# Basic car alarm recommendation **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Created:** [December 29, 2012, 12:08am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/basic-car-alarm-recommendation/76373 "2012-12-29T00:08:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![sciconf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@sciconf](https://community.cartalk.com/u/sciconf)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2012, 12:08am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/basic-car-alarm-recommendation/76373/1 "2012-12-29T00:08:08Z")
My Honda 2000 (Integra), doors get opened up easily. I use a steering wheel lock to prevent theft. Thinking of installing a car alarm. Can you recommend a car alarm? I never installed one - do you recommend a site I can read about installing? Any recommendation for a shop to install? I am in northern CA. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2012, 12:43am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/basic-car-alarm-recommendation/76373/2 "2012-12-29T00:43:11Z")
Can you be more specific about what you mean by “doors get opened up easily”? A 2000 acura should have built-in ignition disabling as well as a steering system lock, and the doors should not be able to be opened without the proper “chip”. These things should prevent theft. Doors have to withstand 1000 pounds of outward force in order to be considered accident safe. If the problem is mechanical, the car may not be safe in an accident. ---
**Author:** ![shadowfax](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/shadowfax/32/13026_2.png) [@shadowfax](https://community.cartalk.com/u/shadowfax)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2012, 1:39am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/basic-car-alarm-recommendation/76373/3 "2012-12-29T01:39:01Z")
45 seconds with a wedge and a coat hanger and Integra doors pop right open. Or, if they’re really determined, about half a second with a hammer… I have a CompuStar alarm on my MR2. The thing about alarms is that they’re always going off, so no one pays attention to them anymore. The Compustar is a paging alarm, which means it will beep a key fob if the alarm goes off, so that you can go and look, since no one else will. I’m happy with it. ---
**Author:** ![sciconf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@sciconf](https://community.cartalk.com/u/sciconf)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2012, 1:50am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/basic-car-alarm-recommendation/76373/4 "2012-12-29T01:50:02Z")
In my circumstance, it happens where I park in the night. So a door alarm would deter a thief. Any tips appreciated ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2012, 1:55am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/basic-car-alarm-recommendation/76373/5 "2012-12-29T01:55:24Z")
Do you have any shops in your area that specialize in this? Too often car alarms are installed that interfere with the built in preventative measures like the ignition disable system, and problems develop like not being able to start the car. It may be better to bring it to a specialist. ---
**Author:** ![sciconf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@sciconf](https://community.cartalk.com/u/sciconf)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2012, 2:52am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/basic-car-alarm-recommendation/76373/6 "2012-12-29T02:52:22Z")
This is a 2000 Honda - it has no ignition disable or any other deterrent system at all. ---
**Author:** ![ken\_green](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/ken_green/32/816_2.png) [@ken\_green](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ken_green)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2012, 3:00am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/basic-car-alarm-recommendation/76373/7 "2012-12-29T03:00:27Z")
I’m with shadowfax, get one that pages YOU insted of just a parking lot noise maker. ---
**Author:** ![MOVAN](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e47774/32.png) [@MOVAN](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MOVAN)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2012, 3:25am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/basic-car-alarm-recommendation/76373/8 "2012-12-29T03:25:30Z")
To be honest, alarms these days are useless. As shadowfax stated, too many are going off and no one is paying attention to them anymore. Your best bet is to get a kill switch install. Either an ignition kill switch, clutch kill switch, relay kill switch or fuel pump kill switch. ---
**Author:** ![DrRocket](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/drrocket/32/2603_2.png) [@DrRocket](https://community.cartalk.com/u/DrRocket)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2012, 6:04am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/basic-car-alarm-recommendation/76373/9 "2012-12-29T06:04:58Z")
And don’t leave anything of value in your car. ---
**Author:** ![missileman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/missileman/32/1366_2.png) [@missileman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/missileman)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2012, 6:26am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/basic-car-alarm-recommendation/76373/10 "2012-12-29T06:26:23Z")
Car alarms are like oil pressure idiot lights. When they operate…it’s usually too late to save the vehicle. ---
**Author:** ![Barkydog](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/barkydog/32/2470_2.png) [@Barkydog](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Barkydog)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2012, 9:05am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/basic-car-alarm-recommendation/76373/11 "2012-12-29T09:05:16Z")
What do you want to protect? If it is the radio get a removable one, prevent the car from getting stole, a secret ignition switch, but chances are instead of having a missing car you will have your car but ign switch and possibly dashboard will be toast. ---
**Author:** ![Big\_Marc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9d8465/32.png) [@Big\_Marc](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Big_Marc)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2012, 6:33pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/basic-car-alarm-recommendation/76373/12 "2012-12-29T18:33:15Z")
its alll about the install vist a high end mobil eletronics shop and go from there ---
**Author:** ![bing](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/bing/32/4619_2.png) [@bing](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bing)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2012, 11:20pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/basic-car-alarm-recommendation/76373/13 "2012-12-29T23:20:52Z")
On the son’s Acura Integra, we just went to Best Buy and had one of theirs installed by them. No problems with it. Really though I think alarms are over-rated and go unnoticed most of the time. The best thing we did was put in a fuel shut off switch so that it couldn’t be driven. Maybe an alarm would help mitigate a break-in but a shut off switch will prevent it from being driven away.