3 Important Accessories to Keep Your Vehicle Secure

Vehicle safety and security are more important than ever since car theft and break-ins are on the rise at a global level. This creates a higher financial impact on both owners and insurance companies, which in turn increases the price tag of security-related car accessories.

Therefore, prevention, in this case, is a more surefire way to prevent both a financial and emotional burden when your vehicle does get stolen or damaged during the act. As important as maintenance, the security of your car plays a huge role in safety and longevity, and with the proper accessories you can discourage prying eyes early in the process.

Dash Cams

Benefits

While a dash cam alone won’t prevent theft, it can be quite effective when theft is taking place or after. With dash cameras, you can rest assured that your vehicle won’t get lost among tons of paperwork or in the sea of parked vehicles at a junk yard. Therefore, a dash cam in Malaysia isn’t made just for when you’re driving, since it can be used to track down both your vehicle and the people responsible for it being taken away.

Features

A car dash cam has plenty of features to offer when it comes to vehicle security, such as:

• Video quality – This depends largely on the resolution and FPS (frames per second) the camera can record in. The higher both are, the smoother and crispier the footage, thus more detail can be seen from further away.
• Parking mode – This feature allows a car dash cam to run when your car is turned off. This way, if any movement occurs near your car, the camera detects it thanks to sensors built into it and turns on.
• GPS – A capability that lets a car dash cam in Malaysia know where your vehicle is at any given moment. You can usually access the location of your vehicle through an app or website.
• Wi-Fi and Bluetooth – Both of these help improve GPS accuracy and thus help pinpoint the exact location of your vehicle, alongside being able to send data to devices nearby.
• Cloud connectivity – A feature that helps store footage online so that if the camera is damaged you can still have proof of what went on and where your vehicle was taken. You can then access and download the footage from wherever you are within minutes.

GPS Trackers

Benefits

While dash cameras come with GPS already built in, not all models have it, and even if you go for one that does have GPS, it’s a good idea to get a dedicated one. A GPS car tracker can help you see exactly where your vehicle is at all times. Also, in case the camera malfunctions or gets damaged, it can act as a backup. You can further use geofencing, a feature that allows you to set an area in which your car is moving frequently, and once it leaves it, you’ll get an alert on your phone or computer.

Types

Hardwired GPS trackers are the ones to go for in this case, as they are tied directly to your vehicle’s wiring and not through a socket. This allows for a more concealed placement, but know that hardwiring a GPS tracker requires looking at wiring diagrams and identifying the correct wires to connect the unit to.

OBDII trackers are more convenient in terms of how easy it is to install and set them up, however, they are not as concealed as a hardwired vehicle GPS tracking system. While you can access additional information about your vehicle’s systems alongside its coordinates, OBDII trackers need to be removed every time you need to use a diagnostic tool on your car and can drain the battery when your vehicle is off. 

Mobile car trackers are the easiest to install, but also not as capable or as concealed as any of the above two. They also need to have their batteries replaced from time to time to keep them running. These portable trackers have only convenience and affordability on their side.

Immobilisers

Benefits

To prevent anyone from getting into your vehicle through the use of key programming and amplified key fob signals, an immobiliser is the only accessory you can use to your advantage. Even if someone clones your key, they still couldn’t go past the immobiliser thanks to ADR, which makes sure that the key is no further than 5 to 10 metres when starting your vehicle.

Factory vs. Aftermarket

There are two types of immobilisers you can get and those are factory or OEM units or aftermarket ones. The former either comes from the factory or can be fitted from another vehicle, it just has to be from the same make and model as yours. 

Aftermarket immobilisers are bought after the fact and can work with just about any vehicle as long as it has compatible software on it. This makes them a more versatile and often a more affordable solution than OEM immobilisers. Factory immobilisers also can’t be upgraded and are often not capable of preventing key cloning.