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I need to borrow the Halforums hivemind.

For months there's been the most horrendous car alarm in my neighborhood, a shrill shrieking noise that manages to pierce whatever room you're in, no matter where this car is parked. It goes off extremely randomly so we've never been able to locate it.

Last night they made the mistake of parking across the street from my house. I finally got the make, model, and license plate number, called the (non-emergency) police on them, and left a note informing the owner that I would continue to call the police if the noise continued.

It's a good bet no cop made it out, and even if they did the alarm probably wasn't going off right at that moment. So what can I do to make this gigantic annoyance go away? I came thisclose to unloading a few eggs, but decided I want to stay perfectly blameless if the police do get involved. (I even made sure my note was polite and made no threat other than that I would call the cops again.)

Do I have any kind of legal (as in "not illegal," not as in "contacting a lawyer") recourse at all? Can I call the DMV and report it or something? Is this post even coherent?

ZenMonkey said:

I need to borrow the Halforums hivemind.

For months there's been the most horrendous car alarm in my neighborhood, a shrill shrieking noise that manages to pierce whatever room you're in, no matter where this car is parked. It goes off extremely randomly so we've never been able to locate it.

Last night they made the mistake of parking across the street from my house. I finally got the make, model, and license plate number, called the (non-emergency) police on them, and left a note informing the owner that I would continue to call the police if the noise continued.

It's a good bet no cop made it out, and even if they did the alarm probably wasn't going off right at that moment. So what can I do to make this gigantic annoyance go away? I came thisclose to unloading a few eggs, but decided I want to stay perfectly blameless if the police do get involved. (I even made sure my note was polite and made no threat other than that I would call the cops again.)

Do I have any kind of legal (as in "not illegal," not as in "contacting a lawyer") recourse at all? Can I call the DMV and report it or something? Is this post even coherent?

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---------- Post added at 09:21 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:19 AM ----------

During the day, you've got jack shit on them. Depending on your noise ordinances, at night, you may be able to get police assistance. In my township, it's silent time from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m., any loud noise for longer than 10 minutes gets a nice 50 dollar fine if the cops are called.

The cops are usually pretty good about noise complaints. Chances are you're not the only one who's complained about it. I would continue to call about it. I mean, you're right--if they don't hear it, there's not much they can do.

check the noise ordinances in your area. Here, if a noise penetrates walls/doors 30 feet away after 10pm, the owner can get a ticket which costs about the same as a speeding ticket.

fade said:

The cops are usually pretty good about noise complaints. Chances are you're not the only one who's complained about it. I would continue to call about it. I mean, you're right--if they don't hear it, there's not much they can do.

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Thing about car alarms is that they're transient. I know that most area's noise ordinances require the noise to go on for ten minutes or so. I'm not sure where in L.A. Zen lives, but isn't this sort of stuff pretty commonplace? When I grew up in New York, I just learned to tune out shit like car horns.

You said that this particular car alarm is worse than usual? How so - is it a particularly annoying pattern? Is it just louder than usual? Higher pitch? What I'm trying to get at is whether or not this car alarm is different than the "standard" alarm, and how so it differs.

Maybe you can get the car towed.

Perhaps the number of calls at once would matter, get as many folks with cellphones as you can find, locate the car one night with a big thermos of cider or something, and when it starts to go off, everyone call the non-emergency number at once.

If the car goes off they will hear the car in the recordings, if it doesn't go off, maybe the owner will peek out and see his car being stalked and pay for a garage.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0425308/

This might give you a few ideas.

Seriously though, I have no idea what you can do. Lame >.<

I'm very sure you don't want my opinion, but good luck with it.

Wildsoul said:

Maybe you can get the car towed.

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Why? Because the dude has a sensitive alarm system so it doesn't get stolen in L.A.? What a passive aggressive, shithead thing to do to someone.

Personally, things like this have never bothered me because they're out of my control. It's the guys car, he parks it on the street, the alarm goes off what? Like once a day, every two days for 30 seconds. Is it during the day? If it is then really just suck it up.

I could understand if it was a morning thing at like 4 or 5 a.m. every single day. But really now, get the guy's car towed because you have an issue with his alarm. What a dick thing to do.

I can probably 100% guarantee the person with this alarm did not get it install to specifically annoy people in his neighborhood (maybe it came installed in the car to begin with). God. Egging... Car towing... You people are fucking assholes. The number one rule of automobiles is not to fuck with a man's car without him their to beat your goddamn head in with a tire iron. I'm sorry, but I can't stand passive aggressive little pussies who key cars, egg them and run away gleefully.

Well maybe it *IS* going off between 1am-6am.

Shegokigo said:

Well maybe it *IS* going off between 1am-6am.

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Then I'm sure the noise ordinances in the area will allow Zen to file a report and get the guy a warning and then a fine if it keeps happening.

