Tracker tags? What do you do with yours?

[IanV12VR]

I would think that would have brought a smile to many amoc members who frequent here and remind them of a thread from the old forum. Now what was it called.....

[jarpot]

getting back to the subject, for the Aston disc I use a leather pouch provided by Maranello some years ago, for the Porsche I have taped the unit to the key ring, I can't forget it then.
Beware, I always used to keep the disc in my wallet and it took me quite a while to find out that it was the disc that was interfering with my credit card, making it unreadable.

[AdamV12V]

jarpot said:

getting back to the subject, for the Aston disc I use a leather pouch provided by Maranello some years ago, for the Porsche I have taped the unit to the key ring, I can't forget it then.
Beware, I always used to keep the disc in my wallet and it took me quite a while to find out that it was the disc that was interfering with my credit card, making it unreadable.

Errr, am I missing something here - if you get your keys stolen then your tracker fob will go with it thus defeating the purspose of having it. Aside from the fact your insurance company will probably have something to say if the fob gets stolen with the keys like that, you are just putting your car at an unnecessary risk.

If carrying the fob elsewhere is too much effort, then just don't bother with it and cancel your subs.

[AstonZagato]

Yes, true on a simplistic level but one can still call cobra and activate the tracker. Not ideal but not worth cancelling one's subs. As for insurance, what separation is acceptable? Different pockets? Different rooms? Different properties?

[AdamV12V]

AstonZagato said:

As for insurance, what separation is acceptable? Different pockets? Different rooms? Different properties?

Fair point and I don't know, but physically attached and kept together must surely fail the test!

[spyker138]

Picking up my V12V soon. My last Aston was a DB4 and I didn't even lock that.

My other cars are all in the US and I rarely lock the fancy ones on the basis that they're complicated to start (good for them if they figure it out and can drive it) and also I'm not aware of anyone I know ever having had a car taken (or vandalized for that matter). My daughters Jeep was broken into in a bad part of D.C. Nothing taken. Wish she'd left it unlocked as I wouldn't have had to replace the window.

Does anyone here know of anyone having been called by a tracker company because their Aston is being stolen? I know about the daily mail story of a DB9 wheels being taken, but would a tracker have helped with that?

So I'm afraid I'm bewildered by the point of trackers, or whether we're being conned. My insurers want it to be used - meaning I have to pay up for a subscription. I will be using my car for 4-6 weeks a year, much of it in Europe where I believe the early trackers don't work. The rest of the time I will be out of the country, and the car will be in a locked storage facility.

I also object to someone being able to track me when I'm out for a drive anyway (i.e. They know I am not at home).

So I'm tempted to pay a bit more insurance premium and forget the tracker. Am I missing something?

P.S. What happened to putting an immobilizer switch somewhere discrete like I did with old cars way back when?

Edited by spyker138 on Sunday 25th June 01:55

[AstonZagato]

It's a fair question. I don't think I ever have heard of an Aston story.

The only time I have heard of a car personally known to me with a tracker gettting picked up by the police was a Toyota Landcruiser. It was stolen off the driveway as the wife carried her daughter into the house. 999 called within minutes. Tracker activated by the company shortly thereafter.

The first time the tracker pinged was about 6 months later. The police rushed round and found a completely different Landcruiser. The owner had just fitted a replacement part to it. The replacement part had the tracker still on it... not sure the story completely holds water but was told to me by the owner (band the car had definitely been stolen - the wife almost carried the shopping in first rather than the sleeping daughter)

However...

If you don't activate the tracker, you could be argued to be a little like the person who doesn't vaccinate their child and relies on the fact that other do. Our cars don't get stolen for many reasons: highly unusual and identifiable, sophisticated alarms, immobilisers and trackers. If you don't activate, then you will almost certainly be fine. However, if it then became common knowledge that larger numbers of Astons don't have trackers, then Aston theft rates are likely to rise.

[IanV12VR]

I nearly always forget to tell the tracking company when our cars are be taken off on the transporter for servicing and without fail always get a call asking if everything is ok because the tracker has been activated. Not sure whether that is to do with the tag being in the drivers pocket and the car on the transporter or the up and down action of the car but I always get a call and it is put into service mode until I get her back.

Also once had a call when I put the tag down in the garage and drove off without it still, hadn't gone far when I got the call so went home to reunite the tag with the car

Seems worthwhile to me.

[NDA]

I used to use my tracker to see how fast the guys from the garage were driving it.... The tracker was also used to set a 'zone' (typically home), if it moved out of the zone, I received multiple texts. Quite reassuring.

I also had one car where no tracker was not an option as far as the insurance companies were concerned. No tracker, no insurance.

Back to fobs, I guess you'll have to keep in your wallet or on your house keys.