There have been several posts, including mine, regarding the shitty alarm system in the TL. My car has been broken into 4 times, with the alarm NEVER going off - petty theft of things like change and sunglasses but they didn't touch the Navi dvd player in the trunk. Happening in SF. They are getting in thru the lock on the driver's door - if picked, the alarm becomes deactivated.

Only thing that stopped the problem was installing an aftermarket alarm.

 

How much do you think you can recover from insurance? Blue book value?

 

Good idea. I never thought about hiding that VIN number. There was a theft ring here in Houston too where you would park your car at the mall and find your info. Then go to the dealership and give you a key to your car without asking for ID. It was on our local news. looked so easy.

 

prob fair retail value of the car with mileage in excellent condition ... Thats what is required by law.

 

This blows, I hope this is not true. How would someone even get hold of the master keys?

BTW, Acuravic, did you go to the Container Store at the corner of Piedmont and Peachtree today, I saw you pull in.

Also, for all Atlantans, do NOT go to the hand car wash (named Harolds, next door to the automatic place with the Gorilla) on Piedmont near Chesire Bridge Road.

They dented my car, admitted fault and told me they would pay. When I brought the repair receipt back a few weeks later he basically said "too bad, I was just trying to get rid of you". On the day of the incident he gave me a business card stating "Pop dent, Gray Acura" but that is all the proof I have... Other than the fact he admits he changed his mind. Let me know if you have any ideas because as of now I don't see how I could win in small claims court. (It is a he said, she said thing)

 

You can still try it. You have his handwriting on the card saying that.

 

This reminds me of the time there were some guys working at the local Best Buy who would install stereos, take down the customer's info, and then go and jack their car. Scary world we live in!

 

sorry to hear about ur car ed, good luc with ur new car, adviceble to install aftermarket alarms such as viper or so in ur next car

 

Did you get to see your car again? Pics?

 

I called my dealer (as I normally do), and came to the conclusion that the BEST solution is to... get this:

KRAZY GLUE MY DRIVER'S DOOR LOCK

I know it sounds stupid - or insane - but I've used a key in my lock all of ONE time in 2+ years. Silly putty was option #2, and "disable/remove the lock" was the dealer's idea.

Any thoughts?

Hell, it's a lease - who would really give a crap anyhow after I return it?

 

It must have been the other Anthracite TL with chromed factory rims. I'm in Orlando this week. As far as the car wash place, they'll get theirs without you doing a thing.
I take my car to 'Do it Right" carwash on Marietta just 3 blocks north of CNN. Outside wash with tire dressing is $12.00. I've been in and out in 20 mins. They do excellent work.

 

Why not try the "shaved" door idea?

 

Well,

Just heard from my insurance company. They are offering me $32,390. That doesn't include the Michelin PS2's.

I've got to send them the receipt for the new tires, then they will consider paying for them.

As for getting to see my car............yeah I did. It was totally demoralizing. Basically the whole left front was gone....suspension, tires, etc. It just simply didn't exist anymore. The lower left corner of the windshield was cracked.

None of the driver side doors would open...And the driver side window had an interesting piece of glass gone. Kinda of a half-arc right above where the glass disappears into the door.

The hood was popped up about an 1/2 inch.....and shoved off to the left a little.

All in all, the insurance estimated the total damage at over $23000.

I've given up on a green/camel combination...and am now looking to get a Royal Blue w/ parchment 06. Only bad thing about that................there isn't any in a seven state region and must be special ordered. It wouldn't get here until Feb 06.

 

Sorry to ask - but was yours a 2004 ? navigation (I believe yes from earlier) ? and how many miles?

 

Sorry, for your Loss. I live here in Atlanta too, and the thought of someone stealing my baby, I would want to do damage to someone. Then again, I have GAP insurance and any residual would be taken care of anyway. I'm glad to see that you are still in the market for another TL. I guess it truly served you well.

Happy Hunting. May you find happiness in your new baby.

 

I just saw this thread and can't believe that was your TL. I was actually traveling I-20 westbound when the wreck happened. When your car hit the wall, it was on 2 wheels and it sent debris over into my left side emergency lane. My adrenaline shot up and I started cussing like a sailor... only had my TL for 4 weeks at that time. I called a friend and told them to watch the news... I think a TL just wrecked on I-20!!

I'm dating a Carroll County officer and just informed him of this theft ring. (Not sure why he hasn't told me?!) Too bad these guys didn't wreck in his county... they wouldn't have been treated so kindly!!

I wish you the best with the insurance & hope your next one is the baddest in ATL!

 

Keypad > fuel cut off switch

My older car, a '93 del sol, has a keypad on the dashboard. It disables a bunch of things like the fuel pump, ignition circuit, starter. You punched in the right code and listen for the click, that's the relay. Then you can start the car and drive away.

The good part is that the code must be punched in every time and it's hard to figure out so that stops many thieves.

But when I looked around I found that it was a little insecure since it was merely a small box under the dash that was spliced into the wires. As it turns out all these wires lead directly to the ECU. So I modified the thing.

I took the control box apart and put the circuit board directly into the ECU casing and spliced the connectors directly onto the ECU's circuit board.

The only way you can steal my del sol is either by towing it, knowing the keypad code or replacing the ECU. This was too complicated for the average thief so that keypad eliminated about 99% of would-be thieves. The keypad itself, with a red blinking LED, is usually enough to deter most thieves.

It's a great system and I'm considering putting the same on my TL.

 

Is there any videos or links to the story?

 

Short hijack: More info please, what kind of keypad? Where did you get it and how long did the install take?

 

Yeah, the keypad disabling works. If you've seen the first Transport movie, his BMW used a similar keypad.