Now I’ve never really been into my Bling, but I have noticed a recent trend from  some alarm suppliers to have a cartoon car with stupidly large wheels promoting their websites.

AVS started the trend some time ago with what looks like a pimped up Ford Falcon Ute (If it is a Holden then I am genuinely sorry as I don’t want to cause any offense to the Bogans out there!)

I assume that this image works well for AVS as they seem to attract young car owners.  Most cartoons attract children so the “cool factor” should  go down well with the Kids.

Lets all jump on the Band Wagon!

I guess that Mongoose want a slice of that AVS cool factor as they have recently unleashed their own Blinged up Toyota RAV4.

With all the trend setting going on I felt that I maybe missing out on some of the action so decided that I should have a go at creating a cool Clip art car of my own.

Given that super sizing your wheels to a virtually impossible size stuffs up the cars handling, I felt that I may as well start off with something that handled like a piece of crap already, so What better than a Lada Riva?

The Obsessively Crap LADA Clip Art Car!

Digging around during a recent clean up I stumbled upon this old Cobra sticker which I love as it’s quite cheeky. It got me thinking that it is worth resurrecting, I’m rather temped to bring it up to date as either a car sticker or a T-Shirt.

Now seems a good time as my first batch of work shirts are starting to look a bit old, plus I really think something a tad more casual is in order.

I also found an old photo I’d taken last year with the Lego Thief and the Alarmed Lego car in the background.

Ideas and comments are most welcome.

Thanks,

Julian

Autowatch Product range

Autowatch Immobilisers not only meet with NZSA standards (OK that is hardly an achievement) but also meets with international standards such as VISA and Thatcham. What I find remarkable is that despite Autowatch being one of the big world players on the Alarm/Immobiliser market, is that I still come across customers who are reluctant to use a brand that they have not heard of! The madness of this view point is that if you travel outside of Australia or NZ it is the other way around. Mongoose? Dynatron? AVS? Never heard of any of them! Did I mention that none of the well known brands are actually approved elsewhere? More about that another time, this post is about the Autowatch Immobiliser!

The Immobiliser module is one of the smallest available, (The Cobra 8509 takes that title) it is certainly the smallest system that contains all of the alarm/Immobiliser circuitry and this makes it great from an installation point of view, it’s lack of bulk makes the module easier to hide. Of course a good installer is going to be the key here but at least the installer has some options where to place it.  To make my point clear here, the Mongoose M80 is twice the size and even the thought of trying to hide it effectively causes me to break out in a cold sweat!

Attack proof Security Housing

This is one of the requirements for Thatcham approval which is lacking from NZSA standards. I placed one on my bench, got the stopwatch out and had a crack at how long it would take to defeat. 2 minutes and 38 seconds later I had the Module open.

It is worth pointing out here that all tests are carried out on my bench and not in a vehicle. The other point to consider is that I am well practiced in getting past Immobilisers and already have knowledge about the best way to attack them.

The Autowatch is the only system which I have required a drill to get past it and even then it is still a challenge. This time is all the more impressive when compared to most of the other immobilisers I have tested so far…

The Immobiliser Attack time Chart

Cobra 8509: Undefeated

Autowatch (Above listed models): 2 Minutes and 38 Seconds

Dynatron (All Models): 39 Seconds

Mongoose M80: 17 Seconds

AVS (All Models): 10 Seconds

Meridian (All Models): 5 Seconds

The Module which I tested has the same security case as found on the following models:

674Ri

446RiS/446RiSG

446RLi Premium

555 CLAM

695CAN

Obsessive Rating: Compact and Hard to Crack

The simple fact that the Autowatch meets with Thatcham standards should be a good indication of its effectiveness

AVS Product Range

The AVS Series (S5, S4 and S3) along with the AVS A4 all share the same plastic case that contains the Immobiliser relays. For a  security system to be effective then it is vital to have an Immobiliser case that is difficult to locate and open.

All the AVS models meet with NZSA 3 star standards or above depending on which model, but as I have pointed out in the past NZSA standards for Immobilisers are so lame that they don’t count for much in the real world!

Given that having a NZSA rating does not give any guarantee to the quality of the Immobiliser the first thing to look at is how easy it is to get past.

How secure is the Immobiliser Housing of the AVS?

