Motion Sensor Question (Red clip doing its job?)

[Onad]

Sorry-- I posted before I saw ToolPants' response.

He's probably right. Thanks ToolPants.

[Tool Pants]

You have a point and I did not mention it because most new owners of the red clip think that as soon as they push the lock button on the remote the interior motion detector is on. But there is a delay and if you waive your hand during that delay then it will never turn on.

Some people put the red clip upside down, and that could be another reason for it not to work.

The motion detector is IR based. Years ago someone used night vision googles and took a picture of the beams. I wish I had saved the picture. As I remember the focus was to the middle interior.

The other thing to keep in mind that if you waive your hand inside after the detector is in fact set then there is a delay before the alarm horn will start beeping. It is not instantaneous. I have seen people waive their hand and if they do not immediately set off the alarm they push the alarm button and turn the system off. I have never timed this additional dealy. When I buy stuff from Safeway I reach over and put the bags on the passenger seat, then walk to the other side of the car fishing for the key in my pocket to turn off the alarm. If I am too slow then the alarm goes off before I can push the putton to unlock the car

[RandallNeighbour]

My mechanic gave me a red clip and I use it all the time. Here's why:

If someone tries to push the keyed button thingy for the center console, even if it's locked, the alarm sounds.

My motion sensors are all chewed up... a previous owner tried to pry them off and only one works now, the other's "eye" is missing—and it goes off quite well when I forget and try to retrieve my sunglasses from the cubby under the radio.

It won't prevent theft of your rollbar inserts or windscreen, so those go in the trunk when I leave the top down in a parking lot... but I sure do like the added noisemaking ability of that little red clip.

[Porschekid]

I didn't know about this red clip... should I just purchase one at my local Porsche dealership?

[RandallNeighbour]

I doubt they sell them. You can get them online though at a lot of Boxster botiques.

[dennizxxx]

suncoast has them listed for about $3.95..does that price sound right???

[cnk]

Thanks for the replies. I think I'll try again after waiting a bit to let the motion sensor activate itself.

As to buying the red clip, I just called my local Porsche dealer's parts department. They said that they didn't stock the part but could order it for me. They ordered it and I picked it up a week later. This might be a better deal than online since it seems silly to pay for shipping for something so cheap. It's probably best to dig up the part number before you call to make it easier for them to find it.