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Help me identify possible tracking device found in my car

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Re: Help me identify possible tracking device found in my car

#85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's hyper super duper useful in rough climates. Primarily when it's minus 40 outside and you have kids, it's nice to warm up the car slightly before entering it. If you get spoiled, you might then also remote start it when it's plus 40 outside and you want ac to at least start. Also note that "if it's left in gear" is virtually irrelevant in North America, fwiw - something like under 2 percent of cars here are manua…

Here it's cold in the winter and it is definitely illegal to install a remote start system in a car with a manual transmission. Before my life in tech I worked in car audio installs back in the 90s. One day one of the senior installer techs put a remote start in his own Mazda truck which had a manual transmission. A bit of time went by and we were outside smoking one day when he must have hit the button in this pocke…

A proper remote starter for a manual transmission has sensors to ensure the vehicle is in neutral with the handbrake on.

Re: Help me identify possible tracking device found in my car

#86
post #24

If you google KARR Honda or KARR Alarm you should find some better information. I found identical looking devices by using Google Lens and focusing on just the black box with the green button. https://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2016/08/never-buy-car-alar... https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisit/comments/rnr48t/found_unde... https://www.reddit.com/r/subaru/comments/7m9dv9/mysterious_b...

It's amusing to me that someone would go through the effort of deconstructing it, writing a gist, and posting it on HN before literally just googling "device under steering wheel" and seeing other people posting about the _exact_ same device.

People tend to imagine their lives are more interesting and worthy of surveillance than they really are :)

Re: Help me identify possible tracking device found in my car

#87
post #3

Wow. I can't help you identify the device, but curious if you have any ideas as to who might've installed this. Did your car have a previous owner?

New car, bought from dealer, who swear they did not install it and are blaming another dealer from whom they acquired the vehicle. As far as the dealer goes I intend to make a lot of over-the-top demands and threats until they replace the wiring with all-new OEM parts and a lifetime warranty, but I think I'll start from just pointing to California Penal Code 637.7, demanding a completely new vehicle, and seeing what…

You’re better off just disconnecting it than getting new wiring. Wiring harness replacements are notorious for requiring obscene amounts of interior disassembly, and you might just end up with annoying squeaks and rattles.

Re: Help me identify possible tracking device found in my car

#88
Ahh. Looks familiar. A dealer in the PNW installed one of these (without our knowledge) in a Honda CRV we purchased. Something about anti theft and vehicle recovery by finance, for all the cars on their lot.

The car had all sorts of crazy power problems. Smart display would randomly crash, interior lights wouldn’t work, just… flakey.

Called the dealer and demanded they remove this. Electrical problems went away instantly.

Super frustrating.

Re: Help me identify possible tracking device found in my car

#89
post #81

Amazingly paranoid post about what is obviously a car alarm.

Obvious? I wouldn't have known what the hell that was. Going by the comments, it looks like a lot of other folks weren't sure what it was either.

Don't be so quick to put other people down. It's not good to have that kind of thing in a community.

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