Plug-in Engine Bay Starter Kill
The usefulness of killing the starter is that it distracts from your other more-effective and less-obvious start-kills. A large part of vehicle security relies on delaying the almost inevitable theft of your vehicle. But like everything else on this site, it's not a solution in of itself; but part of an overall strategy.
There are advantages to this method over the Plug-In, Engine Bay Ignition Kill. This method is built entirely from electronics store parts so there's no need to scour the junkyards. This method is easier to put together for the beginner. Unfortunately, there is one glaring problem with this method on manual transmission cars. You can still push start the car. So I strongly recommend that you use this method in conjunction with the fuel kill. The disadvantage to the fuel and ignition kills is that you can burn up your starter cranking it too long if you forget about them.
Like the Ignition Bay start-kill, this strategy is plug n play, it can be prepared in advance, it's easily reversible, and it doesn't require any cutting of your factory wiring.
Supplies
- 10 gauge male spade connector
- 10 gauge female spade connector
- two 18 gauge female spade connectors
- 10 gauge wire
- 18 gauge wire
- SPDT auto relay
- alarm or rocker switch and ring terminal
- metal tapping screw
- small diameter split loom
- electric tape
- black zip ties
Pull this connector off the starter and re-route it towards where you will be mounting your relay. Extend this wire by crimping a male spade connector on some 10 gauge wire and connecting it to the starter wire. Tape the connection. Wire the relay as shown in the diagram below.
If you've been following this site you should be very comfortable with relays by now. If not, go look at the fuel and ignition kill pages. This is exactly the same thing, just a different way of connecting to the wire without having to cut it. As usual, you can connect the relay to your alarm's ground-when-armed output, or you could wire it to a manual switch.
This is the final result. Just make it as inconspicuous as possible.
Storing a Vehicle
This is how you safely store a vehicle w/out the alarm draining the battery dead. You can get a "smart" trickle charger from Summit Racing, the dealership, or the parts store. It's safe to leave it hooked up to your battery for a long period of time because it won't overcharge it.
Tuck the end of the extension cord under the hood. If a thief cuts this cord, it will blow the circuit breaker in the house. But even if no one notices, the backup battery is going to keep the alarm alive for quite a while.
Try to imagine a scenario in which a thief cuts the extension cord, potentially shocking himself. The battery charger ceases to function, yet the car battery will last several weeks. Now the thief returns to find that though the car battery is low, the alarm continues to function thanks to the battery backup. Another week goes by. Hopefully by now you have returned from your trip, or at least someone in the house has noticed that your garage light and half your kitchen electronics aren't working due to a blown circuit breaker. Upon investigation they will find the cut extension cord. Failing that, the thief would still have to bypass your car alarm's normally open kill circuit as well as the kill switch. It's not going to happen.