Superb car alarm

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hollyrescue

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Well, it's happened, for some obscure reason the passenger window has been smashed in to steal a pair of very old poundshop sun glasses!! They were years old and useless.
Nothing else gone, but the mess!!! Also £50 excess on the insurance.
The alarm went off and a couple of nesting birds nearby were undisturbed, this alarm is probably the most useless alarm in the universe. We were only a short distance away, all out in the open but didn't hear a thing. The Volvo alarm would awaken the dead.

It was a fine ending to the week: after travelling 2 1/2 hours to a hospital on Monday, arriving as instructed at 0825 only to find that everyone had the same appointment time. Friday I got a call to go to hospital for chemo, I was all hyped up for 7 hours worth of it, I rushed there within an hour. GUESS WHAT!! You'd never believe it, the pharmacist had forgotten to order it! So that's delayed again.

I am thoroughly p****d off.

Anyone tried an after market alarm that works?
Or a hospital that makes sensible appointments, or a hospital pharmacist that knows his job?
 
Further to my last post. Autoglass took 2 minutes to ring back and make an appointment , the police took 48 minutes to answer the phone.
Autoglass have been, but can't do it because they don't know how, they have never done an A2 window glass before, and after a 15 minute try, gave up. They are ringing head Office for mnfrs service sheets, apparently there are two different doors and this is the other one!" It would seem that the exterior trim is damaged where they used a screwdriver to break the glass, they put it between trim and glass and give it a twist, glass breaks and ...er, thats it. I said I thought that they did it with a spark plug, the fitter said they are doing so many that there are not enough spark plugs left!

I'm serious about the after market alarm and would appreciate anybodies experiences.
As if this wasn't enough it's 7 hours chemo tomorrow (if the pharmacist has woken up).
Even more p****d off now!!
 
Grrr... Sorry to hear all this Rich! Good luck with chemo and the glass...

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[img=left]http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2002-2/11882/a2andme2.gif[/img=left]
2001 A2 TDI SE Crystal Blue with Open Sky, 6CD Symphony II, BOSE upgrade, DIS and HALF a winterpack!

iPAQ 3970 with Sat-Nav sleeve, rear cupholders, luggage net and floppy wiper!

http://www.a2oc.net/pic_show.asp?picid=1572&type=1 On www.A2OC.net pictures UK160 to UK183
 
Well Autoglass have done it. It seems that the WHOLE door has to be dismantled to change the glass, at the bottom of the door is a strengthening box section, the glass falls in to that, but you can't get the vacuum cleaner in anywhere to remove the glass, so I have to live with rattling glass. The fitter said that VWs are the same but have some form of access panel to get the glass out, another example of Vorst sprung ....etc.whatever!! He said that the A2 falls in to the top 5 awkward glass change jobs, Freelander being the worst.
 
Aftermarket alarms come down to how much peace of mind do you want and how much do you want to pay.

Depending on the risks you think that your car is exposed to you might like to consider my approach, which is a proximity sensor - which recognises when someone is too close to your car, digital pager which tells you when any of the alarms of gone off and tinted windows as the extra security film can not only stop people getting in or at least slowing them down but also holds the glass in place if it does get broken.

Cost wise:
Proximity sensor can be between £150 - £250
Digital pager - £200 - £350
Tinted windows £350 - £500

Sounds like a lot but is well worth it.
My kit, bar the tints, I have moved from my last car and it works very well. Sensors can be set to sitting on the wing mirror to about 2-3ft away. The pager has a range, depending on the conditions of the locality from 400m - 2km or even one of the GPS one that is global but more pricey. Food for thought ahh!
 
EF MAX Thanks for the info, very useful.
As we normally only leave it for a short time whilst walking the dog,and in vulnerable places I stay near the car while my wife walks the dog, and we use walkie talkies for communication. This time she persuaded me that I was being paranoid about car safety and to walk round with her. WRONG! In the opinion of the experts, police etc. it must have been kids cos the disabled badge could fetch big money and it was not taken.
It was very strange because on the Sunday I passed the spot and there were 3 police cars and 6 coppers there, I said "has some one else been done" but they said they were on an unrelated incident, when I returned there were 5 police cars and 10 coppers. I said I am going to tell everyone you are on my case" , he said "tell 'em we've got forensics, regional crime squad and special branch to help". A copper with a sense of humour, I told him that the last time I saw a uniformed copper it was at the Police Sports Club (I am a member)", he said "we are a dying breed".
Back to the point, I think I will investigate the proximity alarm as it would be what we need, assuming it emits a piercing screech and not the pathetic beep of the Audi alarm.
Any other ideas or suggestions will be gratefully received.

The chemo was 10 hours not 7 as expected!!!
 
Bad luck old bean. Thieving scum. Chop their hands off.



Steve - A couple of A2's, then a Corolla, now an Avensis T3-X 2.0 Auto
 
I have hawked the A2 around the specialist alarm companies. They won't touch it, not even to upgrade the siren, so I'm stuck with the pathetic beep.
 
