Tracker systems

[BrightWiseBluebird]

Hello. Getting a new ES soon. Whilst there is a lexus tracker system showing map journeys does anyone have any recommendations for an external tracker system? Worth it? Type?

 

Thanks in anticipation 

[Herbie]

It depends what you want and how much you want to spend.

First thing I'd say is that prevention is better than cure, which is why I use a big, bright yellow, Stoplock Elite Pro steering wheel lock in my RX. Far better that they see this visual deterrent and move on to an easier target, rather than relying on something that only comes into play once the scrotes have already got your pride and joy.

Right, back to trackers.

You can spend hundreds of pounds on the device itself and then more money on monthly central monitoring charges, or you can go for something that doesn't have central monitoring but does have live tracking so that you can ring the police yourself and tell them the location, direction of travel, speed and so on.

I got the Rewire Security DB2 tracker https://www.rewiresecurity.co.uk/gps-tracker-car-tracking-devices (although I bought mine from Amazon).

It's £34.99 for the device itself and £60/year (£120/2 years) for the data SIM. Very simple 2-wire install, live map tracking, geofencing, alerts for movement, ignition on and out of geofence zone as well as a whole host of others.

I'm well pleased with mine and, unless you specifically need or want central monitoring, there's just no need to spend more money than that.

[Harrier Man]

I bought a TKStar tracker back in 2018. Chinese but it still works absolutely fine. What I like about it is that there is no subscription. You send a code via your mobile phone and it sends you a google map reference link that shows where it is, plus things like the state of charge of the Battery. It has a different name now but still available on amazon for £50. https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01MS3ML86/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I also bought a 12-24V charger for it: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07JFDGF5H/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1  but this is currently unavailable. The tracker was purchased to fit to a mobility scooter and worked (and still does) fine with no attention needed when used with the charger. Not sure that I trust the integrity of the charger for use in my car though, but as the tracker stays charged up for several weeks, it hasn't been a problem to charge it using my phone charger every couple of months.

[Herbie]

1 hour ago, Harrier Man said:

I bought a TKStar tracker back in 2018. Chinese but it still works absolutely fine. What I like about it is that there is no subscription.

How does that work then, because according to item No. 7 on their website:

[Harrier Man]

12 minutes ago, Herbie said:

How does that work then, because according to item No. 7 on their website:

Yes, you do need to have a mobile phone sim card (contract or PAYG) but what I meant was that there is no subscription to either the hardware manufacturer or their software service. Some companies offer all sorts of graphical, live, multi vehicle tracking and other features - all for a monthly fee of course. Could be valuable if you're tracking a fleet of, say, delivery vehicles or taxis but I only need the ability to locate the tracker if the host vehicle is stolen, I've forgotten where I've parked my car, or I'm checking to see if the mechanic is using my car to fetch his pizza. I don't want to be paying a subscription (other than the SIM charge) every month for these rare occasions.

[Harrier Man]

I should add that I recently sought online quotes for car insurance and, with those companies that asked (presumably to give a discount), the tracker I mentioned above wasn't listed amongst the options. Guess it hasn't been through some recognised testing that meets their standards.

[Guest]

I haven’t got a tracker fitted but on my Lexus link app it always shows me the location of my car, might be a stupid question but why shouldn’t it show me the location if the car was stolen

[NemesisUK]

Does it just show the location the last time the phone was connected to the car? As in, when you parked up?

 

[DavidCM]

1 hour ago, NemesisUK said:

Does it just show the location the last time the phone was connected to the car? As in, when you parked up?

 

Mine showed the car did move whilst at the bodyshop recently.I had asked them to run it as the App. showed low 12v Battery level and I assume a short road test on re assembly.

[Guest]

8 hours ago, NemesisUK said:

Does it just show the location the last time the phone was connected to the car? As in, when you parked up?

 

As per David’s answer when it was in Lexus Leicester, it tracked several small journeys whilst they had it for a few days, I was 35 miles away at home. Not sure if it only works for the first 3 years of the cars life

[Harrier Man]

11 hours ago, Derant said:

I haven’t got a tracker fitted but on my Lexus link app it always shows me the location of my car, might be a stupid question but why shouldn’t it show me the location if the car was stolen

If everything worked as it should, I think it should show the location but if I had just stolen a car, I would do something so that you couldn't look me up, such as disconnecting the Battery. A hidden, independent tracker would hopefully buy me (or more probably the police) more time to try and recover my car.

[BrightWiseBluebird]

Thank you to everyone fir your helpful advice.  Appreciated 

[DAN@ADRIAN FLUX]

Hi.

If it's of any help we recommend these.

https://www.gapsecurity.co.uk/

Maybe they can offer you some advice.

Regards,

Dan.

[Herbie]

37 minutes ago, DAN@ADRIAN FLUX said:

Hi.

If it's of any help we recommend these.

https://www.gapsecurity.co.uk/

Maybe they can offer you some advice.

Regards,

Dan.

Hah, no wonder you recommend them. What's the old saying - if you have to ask the price, you can't afford it? Unless I missed it somewhere, no prices mentioned at all 

[Dippo]

I wouldn't trust a security company that doesn't let me turn off cookies on their website.

[Julncamp54]

I used to use re wire security as mentioned above 

very good value for money and gives journey statistics to.

a few models to choose from to suit current finances and all straight forward to fit 

 

[Hillie]

When helping my neighbours teenager change his car Battery last week I noticed the Insurers black box hidden behind the old Battery which is identical to the Rewire Security tracker in fit and form discussed here. Looking to this a bit more, it seems there are many of these companies using the exact same hardware manufactured by Teltonika (Lithuania) FMT100 device with a reseller business case differentiation based only on the data plans.  Even the apps and capabilities are pretty much the same with any differences localised to the branding, app skins, & themes.  I would even bet that the tracking data and login portals are through a Resellers proxy website and routed to the same host server. 

Some examples:

iTrack FS100 GPS Vehicle Tracker        @ https://www.halfords.com/motoring/car-security/itrack-fs100-gps-vehicle-tracker-475766.html

TruTrak FMT100 PAYG        @ https://www.trutrak.co.uk/product-page/trutrak-fmt100-payg

DB2 Self-Install GPS Car Tracker  (Mentioned in this thread)       @ https://www.rewiresecurity.co.uk/db2-self-install-diy-gps-tracker  

Transpoco FMT100 GPS Vehicle Tracking Device      @ https://www.amazon.co.uk

What caught my eye was the fact the FMT100 device uses a 2G M2M data network.   See @ https://teltonika-gps.com/product/fmt100/#features  

With the Telecoms networks retiring 3G through 2023 the pressure on 2G M2M networks which is less clear will increase and the current 2G sunset date of cy2033 will likely happen sooner.  This does not just affect vehicle trackers,  but touches other markets such as the domestic smart meter market which is a well-publicised government influenced mis-managed rats nest.  Read at https://hyphabit.io/2g-network-closure-uk/ on mobile network longevity and strategy.

Anybody here old enough to remember the Y2K clock change saga…..  Déjà vu