The AVS case is held together with two plastic clips. There are no security screws to speak of and the case clips can simply be flipped open with a flat blade screw driver. So the attack time is 10 seconds max! Once inside the Immobiliser points are fairly obvious and easy to bridge. It must be noted that on the S Series there is a 3rd Immobiliser cut which is in the large white plug which is not as easy to identify.

How Easy is the AVS to hide?

The AVS case is what I would describe as a Medium, It is certainly much bigger than the Cobra 8509 (Which is about as good as it gets!) or the Autowatch 446 range, but then It is smaller then The Mongoose M80 or Uniden VS2600XR. Personally I find the size of the AVS can limit how good the installation can be which as a installer (who actually cares) can be frustrating!

Overview

So in my opinion the case of the AVS, limits how effective it is as an Immobiliser. It could certainly be improved  if the case was glued up (see the Dynatron Immobiliser blog), or made a bit smaller.

Obsessive Rating: Could be improved!

Now I take a keen interest in what is posted on the Web about Obsessive Vehicle Security.

It has recently come to my attention that Warlocks Vehicle Security have added “Obsessive Vehicle Security” as a key word to their website. If you do a Google search you will notice that they come up on the first page with ” HOT NEW OBSESSIVE VEHICLE SECURITY PRODUCTS FROM WARLOCK”. (Notice the grammatical error!)

I would just like to make things clear, I do not have any connection with Warlocks and I do not endorse them or their Car Alarms.

My Options

Now I could start ranting about how it looks suspicious that Warlocks appear to still be trading despite being put into liquidation on the 27th May 2009. I could also point out that it maybe dishonest of Warlocks to try and gain sales by playing the association name game.

My other option is to take it as a compliment, after all the saying goes that “Plagiarism is the highest form of flattery”.

Mmmmm….    I think I’ll simply take the compliment and smile.

Warlocks; seeing that you clearly rate Obsessive Vehicle Security why don’t you simply click on the “Like button” on the Obsessive Face-book page?

OK I’m back from my Holiday, and it’s all go. Time is hard to find right now so rather then write a new blog post I’ll simply cheat this week and plug the Obsessive Facebook page which is finally up and running.

Hope to see some of you on the site soon.

Julian

New Zealand Product Range

The first thing you notice with the Cobra 8509 Immobiliser is it’s size, or should that be lack of size! It is tiny and certainly the smallest Immobiliser that I am aware of. This makes it an installers dream as the hiding locations are almost limitless.

The Cobra Immobiliser is completely separate to the alarm and is connected via a coded bus wire so can be added to most of the new generation of Cobra alarms. This makes the 8509 effective for two reasons:

The first is that it does not contain any alarm electronics such as hazard light relays which can often be a dead give away to the modules location. Listening for the clicking relays is a trick I often use to find an immobiliser, once I have silenced the siren I simply listen to where the sound is coming from which quickly narrows down the location area.

The second advantage is that due to its lack of alarm circuitry it is much smaller, making it much easier to hide.

Cobra V Mongoose – The Alarm World!

Mongoose M60 looks big and clumbersome!

Given that the Mongoose M60 is one of the best known alarms in New Zealand I felt it would be a good benchmark to test the Cobra against.

In the animal world it is well known that a Mongoose one of the few animals capable of fighting the great snake. I have also noted that Mongoose NZ have a video of a Mongoose killing a Cobra on their Facebook page. However in the world of car security the Cobra wins hands down. The Mongoose is light years behind the Cobra, if it was not for good marketing on the part of Mongoose I’m sure it would be an extinct relic!

Anyway I’ll get around to reviewing the Mongoose Immobiliser in the coming weeks,  right now I’m here to review what the Cobra has to offer…

The main thing to get exited about is that the Cobra 8509 has an attack proof security housing. It  is the only Immobiliser for sale on the NZ market that I have not been able to get inside and bypass. It also complies with Thatcham standards which makes the NZSA Star rating system look shamefully outdated. It is worth noting that you will not find AVS, Dynatron, Mongoose, Stealshield, Meridian or Uniden Immobilisers outside of New Zealand or Australia as the standards set here (or should that be lack of standards) are not accepted overseas.

Cobra 8509 Immobiliser

Obsessive Rating: Perfection

The 8509 is simply brilliant.

