GPS tracker for CTR

stevescivic

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So I'm interested in installing a GPS tracker in my CTR but I don't know where to begin. There are things like LoJack, Compustar's drone system and probably many others and my thinking was that should someone decide to jack my car and drive off with it that I have some means of tracking it. I considered plugging in an old cell phone and tucking it into a panel somewhere with constant power but that seemed somewhat hokey.

Looking for some advice,
Thanks,
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LongRun

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Lojack is great for recovering a stolen car if you live in a covered area. That is all it is good for, though.

I suggest you look into Carlock. I have one and I like it very much in theory, though in practice there have been some problems. Also, I have an iPhone, which supports an important feature their Android app does not: auto lock/unlock.

The theory:
  • When parked and locked, the device monitors and will update you via smartphone app and/or (for an additional fee) SMS or voice phone call when:
    • The car moves
    • The ignition is turned on
    • Excessive vibration is detected
    • The battery dies or the Carlock devices is unplugged
  • When unlocked, the device can optionally monitor your driving (intended use: parents monitoring teens for reckless driving) and can record your trips (also useful for keeping a record of business trips).
Because the device is always monitoring the car's location, you can use it to find the car if you forget where it is parked or if someone took it. Much faster and easier to find the car via Carlock than via Lojack, though of course it is much easier to defeat than Lojack.

Carlock sells the "Carlock Tag" which is a Bluetooth beacon that, when paired with the iPhone app, allows the iPhone app to automatically unlock the Carlock when you are in the car and then lock it when you leave. For some reason it does not work with the Android app. Anyway, this makes the whole Carlock alarm keyless, so long as you always carry your phone with you. Without it, you are stuck locking and unlocking the device via the app every time you get in or out of the car, which is a major hassle.

On the other hand, if you just want a tracker, you can leave it unlocked all the time.

The device is most easily installed by plugging it directly into the OBD-II port, but that doesn't work terribly well in the CTR because of the placement of the port. I managed to find a place for a more permanent installation under the dash, but it was difficult to find a space and then even harder to secure the device, because it needs to be very secure to pick up vibrations (e.g. if someone hits the car when parked) and there is nothing about the design of the case that makes it easy to secure.

The device I have uses the 2G cell phone network for communication. What's worse, twice it locked up, requiring me to unplug it from power and drain the internal backup battery to perform a reset. Apparently after the first time they were able to update the firmware over the air. They have newer devices that use the 3G cell phone network (should have greater coverage, penetration, and reliability) and said they would swap my device out under warranty, but they won't do an advance exchange. I'm still fighting with them about that, as I don't want to take apart my dash twice and I would like to use the existing device to help guide the installation of the replacement device.

So it is far from a perfect device. I just haven't found anything better.
 

ez12a

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One came with my CTR as part of the ADM and has a some kind of recovery guarantee. If they dont recover it in 30 days I get something like $7k cash on top of the insurance money to replace the car. Would be useful if i needed the extra cash for ADM if I wanted another CTR.

Some kind of DIY solution probably wouldnt be worth your trouble unless you were letting friends/family borrow your car.
 

karskarsyn

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If someone stole your CTR, do you really want it back? I wouldn't want it back.

I know for sure, any CTR stolen will be stripe clean, driven hard, and beaten to death.

https://www.amazon.com/Spy-Tec-Portable-Personal-Vehicle/dp/B00JG8KCLO/

https://www.gearhunder.com/best-gps-tracker-for-car/
SpyTec is also something I am using, and it is highly recommended. It is independent of the car, uses battery power, and is an excellent anti-theft GPS. You can hide it in any corner you want and it won't be discovered by another person, OBD GPS can't do it. When choosing GPS, you must consider the cost, features (geo-fencing, fuel theft, etc.) and location update time (60 seconds or 30 seconds or less).
 


erbee

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We use dealer fleet tracking. You know the ones that the moment you missed a payment you get repo that kind of tracker.

Goes with a power source from the car if you want you can have payment reminder buzz and starter interrupt.

Live update on location,speed the place you stopped at and for how long.
 

civicHall

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Did you find a gps tracker? I've been pulling my hair out trying to figure out what the best option is. So far, i've narrowed it down to carloc or a gpyes gps vehicle tracker
 

NapalmEnema

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Has a Type R ever been stolen? I'm being serious - the market for a stolen car = easy to swap out parts and easy to part out. With the limited numbers (comparatively speaking) to other cars - I think they'd steal a base civic before bothering with a Type R for those reasons.

Also most thieves can't drive stick - it has built in anti-theft!

I think you're worrying about a non issue personally.
 

sexx.si

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Has a Type R ever been stolen? I'm being serious - the market for a stolen car = easy to swap out parts and easy to part out. With the limited numbers (comparatively speaking) to other cars - I think they'd steal a base civic before bothering with a Type R for those reasons.

Also most thieves can't drive stick - it has built in anti-theft!

I think you're worrying about a non issue personally.
I know a buddy' s friend who had his FK8 type r stolen from their driveway. They relayed the signal of the key fob that was most likely near the front door.
 


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stevescivic

stevescivic

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I know a buddy' s friend who had his FK8 type r stolen from their driveway. They relayed the signal of the key fob that was most likely near the front door.
I would totally be worried about that myself too. Fortunately we lock the R in the garage and it rarely sits anywhere for very long that it is out of plain view for very long. I'd rather NOT worry about these kind of things as it is after all just a car. I love it to death but if someone wanted it that badly then nothing will stop them from getting it. We have a new car coming late this year and the first thing that is going to get disabled is the transponder key. The last thing I need is some clown trying to use a repeater to jack our new car that will, unfortunately, be parked outside. Too much of a pain to use a RF blocker bag and that isn't always 100% secure. I guess I could put the new keys into a microwave but that just seems ludicrous to do that each time we come home. Sometimes old fashioned tech is the best deterrent - plain old fashioned locks.
 

GGinMP

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We use a Mission Darkness faraday bag to store our key fob in when at home. It wasn't very expensive and it's not that much effort to use; it's actually nice having a set spot for our keys so we're not searching for them.

As for theft tracking, I've got an iPhone so I got an AirTag and hid it in the car.
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