Forget upgrades, just go for a completely new alarm and have it has two independent things.

I have been known to go OTT on security, my last car was basically out of Star Wars on the alarm front.

I stick to basic scumbag theroies, keep them at bay and keep them out.. The basic Audi with tinted windows helps keep them out.

Forget loud horns, they serve no useful purpose but to annoy those close by. You are the one that needs to know when something is happening, heck I can even set mine to tell me when its raining, I joke you not.

There is so much technology around now, you just have to look around, especially outside of the UK. I work on the thoughts, that if you can break in, you deserve to keep it, but if I catch you, Linford's legs are not going to help you..

The tints, especially the security tints, which have a metalised film in the sandwich, goes a long way to fooling the smash and grab bandits.

OTT security is important for me as I have invested a lot in my car and its audio set-up and I'll be damm if some little squirt is going to relieve me of my doing two jobs to buy what I want gear.. and I don't really fancy a manslaughter charge..
 
EF MAX, The security system would prevent any entering the car I think, only to reach in and grab anything, they had opened the glove box but it was empty anyway. I tried locking the car with the window broken, it is not at all easy to get in especially with loads of broken glass still in the frame and the car, obviously with unlimted time you could manage it, but this job could only have taken seconds.
The reluctance of all alarm people was "due to the computer and digital signals", in other words they did not want to risk blowing the pooter (as my Grandson would say). I bet he could do it, he's only 9 and VERY computer literate
 
Tinted windows look great, but lets remember that having your front windows filmed with whatever percentage of tint is now illegal for road use. Only the rear windows can be touched Im afraid. I know there are plenty of cars on the road (especially 4x4's) with blacked-out windows, but you risk an instant fine and 48hours to have the film removed or face prosecution.

Dolphin Grey 1.4 petrol c/w OpenSky
 
I believe now, you cant have any tint at all on driver,passenger
front windows.Although a lot of cars seem to have a very faint tint,
i dont know how they get away with it. I guess because the only police you see nowadays are dressed up as GATSO 'S [3] .And they cant pick up the tint.
You can always go for a clear tint with the anti shatter stuff though.
Cheers

andy

1.4TDI SE, DIS ,Leather ,CD ,ipod ,Climate ,Road Angel ,Tom Tom Go.
 
I believe the front side windows & front screen must transfer 75% of light through to be legal, anybody know what the figures are for the standard glass? possibly fit reflective film that lets light in (@75% of course)

A2 TDI Sport Leather, climate control, Bose cruise control
 
The current UK law says that the front windows must transmit 70% light. I had a smart cooper the other week try to give me some crap. Sad for him as I am a keen landscape photographer and just happened to have a light meter and a 18% koday grey card on me.. well I gave him a lesson in light transmission and he went off double quick with a bright red face.

Don't just accept their crap, 70% transmission is what all the non-cowboy tint/fitters work to.

A real issue is wearing sunglasses. They are designed to cut out light and they will often cut out more than 70%,, now lets see them enforce that one in the daytime during summer.

My eyesight is non too bright, I cannot handle either bright or flashing lights. My prescribed glasses have are photochromatic and have a 40% pretint and a special 10% layered tint,, still at night headlights dazzle me and I can see as clear as daylight.. I refuse to let the DVLA or the police tell me what is good for me,, I have had over 40 years of knowing my own eyesight, so the glasses and the tints make my life easier.. whinge over..
 
70% light transmission was the ruling, but when the police worked out that this would be an absolute nightmare to enforce (would mean them all carrying light meters) they changed the ruling to NO film application at all. My friend has his own business manufacturing corporate graphics for the auto industry, but also branched out into car tinting, investing in a very expensive dust-free booth. He showed me the documentation a couple of weeks ago that states that if they pull someone over that has tinted front windows and they can prove that my friends firm applied it following the change in policy, they are liable for prosecution. It clearly stated that this was a UK requirement and not just the North West of England.
Sorry chaps!

Dolphin Grey 1.4 petrol c/w OpenSky
 
So what is the difference between the layer of plastic between the sheets of glass in the laminated windscreen and the zero tint applied to one side of the drivers window "in contravention of the law"???


1.4 Petrol Special Edition, Ebony Black, grey leather, heated seats, climate, opensky, five spoke alloys for SWMBO (Replaced a 2002 1.4 Petrol SE) Honda Accord Tourer 2.2 iCDTi for me.
 
Did'nt say it made any sense.
I believe that they tried to say that it was ok to use a particular grade of tint, which would come within the 70% light transmitance, but unfortunately vehicle manufactures use different levels of tint on windows, which made it impossible to gauge as to what was road legal and what was'nt.
So rather than issue all police authorities with light meters, they just made the decision to ban all applications of film to the front windows.
Dont know about you, but I see loads of motors knocking about on a daily basis with dark tinted windows. I take it that as usual, due to a lack of resourses, it simply cannot be policed.

Dolphin Grey 1.4 petrol c/w OpenSky
 
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