# How do you feel about car alarms going off?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
**Created:** [June 23, 2007, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123 "2007-06-23T14:23:29Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@GuyNblueJeans](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuyNblueJeans)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2007, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/1 "2007-06-23T14:23:29Z")
I think they should be outlawed on account of how often they break the peace whenever so much as a gust of wind sets them off. No one actually stops what they’re doing to see if someone is actually breaking into someone’s car, so why then should anyone want one? :dubious:
I’ve on one or two occasions thought about writing a note telling the owner to adjust the sensitivity of the alarm and then securing it to a brick and throwing it through the windshield. But I’m a very civilized guy, so I’ll not do such a thing.
So, what are your thoughts about these crappy things that sound-off at all hours? :mad:
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### Author:  [@essell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/essell)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2007, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/2 "2007-06-23T14:38:30Z")
Even with an immobiliser people would break into a car to steal the contents.
Without alarms I think such breakins would be a lot more common, so they still needed.
However I do think the same rules should apply to noisy neighbours as car alarms.
One offence is a slap on thr wrist, building up to a fine or eviction.
In fact, I think those same rules do apply around here.
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### Author:  [@zelie\_zelerton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zelie_zelerton)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2007, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/3 "2007-06-23T14:40:57Z")
They are stupid. Once upon a time they had a point because people would stop and look at whomever was stealing the car. Now they get ignored and the carowner ritually slain when he or she returns. I don’t care if your car is stolen, I just want the 3am noise to shut up and if that means somebody (anybody) driving it off then great. And the owner is invariably out of hearing range anyway so it all seems a little pointless.
What would be much better is a car alarm that tells the actual owner that their car is being tampered with. It’s surely not outwith the bounds of possibility to develop a silent system which will text/phone the owner when it’s triggered?
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### Author:  [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2007, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/4 "2007-06-23T15:20:30Z")
I think they’re delightful. The remind me that the rest of the world is alive even as I slumber,and that there’s always something interesting going on in the city. The hustle and bustle of the urban core-- it’s fantastic! They’re a colorful and boisterous contribution to the sound of life’s rich pageant and manifest the diversity of human experience.
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### Author:  [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2007, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/5 "2007-06-23T22:16:12Z")
These damn things scare hell out of me, especially when they happen to go off very close to my head. Often they make me drop my picks. Occasionally they attract attention, too, people turning and looking, but not that often. I always shrug and furiously pat all my pockets like I’m looking for a key, and they turn away.
Or were you aiming this question at bystanders?
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### Author:  [@KlondikeGeoff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KlondikeGeoff)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2007, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/6 "2007-06-23T22:24:00Z")
Not so long ago an old guy (even older than I) pulled up to the post office as I was coming out, closed and locked his car. The alarm immediately proceeded to start wailing as he walked toward me, ignoring it.
I asked if he didn’t want to stop the alarm, and he sadly replied, “I really wish I knew how to stop that.” :eek:
I guess this happens every time he parks.
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### Author:  [@WF\_Tomba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WF_Tomba)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2007, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/7 "2007-06-23T23:06:28Z")
I think municipalities should ban audible car alarms and give out tickets for letting them go off, with the exception that you wouldn’t get a penalty if someone was actually trying to break into your car. (This might not be a good idea in big cities where the cops arguably have better things to do.)
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### Author:  [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2007, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/8 "2007-06-23T23:18:28Z")
The sound makes me want to stab someone’s tires with an ice pick.
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### Author:  [@Gala\_Matrix\_Fire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gala_Matrix_Fire)
#### Post date: [June 23, 2007, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/9 "2007-06-23T23:48:46Z")
That it should be legal to lob rotten eggs at any car with an alarm that goes off for as long as it takes you to grab some eggs.
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### Author:  [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)
#### Post date: [June 24, 2007, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/10 "2007-06-24T00:37:08Z")
[QUOTE=capybara]
I think they’re delightful. The remind me that the rest of the world is alive even as I slumber,and that there’s always something interesting going on in the city. The hustle and bustle of the urban core-- it’s fantastic! They’re a colorful and boisterous contribution to the sound of life’s rich pageant and manifest the diversity of human experience.
