why.
The "shocker" club is a neat idea, but I bet you could get sued if he has a heart attack. (think I'm kidding? I'd bet that's why you can't but "threshold of pain" noise generators for the interior of your car! They were available for a while.)
Coil kill switches do nothing other than make the thief spend more time. It may be a deciding factor if time is tight, but if they see you go get in line for Star Wars, they know they can play around for two hours. Heaven forbid they tag your car when you are going into Disneyland for the day.
If I was the thief, I'd bet that the "kill" switch is within reach while sitting in the drivers seat. Put it somewhere else!
As far as mounting the "unit" under the dash, mount it somewhere else (I did). You could mount it in the trunk (not where I did) and run the wires up front. The trick is routing the wires where they can't be gotten to. In other words, not just under the carpet. The door sill cavity runs the full length of the car. (hint, hint) This is NOT an easy location to run wires, but it's even more difficult for a thief to realise that they are there. (of course, if the unit doesn't have a remote antenna reciever unit, the location is given away by seeing the antenna)
For those trips to Disneyland, get a battery disconnect switch (Summit has them for around 20 bucks), and then make it so that the hood can't be opened. When you get to the park, open the hood, turn off the car, then lock down the hood. (I don't care if my date thinks I'm paranoid! How would she like having to call for a ride home at 1 in the morning?)
If using a battery disconnect switch, make sure that it doesn't turn off the power to the alarm! Put a fuse (or circuit breaker) on the alarm feed line that is only big enough to run the alarm. That way, they don't have enough current to run the starter! (on my car, with the rest of the car turned off, the alarm works, can lock and unlock the doors, and roll up the windows)
Could a thief get past my alarm and take my car? SURE. But the only way he could do it fast would be to show up with a tow truck. It's all a matter of making him spend his time!!!!
Then we could talk about "back-up" batterys, but I've got to stop somewhere.
Wes. Vann
Hey Wes, an old intelligence hand in the Army once told me , " Just because you're paranoid, doesn't mean someone's not following you." From what I heard this old bastard went through S&%# and always came out good. A lesson learned.
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Can someone explain to mehow the murcury switch works. I know how it actually works in the sense of the switch aspects, but it's the 'setting' of it that's got me confused.
The switch works on the principal that as it tilts, it creats a circut and sets the alarm off, kills the starter, whatever. What I don't get is how does the switch become level to begin with? Obviously you aren't going to part your car on a level surface all the time, so how does the switch level itse;f out in order to be 'armed' (for lack of a better term)?
Anyone?
As for protecting your car, keep in mind that most car thiefs are idiots and in a hurry. Any amount of protection you can add, even if it's a psudo alarm flashing LED type thing will offer some level of protection. Whatever adds to the hassel or amount of time they need to steal it will be to your advantage.
My idea: Since I don't smoke, and the radar detector is hardwired, use the lighter as the security device. Run the ignition wire thru the lighter so that it only makes contact with the lighter pushed in. (ummm..remember to remove the heating element). When you leave, pull it out so that it looks normal.
It's easy, unsuspecting, and the wires are high enough up in the dash that the casual observer (or thief in a hurry) won't see that it was done.
Kurt
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The 68 Chevelle info page. [last updated Nov. 30, 98]
www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Garage/6873/Chevelle/68_Chevelle_Info.html
The Team Chevelle Showroom. [last updated May 17, 99]
www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Boulevard/6987/
Email: [email protected]
A.C.E.S. #1352
The switch works on the principal that as it tilts, it creats a circut and sets the alarm off, kills the starter, whatever. What I don't get is how does the switch become level to begin with? Obviously you aren't going to part your car on a level surface all the time, so how does the switch level itse;f out in order to be 'armed' (for lack of a better term)?
Anyone?
As for protecting your car, keep in mind that most car thiefs are idiots and in a hurry. Any amount of protection you can add, even if it's a psudo alarm flashing LED type thing will offer some level of protection. Whatever adds to the hassel or amount of time they need to steal it will be to your advantage.
My idea: Since I don't smoke, and the radar detector is hardwired, use the lighter as the security device. Run the ignition wire thru the lighter so that it only makes contact with the lighter pushed in. (ummm..remember to remove the heating element). When you leave, pull it out so that it looks normal.
It's easy, unsuspecting, and the wires are high enough up in the dash that the casual observer (or thief in a hurry) won't see that it was done.
Kurt
------------------
The 68 Chevelle info page. [last updated Nov. 30, 98]
www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Garage/6873/Chevelle/68_Chevelle_Info.html
The Team Chevelle Showroom. [last updated May 17, 99]
www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Boulevard/6987/
Email: [email protected]
A.C.E.S. #1352
I'd love to tell you guys my "secret plans", but I've got some good ideas and don't want the wrong people to get ahold of the plans.
Say, for most years on Chevelles, isn't there a very important (+) battery lead in a certain place near the batter??? HINT HINT HINT
Oh and if you are a theif reading this and think you've got it figured out-GUESS AGAIN, being an electronics tech, I'm gonna screw any would-be theifs over big time.
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Say, for most years on Chevelles, isn't there a very important (+) battery lead in a certain place near the batter??? HINT HINT HINT
Oh and if you are a theif reading this and think you've got it figured out-GUESS AGAIN, being an electronics tech, I'm gonna screw any would-be theifs over big time.
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