NoRdiC 200shot

i'VE been in the mobile audio-industry for about 2 years now workin on custom installs, and alarms. And to tell you the truth, as an installer i really cant recommend ANY type of alarm other than clifford. My car curently has the avant guard in it and once i arm it, i couldn't steal my own car without disarming it. DO NOT GO CHEAP ON YOUR ALARM THERE IS A REASON WHY ONE COSTS $400 compared to $99, reason is this:

reason 1- 99%(which includes viper,python,bicron, clarion ungo, alpine, KARR, and the endless # off brands) of alarms use a basic relay switch to trigger the siren. Meaning that once the alarm detects a trigger, it simply shoots a hot to the siren thus giving power, thus making noise. EVERY one that steals cars has knowledge of this. Therefore, when someone is trying to jack your car, he simply reaches under and cuts the only wire that is comeing through your firewall. the whole preocedure takes 10 seconds. BAM..your alarm has been disabled.

reason 2- the ignition kills provided in 99% of alarms are a joke. There are five pins on the side of a relay. when an alarm is armed, it sends a ground to the relay thus opening the circuit, thus cutting your ignition. all i have to do as a car jacker is simply pull one of the ignition plugs out of the relay and plug it into the relay pin in the middle, which would close my circuit. disable time=5sec.

reason 3- 99% of the shops that do install alarms put the alarm brain in almost the exact same place. within 12 inches of the steering column. Every car jacker knows this also. Once they find the alarm brain, they disconnect it, fix the ignition kill from reason 2(5 secs) and its like you car never had an alarm.

reason 4- there is alot of hype in the alarm industry, all this jazz about alarm remote signal re-encoding, digital this, digital that, fancy little remotes, let me be the first to tell you that it is a bunch of bulls**t!!! Almost ALL of them 99%(theres that percentage again) do the same thing except diffrent packaging.
sort of like strut tie bars, all do the same thing, but some are made better, but dont really fucntion better.

reason 5-your probably thinking why the hell, do they charge $100 for a viper alarm when the $100 alarms are so easily disabled? The alarms barely cost the dealers $30 per unit. YOU ARE PAYING FOR LABOR NOT AUTO-SECURITY!!!! reason is the alarms are ussually nothing more than a buncha minature relays packed nicely in a black box. Also if they every try to bust something like"yea you have a complicated car and there are a bunhc of special wires" tell them to suckit cuz to hooki up a viper alarm takes about 30 min because there are only 7 wires to connect.

dont believe me? if you fear you have one of these alarms check for your self;. find the brain, and actually count howmany wires are connected to your car.
you should find this:

red- power
black - ground
yellow - ignition
green/blue - doorlocks
white - parking lights
orange - ground for ignition kill
brown - siren
green - door trigger

anycolor - shock sensor

that is your basic alarm. now look at those wires. how many are actually a type of wire for securing your car? 2.
your door trigger, and the schock sensor. thats it. everyother wire is for power , or to open your door., or to flash your parking lights. This is your basic viper 300-800. if you have remote start then you have four extra relays, but no added security.

sorta scary isn't it?
i dont mean to scare you guys, but as a 5thgen fellow prelude owner i feel that i should share the truth with you.

so now you ask? what makes clifford diffrent?

first of all, the clifford siren for the higher models is self powered. that means the alarm does not send power to the siren to make it make noise, it ssends a digital signal thus removing the ability to shut the siren up. ALso the siren is in continual communication with the alarm brain, so if the communication is cut it knows something is wrong and then makes noise.

second, the ignition kill is built into the alarm brain itself and not simply a external relay attached to the cars ignition. This there fore does not allow for the car jacker to simply rewire the ignition.

third, the lead wires supplied with the cliford alarms are unbelevably looooong. This is so the alarm brain can be mounted extremely far from the steering column. Mine is in my rear left 1/4 panel. this makes it nearly impossible for the car jacker to find and disalbe.

fourth, most alarms have only 2 wires to detect intrusion, the lowest model of clifford has 5, and the highest model with a staggering 23. more trggers meaning harder to steal, tamper.

fifth, you have the option of adding a wireless imoblizer. simply put it is a remote fuel control that has no wires connected to your brain. your alarm communicates with the fuel cutoff via radio. So the switch is untraceable. once armed the alarm sends a radio signal to cut the fuel unless the alarm tells it to reconnect. so even if the car jacker finds the brain, kills the siren, and hot wires the ignition, unless you disarm it with your remote, he gets no fuel and you car stays where you left it.

lasytly, any dealer that is certified to carry clifford and legally distribute and install the alarm system is aware of all the points i have just mentioned. so if you but the clffiord alarm you can rest assured that it was installed(unless this shop is not reputable) corectly and in the best fashion possible to prevent auto losss.

conclusion?

buy the clifford, spend the extra $300-400, or dont spend $100 and save it until you can buy the clifford.

keep your car.

peace.

andrew