Small, attack proof and no clicking relays to give away its location.

The only weak point would be the Installer

If I was a Mongoose I would be losing the will to live right now. Bragging rights clearly go to Cobra so I’d be working hard on making a better product rather than spending time on Facebook!

DYNATRON PRODUCT RANGE

All Dynatron models come with the same security housing so this post is relevant to the entire range of products which include the: 3 Series, 7 Series, 4 Series and D2200.

How easy is it to Defeat?

Like most Immobilisers once the security housing is breached the Immobiliser points can be by-passed and the vehicle started so having an effective security housing is an important consideration.

Let’s start off by looking at the case of the Module which is shown in the photo below, it is not what I would consider to be attack proof.

Screws are easy to undo!

All that is stopping you from opening the case are 4 Phillip head screws which took me 34 seconds to undo with an old fashioned screw driver (would probably be quicker with an electric or ratchet one!) Dynatron used to use Tri-Wing screws which are not as common. Even if you have the a Tri-Wing security screw bit, they are fiddly things to undo so would offer better protection. It is a shame that they no longer come them and I can only assume that this is to save on production costs!

Obsessive Improvements

Plug the Screw holes!

With the screw heads being the biggest weakness with the Dynatron Immobiliser housing I like to cover the screw heads with Epoxy resin. It makes the Dynatron a far more effective Immobiliser. Of course hiding the Immobiliser in a really evil location also helps but this does take good knowledge of the vehicle it is being installed into. Having said that the same could be applied to any system. Or Could it?

Size Matters

I like to think of it as playing hide and seek. The larger you are the harder the game is, so being small is a huge advantage here. Of course being creative also helps but this is down to the installer. The Dynatron is of average size.

Obsessive rating: Let down but Security Case.

Needs security screws or even better, an Obsessive modification.

34 seconds is not that long – having said that there are far worse systems out there!

Crap Immobiliser - Warning!

It’s a little uncanny that I pulled out yet another Meridian Immobiliser today to add to the Car Alarm Graveyard. I was intending to do a review on the security housing of the Dynatron Immobiliser but that can now wait until next week!

I’ve now lost count of how may Meridian systems I have removed. To date I have yet to see one that has been installed to even a half respectable standard. Speaking to the owners of the vehicles I have removed them from they were normally installed by a used car yard! However the standard of the installation is not what I am looking at today. It is the Immobiliser security housing.

Meridian Immobiliser Case

Meridian Immobiliser Housing put to the Test!

The Meridian has two Torx 10 screws holding the case together which would probably take about 25 seconds to undo, I say probably because I haven’t actually got the stopwatch out and timed it, why would I when I can rip it open with my bare hands in 5 seconds? Much quicker than having to search in my tool box for my rarely used Torx 10 screwdriver!

But it does comply with AS/NZ Standards!

I wrote a letter to the NZSA (New Zealand Security Association) about two years ago expressing my concerns over the lack of security housing. They in turn wrote to the TF group that imports Meridian alarms with my concerns.

Here is their response:

“Our case is a softer plastic rather then a hard one, the manufacturer’s logic being that it can withstand attack with a hammer, most hard cases can’t, they split or shatter.

The AS/NZ standards obviously have no problem with it as they approved it.

Once someone has located a unit, any unit, most of them are relatively easy to open and once you got that they are all started within seconds, as far as that side goes.”

Stop. Hammer Time!

Quite why anyone would need to take a hammer to one is beyond me when it is clearly easy to open with your fingers…

Oh well enough said!

Obsessive Rating: Emabarrassing Poor!

Conclusive proof that AS/NZ standards are pathetic!

It probably goes without saying the Meridian fails to meet Thatcham standards

I’m heading off to Boston USA on the 10th July 2010 to take a two week mid-winter break. My younger brother is getting Married so I shall be closing the business for two weeks.

Until the 10th it will be business as usual and I will be back on the 28th July, fully refreshed.

How to Contact me.

The phone will be put onto voice mail during my break, so don’t expect a response until the 28th July. However I will still be keeping an eye on the emails and will attempt to reply to them when I get the chance.

During these dates please use the contact form if you have ant questions.

Thank you in advance to everyone who is patient enough to wait for my return. Your business and loyalty are really appreciated.

Cheers,

Julian