Dear New Car Owner,

Most new cars sold today come with some sort of OEM remote control. Some remotes unlock the doors, some engage an anti-theft feature such as an ignition kill, and others feature remote start. Remotes seem to lend a touch of luxury to even the most bargain-basement car model.

But what some consumers might not know is that the remote that comes with a new car is not always a true security system. Sure, it might have security features like a panic button and keyless entry, and it might give them a reassuring honk when they leave the car, but none of those garden variety OEM features will help if someone wants to break a window to steal a purse or CDs from the seat.

Consumers need to know that just because they got a remote with their new car doesn't mean they have a security system. If they want true theft prevention, they should consider a system with a shock sensor.

All OEM systems are really doing is integrating with the electronics of the car so you can't start it without having the key in the ignition. Consumers are misled until somebody actually breaks the glass and steals something out of their car. Then they realize that the system they had was all just to prevent the car from getting stolen instead of being theft-proof.

Why this false sense of security? Back in the mid-'80s, aftermarket car alarms were some of the first car products to utilize a remote control. Now, a remote can mean anything from keyless entry to remote start, but consumers are left with the misconception that pointing a key chain and getting a "beep" response is equivalent to security and auto dealers usually do little to correct that misunderstanding.

Auto dealers are doing a nice job cosmetically with the remotes, so when the customer sees it, they believe they've got the whole package, but they really don't, because the dealer never really takes them through the whole presentation of that system. So they don't really know what they have.

Perhaps the biggest feature gap between OEM and aftermarket security is OEM's almost universal lack of shock sensors. A typical OEM ignition shutoff may prevent thieves from stealing the vehicle outright, but it offers nothing to deter someone from breaking the window and stealing the stereo or contents.

Overall, there's like 1.3 or 1.4 million vehicles stolen every year. That's true vehicle theft. That doesn't account for content theft. If you look at the late '90s to today, the big factor is content theft. There's over a billion dollars a year in content theft in the U.S. People lose their briefcases, CDs, purses, people lose parts of the vehicle. They're not driving the vehicle away, but they're stripping stuff off of it."

OEMs likely leave shock sensors out of their systems because of the bad rap brought on by overly sensitive alarms and sirens that drones on for too long. It's the potential annoyance factor that OEMs likely don't want to be associated with what some see as a public nuisance.

Some potential customers may believe car alarms are pointless, since a passing witness will probably walk away even if it's obvious the vehicle is being stolen. That's not the point of a vehicle alarm.

No one expects somebody to come to the rescue of an alarm going off. Most people don't want to get involved in those situations. They might look and then walk the other way. The idea of an alarm system is to deter the thief.  If it's a potent enough alarm, that's really going to psyche the thief out. So there are various ways to prevent that thief, or at least discourage him, from going much further than trying to break in at the door point.

With automaker's overall corporate structure, OEMs are forced to operate on the conservative side of the business and really don't know what is going on. They always want to tap in on what's going on in the aftermarket and consider how viable it is. But typically, they're so constrained by their organizations and their bureaucracy, that they're not very good at it.

When you're dealing with an OEM system, it's more of a cookie cutter presentation. Every car's got the same system so it's easier to beat

Consider an aftermarket system because it would give a lot more overall protection and a lot more customization. Other advantages to aftermarket security include two-way paging and the ability to customize a variety of the vehicle's electrical functions.  

Ace Electronics

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