Depends if they take it seriously enough or if they have a longer noise requirement (15+minutes)

Shegokigo said:

Depends if they take it seriously enough or if they have a longer noise requirement (15+minutes)

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Then try to catch the owner and face to face explain to them that their alarm is waking you up in the morning. If they give you shit, then punch them in the throat.

Seriously though, I doubt that anyone would raise a stink over their car alarm. They probably don't know it's causing a problem.

If a car alarm is used properly, you'd NEVER hear it unless someone is specifically causing the car damage. If it goes off for random reasons or if the prox detector is borked, this can be quite annoying.

aka "The Shit Job Installation"

I want a super-sensitive alarm system that plays 'La Chucaracha' when it gets tripped off.

Nobody pays attention to car alarms any more. It used to be that if you heard one you'd look and see who was fucking with the car. Now, though, they are nothing more than nuisances.

Yeah... somehow I doubt the cops in LA are going to do much about this unless a ton of people call in. I wish I had a better idea Zen, I know how annoying that is.
Outside of vandalism (which I can't advocate even if it's what I would WANT to do) I'm not sure what your options are if the cops won't move on it.

Dave said:

Nobody pays attention to car alarms any more. It used to be that if you heard one you'd look and see who was fucking with the car. Now, though, they are nothing more than nuisances.

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I don't remember where I heard this, but there was some comic who said that he wanted to get a car alarm, but instead of it being a normal one that everyone ignores all the time he wanted to sound to be people having loud and incredible sex. That's the only real way to get people to come and check out what's happening if your car is getting broken into.

Shegokigo said:

Well maybe it *IS* going off between 1am-6am.

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Often during the day, but in this case it started at 4am and continued until at least 8am. As to the noise, it's not just the usual "collection of various sounds" alarm which as Chronos implied, I barely even notice anymore. It is some kind of undulating, piercing shrieking like a really bitchy robot with PMS. And there's nothing visible setting it off, not even a truck going by or something. It was dead quiet with no cars on my street when it kept deciding to start screaming.

I called the cops twice. The second time they said a cop had been out there, but apparently nothing came of that. The dispatcher said this time that since she had the license plate and I've been hearing this car in my area a lot, they could check the DMV for an address and the cops could pay the guy a personal visit if he does live nearby. Annoyingly, even when the car was in a noise cycle, it conveniently paused when I called the cops (who would easily have been able to hear it over the phone).

Hmm. It may be sentient.

Anyway, yeah, during the day, Chaz, I ignore the noise or use those good friends of mine you posted, earplugs and headphones. (We do live in a noisy area so I'm used to that.) But now that I know about the DMV thing, if it continues at night I'll simply keep calling and keep suggesting they pay the guy a visit. Maybe enough of those will convince him to fix the motherfucking thing.

Thanks for the suggestions and condolences. I like Dusty's nonviolent "flash mob" idea. Maybe I'll start chatting to the neighbors about it.

ZenMonkey;314763][quote=Shegokigo said:

Well maybe it *IS* going off between 1am-6am.

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Often during the day, but in this case it started at 4am and continued until at least 8am. As to the noise, it's not just the usual "collection of various sounds" alarm which as Chronos implied, I barely even notice anymore. It is some kind of undulating, piercing shrieking like a really bitchy robot with PMS. And there's nothing visible setting it off, not even a truck going by or something. It was dead quiet with no cars on my street when it kept deciding to start screaming.

I called the cops twice. The second time they said a cop had been out there, but apparently nothing came of that. The dispatcher said this time that since she had the license plate and I've been hearing this car in my area a lot, they could check the DMV for an address and the cops could pay the guy a personal visit if he does live nearby. Annoyingly, even when the car was in a noise cycle, it conveniently paused when I called the cops (who would easily have been able to hear it over the phone).

Hmm. It may be sentient.

Anyway, yeah, during the day, Chaz, I ignore the noise or use those good friends of mine you posted, earplugs and headphones. (We do live in a noisy area so I'm used to that.) But now that I know about the DMV thing, if it continues at night I'll simply keep calling and keep suggesting they pay the guy a visit. Maybe enough of those will convince him to fix the motherfucking thing.

Thanks for the suggestions and condolences. I like Dusty's nonviolent "flash mob" idea. Maybe I'll start chatting to the neighbors about it.[/quote]


Ok, now I'm on your side. 4 am to 8 am, I'd have taken a fucking bat to that car. For four hours of that shit, I'd have googled the make for the alarm fuses, slim jimmed his car open and pulled it, or popped the hood and disconnected the battery. Four hours is ridiculous.

Chazwozel said:

Ok, now I'm on your side. 4 am to 8 am, I'd have taken a fucking bat to that car. For four hours of that shit, I'd have googled the make for the alarm fuses, slim jimmed his car open and pulled it, or popped the hood and disconnected the battery. Four hours is ridiculous.

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Yeaaaaaah. There is a point where I would lose any cool I may have had. That sounds like it.

