Will It Be There When I Get Back?

Every time that I shut the door to my vehicle and head out into the boonies in the back of my mind I always wonder if my truck will still be there when I get back, and in some way it always detracts from complete enjoyment of my time afield.  Short of having an armed guard at the vehicle or camp there is no absolute way to protect it, but there are ways to minimize the problem.

On a couple of my vehicles I have put a couple of switches that either shut off the fuel pump or switch a solenoid to a empty gas tank, or shut off power to the coil, along with using the club or any of the other visible locking devices.  Another option is an alarm system.  In the past on other vehicles I have used the el cheapo "express sound" specials, you know the one with the generic sound that always go off and everyone ignores.  After a couple of months they have malfunctions from horrible installation practices, this is probably the reason I have not put one on a vehicle for several years.  I got out the yellow pages and let my fingers do the walking through the stereo and alarm section and called several of the shops you will be surprised at what I found out.  Most of the clowns I talked to were rather rude and did not seem to have the time to answer my questions and they just seemed to be able to quote prices for various serpent named systems and the $1.00 or free installs.  After several similar conversations and a bad taste brewing in my mouth I remembered who I needed to talk to.  Several years ago when I worked at an off road shop we did a lot of business with a fellow named Tim, who had a Blazer and managed a stereo shop and he had done some stereo work for myself and a lot of the other employees where I worked.  We had sent a bunch of our customers to see him, and they were all happy too, so I decided to talk to him.

In the few years that had passed Tim no longer managed the shop, but now owned it, and also relocated by my house.  How perfect!  I went to see him, and we talked about alarm systems, and visited several times during the next few weeks, this was good for a few reasons.  One is that I learned about alarms and that his shop does ALOT of custom high end, custom stereo, TV, and alarm systems, and has won awards, and been featured in magazines.  I had the opportunity to see him in action with his customers.  No pressure or bull, just informative and friendly.  When somebody had a problem, even if it has nothing to do with the equipment or the install, just somebody screwing up their stuff, Tim took care of them right away with a smile on his face.  That was all I needed to see, and I had him install the alarm he advised to get, the install was perfect.  His men are pro's, and they take pride in their work, and it shows.

Now I can leave my vehicle in wild places, in city or out, and not have nearly as much anxiety about walking away from my truck.  If you are in Phoenix, and want a alarm system or stereo system I can without reservation send you to see Tim Jones at Cardenal Electronics, 9250 N. 43rd Avenue, Suite 5-7 or call him at 623-939-9484.  You will walk away happy as I did.  Please tell Tim that you heard about him on AZOD.com.

Ted Scholl
Off Road Staff Writer