[/QUOTE]
I’m not sure I feel the same way, or that you’re even serious, but boy did that sound beautiful! 🙂
I’d like to have that attitude towards all of the things that annoy me lol
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### Author:  [@Sapo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sapo)
#### Post date: [June 24, 2007, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/11 "2007-06-24T01:08:19Z")
Ask me agan in the Pit.
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### Author:  [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)
#### Post date: [June 24, 2007, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/12 "2007-06-24T02:23:33Z")
[QUOTE=jackdavinci]
I’m not sure I feel the same way, or that you’re even serious, but boy did that sound beautiful! 🙂
I’d like to have that attitude towards all of the things that annoy me lol
[/QUOTE]
Nah. Was just joshing. It just seemed an odd thing to ask opinions on-- like, has anyone liked car alarms going off since, oh, 1983 or whenever? “What do you think about getting bitten by scorpions? Anyone else out there like having herpes?” Decided to consider the alternative answer, which was, of course, insane. But fun to compose.
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### Author:  [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)
#### Post date: [June 24, 2007, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/13 "2007-06-24T03:07:08Z")
Just how long does a car alarm go off if nobody turns it off? Does it have an automatic setoff or just run the battery down?
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### Author:  [@GuyNblueJeans](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuyNblueJeans)
#### Post date: [June 24, 2007, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/14 "2007-06-24T03:21:20Z")
[QUOTE=alphaboi867]
Just how long does a car alarm go off if nobody turns it off? Does it have an automatic setoff or just run the battery down?
[/QUOTE]
Depends. Usually they last from a few seconds to a couple of minutes. But I know of one that went off for several days as the owner was in Hawaii and had left it in a parking garage, torturing us that lived in an apartment building next to it. Eventually she was located and something was done. But it was hell while it lasted. :mad:
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### Author:  [@Geek\_Mecha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geek_Mecha)
#### Post date: [June 25, 2007, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/15 "2007-06-25T00:48:22Z")
I find they function much better as asshole-car-owner detectors than as theft deterrents.
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### Author:  [@Khampelf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khampelf)
#### Post date: [June 25, 2007, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/16 "2007-06-25T00:56:38Z")
Didn’t Jack Handy have a Deep thought about “every time a car alarm goes off, an angel gets set on fire.”?
Nope, that was mouse traps, but still…
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### Author:  [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)
#### Post date: [June 25, 2007, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/17 "2007-06-25T01:09:32Z")
They’re security theater, meaning they give a false impression of making the situation secure. Which is worse than no impression at all. Why? Because nobody pays attention to them. And even if people did, what could they reasonably do? Risk life and limb over someone else’s car? It isn’t even smart to risk life and limb over your own auto.
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### Author:  [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)
#### Post date: [June 25, 2007, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/18 "2007-06-25T02:35:41Z")
[QUOTE=zelie zelerton]
\
What would be much better is a car alarm that tells the actual owner that their car is being tampered with. It’s surely not outwith the bounds of possibility to develop a silent system which will text/phone the owner when it’s triggered?
[/QUOTE]
From [http://www.lojack.com/car\_alarm\_pager.html](http://www.lojack.com/car_alarm_pager.html)
> [@](#):
>
> Benefits of The LoJack Early Warning System’s Car Alarm Pager
>
> ```
> * The car alarm pager provides an added layer of protection on top of the LoJack Stolen Vehicle Recovery System to give you peace of mind.
> * The car alarm pager notifies you immediately as intruders attempt to operate the vehicle, allowing police to track and recover your vehicle sooner.
> * The car alarm pager alerts you no matter where you are - at home, at work, traveling.
> * Once the car alarm pager is installed, you can register your system with LoJack and select up to five means of contact.
>
> ```
It’s got a GPS locater on it, also, that transmits its location if it’s stolen.
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### Author:  [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)
#### Post date: [June 25, 2007, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/19 "2007-06-25T13:36:23Z")
I think the local government should provide sledge hammers and baseball bats that are available to be used by bystanders/passersby if the alarm goes off for more than 30 seconds.
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### Author:  [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)
#### Post date: [June 25, 2007, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-car-alarms-going-off/409123/20 "2007-06-25T16:54:35Z")
[QUOTE=GuyNblueJeans]
No one actually stops what they’re doing to see if someone is actually breaking into someone’s car
[/QUOTE]
You speak for yourself.
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