Yeah, as I said, I'm pretty well used to noise and wouldn't normally write a whole post about it. Last night was bad, although in a way I'm glad it happened since now I have all the info on the car.

It's going on and off again tonight, although at least this time it's further away so a lesser annoyance. I might take a little walk and note the location, though, in case I feel like calling the police again tonight.

You could always burn it with fire. That usually works

Perfect use for an emp bomb. No physical damage, but all the electronics are fried. Untraceable...

Not that I would advocate such a course of action, mind you, just thinking out loud...

stienman said:

Perfect use for an emp bomb. No physical damage, but all the electronics are fried. Untraceable...

Not that I would advocate such a course of action, mind you, just thinking out loud...

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That and I doubt she has a nuclear device she can set off to cause the EMP.

i think you have to get a 18 killstreak to get an emp or maybe get lucky with a care package.

Chazwozel said:

Ok, now I'm on your side. 4 am to 8 am, I'd have taken a fucking bat to that car. For four hours of that shit, I'd have googled the make for the alarm fuses, slim jimmed his car open and pulled it, or popped the hood and disconnected the battery. Four hours is ridiculous.

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So, four hours of annoyance makes the difference between "justice" and being a "passive aggressive little pussy". So noted.

Tinwhistler;314973][quote=Chazwozel said:

Ok, now I'm on your side. 4 am to 8 am, I'd have taken a fucking bat to that car. For four hours of that shit, I'd have googled the make for the alarm fuses, slim jimmed his car open and pulled it, or popped the hood and disconnected the battery. Four hours is ridiculous.

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So, four hours of annoyance makes the difference between "justice" and being a "passive aggressive little pussy". So noted.[/quote]


Pulling his battery is not damaging the car. Everyone's got their breaking point, sensei.

Oh, i know...everyone *does* have their breaking point. I was just noting where, in your mind, taking a bat to someone's car (which breaks the #1 rule of not fucking with a man's car when he's not there) ceases to be passive-aggressive, shithead, pussy behavior and turns into justifiable behavior.

Tinwhistler said:

Oh, i know...everyone *does* have their breaking point. I was just noting where, in your mind, taking a bat to someone's car (which breaks the #1 rule of not fucking with a man's car when he's not there) ceases to be passive-aggressive, shithead, pussy behavior and turns into justifiable behavior.

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Oh, you misunderstood. I'd wait for him to come back. Take the bat to the car, and then use his head for the rest eace:

Zen, make up a bunch of flyers that say "If this car's alarm bothers you CALL THIS NUMBER!" and put in the number to the police non-emergency line. Include any prompts that may be in the way (Call 555-1234 and press 5 then 3).

Put the flyers ON HIS CAR under the wipers. Two things happen here. EITHER many people call and the police have to do something to stop the calls OR even if nobody calls he'll see that his car is bothering someone. Maybe he can't hear it where he lives.

I had a knock on my door once and it was a cop asking me about my car's alarm going off. It didn't have one. Turns out I had a wire short in the steering column that made the horn go off. For hours. I finally had to remove the wiring but it HAD to drive the neighbors nuts for however long it went off (I've heard 3 hours straight but that was by someone who exaggerates).

Dave said:

Zen, make up a bunch of flyers that say "If this car's alarm bothers you CALL THIS NUMBER!" and put in the number to the police non-emergency line. Include any prompts that may be in the way (Call 555-1234 and press 5 then 3).

Put the flyers ON HIS CAR under the wipers. Two things happen here. EITHER many people call and the police have to do something to stop the calls OR even if nobody calls he'll see that his car is bothering someone. Maybe he can't hear it where he lives.

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I like it very much. People do walk around this area a lot (for L.A.) so flyers could be very effective. The guy's got a crapton of notes on his car by now so I can't imagine ignorance is still an issue, but I was thinking about how to get the neighborhood involved. If this continues I am definitely going this route.

(Called the cops again at 1am; this time the dispatcher clearly heard the ululating -- the car's, not mine -- but it still continued to go on and off until at least 4am.)

In the Ford parking lots here (headquarters, engineering and design centers, etc) if you don't have a parking tag they apply a water based glue (corn starch, for instance) to the drivers side window, and slap a big printout "THIS CAR IS ILLEGALLY PARKED AND MAY BE TOWED IN THE FUTURE"

The paper is easily removed with some water and elbow grease, but it's a pain, and much more incentive than a simple flyer that can be ignored, "Oh, the wind must have blown it away, I demand you refund my towing fee!"

If the flyers don't help, you can go a few steps further with the glue before getting destructive.

ZenMonkey said:

the dispatcher clearly heard the ululating -- the car's, not mine

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Adammon said:

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Ummm wouldn't that make the alarm go off?

redapples;315378][quote=Adammon said:

image

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Ummm wouldn't that make the alarm go off?[/QUOTE]

In other words, the brick would change nothing.