radio jacked over the weekend...

[aglio412]

alexandria, virginia...surburbian paradise...tree lined roads...friendly nieghbors...

just don't leave your car in one place for a weekend...

anyway, i woke up to a broken out passenger window and a missing stereo. it was a really nice sony one that cost me about 500 bills a few years ago...so now, i have 2 dilemmas.

1. replacing it with something that will play mp3 cd-rs

2. making sure this doesn't happen again.

would a car alarm really have stopped this person? i know someone that soldered razor blades to the back of their stereo...walked to his car one morning...broken glass and blood everywhere...stereo was still sitting there.

anyway...advice anyone?

d-

[pennypinch]

Yes, that flamethrower things is actually only legal in, I believe, South Africa, where incidentally they also sell rape insurance. That, my friends, should scare you very much.

My condolences on the abducted piece of equipment. An alarm usually does hinder the less sophisticated criminal, and does lower your insurance premium.

Here's something I've been toying with: what if, instead of blowing your money on an alarm, take the initial money you'd spend and install lucite windows? I have no grasp whatsoever on what they'd cost, but I figure most of the pain-in-the-ass crime that goes on with cars involves broken windows: what if the windows couldn't be broken?

Does anyone know what those would cost?

[Ice-9]

Wouldn't lucite scratch pretty easily? One of the guys on my 944 list was thinking of installing Lexan windows to save weight, but was deterred because they have to be scratch-coated every year and even that doesn't completely prevent scratching. Does lucite have the same problem?

[pennypinch]

Originally posted by Ice-9
Wouldn't lucite scratch pretty easily? One of the guys on my 944 list was thinking of installing Lexan windows to save weight, but was deterred because they have to be scratch-coated every year and even that doesn't completely prevent scratching. Does lucite have the same problem?

I don't know. I imagine those that have bullet-proof materials like lucite can afford to have them rebuffed every six months if they are so scratch-prone.

Just floating a possible solution, I simply assume there are reasons people don't use lexan or lucite normally.

[hapoo]

damn, every 3 months someone gets their radio jacked

[coleslaw]

I have one of those JVC El Kameleon thingys. It just looks like a flush black plastic faceplate when the stereo is off.

I bet just putting a small project box on my dash with a battery-powered blinking red LED would deter thieves. :D

[Nanotech9]

check this out:

(hapoo - you should knwo this)

On stock BMW radios:
If the car is off, the radio has a little red light that blinks on it.
If you press one button on it, it begins to beep at you.
If you press several more, it locks itself out.
You have to get a radio code (for that specific radio) from BMW do re-activate the radio. (its free if you have proof of ownership of your BMW)
Plus hopefully nobody is dumb enough to steal a stock BMW radio :D

and when i want my MD in the car, i always remember to unhook and take it in with me. or, i could throw it in the glove box, cause you can lock it.

Another cool BMW feature is the "manual lock". Its got power locks, but if you turn the key a full 90 degrees and remove it, it engages basically a dead bolt against the locking mechanism, and it cant (supposedly) be opened with a slim-jim or anything else except the key in the Drivers side door. (locks both doors, and the trunk like that)

[Jeffbx]

I'd kind of hate to own the car parked next to the flame-thrower equipped one if it goes off...

I have a Blaupunkt stereo with smart card authentication. The smart card has to be in the radio for it to work. So, when I leave the car, I just pop the card out & stick it in my wallet. That way, if anyone is stupid enough to steal my stereo, I will at least have the satisfaction of knowing that it won't work for them. (Plus an excuse to get an in dash MP3 player!)

[babymike]

man, at least it was just the stereo that was stolen. Two weeks after i installed a brand new premier 6300 w/ sub and amp, plus a new sparco racing seat, someone decided they liked the mods too and decided to take the whole car. I hadn't even finished paying off the car yet. and i thought la jolla was a nice area.

[att]

it sucks having anything stolen! what i have done in my mustang considering all the time and money i put into it, is get a removable steering wheel. if someone decides they want something in the car, they will have to bust their ass and jack the part, or get a tow truck-they aint gonna drive away with no steering wheel. it doesnt cost that much to get a nice steering wheel that can be removed, and there's a bunch of brands out there that can be accomodated easily.

i would love the flame throwing alarm, but i have come too close to too many accidents(usually caused by other dumb ass people) to really consider driving around with a tank full of explosive chemicals in my car. i would rather pay teh insurance premiums than pay to have my ass reattatched

[kain9i6]

Also a great way to lock people IN the car.. My friend has a BMW and will get out and lock people in the car. Kinda sucks when You are the person and it's 110 degrees outside and the interior is black.. Oh well.. he's rich.. he can afford a new window. ;-)



Originally posted by Nanotech9
check this out:

(hapoo - you should knwo this)

On stock BMW radios:
If the car is off, the radio has a little red light that blinks on it.
If you press one button on it, it begins to beep at you.
If you press several more, it locks itself out.
You have to get a radio code (for that specific radio) from BMW do re-activate the radio. (its free if you have proof of ownership of your BMW)
Plus hopefully nobody is dumb enough to steal a stock BMW radio :D

and when i want my MD in the car, i always remember to unhook and take it in with me. or, i could throw it in the glove box, cause you can lock it.

Another cool BMW feature is the "manual lock". Its got power locks, but if you turn the key a full 90 degrees and remove it, it engages basically a dead bolt against the locking mechanism, and it cant (supposedly) be opened with a slim-jim or anything else except the key in the Drivers side door. (locks both doors, and the trunk like that)