When I got my first Ducati back in 2006 I don't think GPS trackers were available or at least they weren't mainstream. Instead what every sports bike owner had back in those days was an after market alarm. I know the world has moved on since then and GPS trackers are now more or less standard but in my view the two serve very different purposes and are complimentary. I already have a tracker and if my bike ever gets stolen I hope I can use it to aid in its recovery. However, I'm interested in installing an alarm to ward off the hateful bastards that plan to steal my pride and joy. Now before a chorus of you tell me that we're talking about professional thieves and if they want it you may as well give them the keys and an alarm won't stop them etc etc I think an alarm still serves as a useful mechanism for warning off opportunistic thieves who might try to help themselves to your bike when other more robust security measures aren't practical - like when you're at the service station fueling up and you go in to pay. So, with all that being said, my question is, what is the best alarm on the market today?
Just my thoughts, rather than trying to scarf alarm wiring into the bike’s loom, I’d try one of these. https://www.motorcyclesecure.com/alarmed-disc-locks/. Andy
Alarms are a waste of time imho, you are on song with needing/using a gps tracker. If you wish to experiment go down a road one evening & rock a car to set the alarm off. See how many people come rushing to the aid of the metal can. With the potential of been stabbed or having the key taken off them & the insurance company then claiming you helped in the disposal of said stolen item.
I've got one of these and when it's garaged it's on. I also used to take it out with me when I was on the bike and I'd put it on when I stopped for a bite to eat or something like that but what occurred to me is if I crash while this thing is in my pocket it's likely to do a whole heap of damage to me.
i was just grateful when the day arrived and we no longer had to have an alarm. always hated the bloody things
I've had alarms fitted on both my Ducati's and they sit in a box at the bottom of the garage, the are hateful things!!
Trackers are a good reassurance for the owner but they are oh-so-easy to overcome. Two words should strike fear into you owners: GPS Jammers ...... easily available and very effective. If your bike does not know where it is or if it has moved, it cant tell anyone. Even if it did know, it cannot tell anyone without a GSM signal and the same devices block those too. These devices range from 50 quid upwards and will fit in a pocket very easily. If we ever have any train travel again - they are wonderful for shutting phones down and quetening the loudmouth telling the entire carriage what he wants for lunch. Also good in restaurants for similar reasons. They will even shut off the wanker with a handheld phone glued to his ear alongside you at traffic lights. Oh yeah - if your boss wants to track your whereabouts - it stops that too You just vanish into the ether. (allegedly of course)
I really don’t understand all this hatred for alarms. Get off your bike, press a button, it beeps to let you know it’s alarmed you walk away. Return to your bike, press another button, it disarms and your away. What’s not to like?
I have both alarm and tracker as well as varying levels of physical security. The alarm is mainly there to dissuade tinkerers whilst the bike is parked up at a hotel or whilst having lunch when on tour.
Well, the two that I have had were nothing but trouble. How do you fancy a bike that randomly cuts the power when you go around left hand corners? Eventually traced to a break on the alarm loom on the fuel pump circuit. Or an alarm unit that filled with water when the bike was left in the rain overnight whilst in Europe (Ducati alarm). That one had to be unwired from the bike and removed whilst in a hotel carpark.
Having had an alarm and having had that bike stolen, I really didn’t see the point nor the expense, it cost me something like £300 and saved me £15 a year on my insurance. I liked the bike but I wasn’t going to keep it 20yrs! So I’m afraid I can’t help you as I’ve no idea which ones are good or bad, I had a Datatool one and absolutely no one paid any attention as it was being nicked so I’d say don’t but one of those, if they still make them?
Ducati alarm. Took a punt that the plug-in-and-play one for the 1200MTS would work with the 1260. The appropriate blanked off socket in the loom wasn't where the instructions said it was but tracked it down and it works fine. DMC had them on offer when I bought my 1260 back in 2018. Like the comfort seats they were sold off discounted as they were officially accessories for the outgoing model. The alarm, in fact all my security, is a peace of mind thing. Doing all that I can in the full knowledge that if the pros want my bike there's not much I can do about it. That's what insurance is for. Stopping/disuading opportunists or someone trying to open a pannier or the top case is what I'm trying to prevent. Also if I'm in earshot I can at least have the opportunity to intervene or at the very least witness the theft. Years ago stood in the street in my boxers in the early hours whist four pikeys with scaffold poles hoiked my wailing, covered, locked at both ends VFR VTEC into the back of a van...
There you go, as @Bumpkin says, ready made, plug and play, no additional wiring required, https://www.ducati.com/gb/en/accessories/ACC011075 Andy
Yep, that’s the one I had installed on my V4 S and it worked a treat. The reason for starting this thread was to get feedback on if there was anything out there that’s better. Boy did I get that wrong! What’s been recommended to me is a Datatool S4. Basically the same price but supposedly better quality.
Okay, without going back over old ground, any system that relies on an invasive installation will only be as good as the installer. Many, many alarms will have been fitted over the years so it is inevitable that frustrating failures will happen. Some and the names escape me now, were notoriously unreliable, Datatool not so much but they are not exempt from criticism. IMO, @Bumpkin has it right, the Ducati system whilst quite possibly not “the best” on the market, its hidden benefits are being plug and play and if or when it falls over in time as most electronics do, no faffing about trying to fathom how it was installed to uninstall it. For me, the overall message from your thread is that the public don’t give a toss about audible alarms in general but an alarm should put off the casual opportunistic thief. Andy
