Car Alarms

[bcholmes]

Every time I hear a car alarm go off for more than a couple of seconds, I have this strong urge to vandalize it.

I don't know who originally invented car alarms, but I can't think of any way that a design could fail more completely.

Comments

[james-nicoll.livejournal.com]

Add outward firing anti-personel mines to discourage theft.

[kightp.livejournal.com]

I've always thought an alarm that delivered a nice, silent electric shock would be so much more effective...

[hellsop.livejournal.com]

Delivered to the owner, you mean?

[kightp.livejournal.com]

Only if they neglected to disarm the loud one.

[king-tirian.livejournal.com]

To the perpetrator or to the (groin of the) car's owner?

[epi-lj.livejournal.com]

There was a "Car alarm," in one of the Robocop movies that waited until you were inside and seated, then electrocuted you to a crisp, opened the door, and tilted the seat to dispose of the corpse. It was one of several amusing parodies of popular culture in the film. :)

[rosefox]

Near our house, there are elevated train tracks. Trains go by, oh, about every three minutes. There's always some idiot who parks under the tracks and turns on his car alarm.

Someone once told me that placing a half-full can of soda on the hood of a car will keep the alarm going until the battery dies. It's almost worth it.

[epi-lj.livejournal.com]

We once had a neighbour arm their alarm and go away on vacation. I don't know if this was just an early design flaw that was fixed later (this would be in the late 80s or early 90s) or if something kept setting it off or what, but the alarm went off continually for *ages*. I think everbody in the neighbourhood was about to go try to beat their car to death. It finally did run out of juice, fortunately.

[king-tirian.livejournal.com]

In moments like this, I try to focus on the opening scenes of (Beverly Hills Cop 2?) where some kid is rollerblading down Rodeo Drive thwacking all the parked cars with a rolled up newspaper. In doesn't completely calm the Fist of Death, but it's a start.

[the-siobhan.livejournal.com]

A lot of jurisdictions are adding bylaws about how long a car alarm can go on before it gets towed. I suspect you are not alone.

They aren't even effective. An alarm that goes on for a while is a pretty clear indication that the owner is nowhere within hearing distance. In the complex where my mother used to live, there were stereo theives who would set off car alarms, wait for 10-15 minutes, and then break in. The super eventually dropped a note in everybodys' mailbox that said, "Dumbass. If you aren't going to be around to hear it, turn off the fucking alarm."

[sonjaaa.livejournal.com]

Have you seen Seinfeld's schpiel about car alarms?

[bcholmes.livejournal.com]

No, I can't say that I have.