Tracker shenanigans

[Dr Bob]

(had to look up how to spell the title)


Here's an interesting one.

Picked up my Taycan Turbo in September last year and was coerced into getting the Porsche Tracker as my insurance company was nervous, it being such an expensive car and all thtat. In the showroom I was given a stern warning to always have the tracker fob in the car with me if I was going to move the car.

Message understood. All systems go.


Four months later, everything is going well, except for 2 calls in the last two weeks from Vodaphone telling me there had been a tracker alert on the car. The first time it happened, I was sat in the car in a car park apart from a quick 2 mins popping into a nearby shop. The car hadnt moved for at least an hour. Mmmmmm?

Vodaphone called me, said there had been an alert, I said it was a false alarm, they told me to phone Porsche. So I started to use the other fob (Porsche gave me two). No problems. No alerts. Battery must have gone in my original tracker. Porsche dealership told me to pop in to change the battery. Too lazy to do that – and anyway, my re-call for the software to be re-written is imminent. I'll do it then.



Today then, parked in that same car park. I got out to walk to a shop – with the fob in my pocket – and when I get back to the car, there's Vodaphone on the blower again, moaning the cars been moved again. No it hasn't! The car hadn't moved but the fob had! It was in my pocket. Mrs Bob was in the car all the time (with the key) but I'm pretty sure she hadnt been for a spin round the car park – but stranger things have been know.

Anyhoose, is the tracker set up to alarm if you move the tracker but the car is stationary? Honest Guv, I did what the nice man in the Porsche dealership told me! Having Vodaphone call me twice in the same location is a bit of a coincidence. Surely the car moving is the thing that activates the tracker?

It never crossed my mind that a wandering tracker would set of the alert. It does make me feel more comfortable that I will know if someone nicks my tracker.



I am a muppet though.

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[kurand]

I think there are a number of interesting edge cases with the Vodafone tracker. I think having the regular key in the car just after parking and then having the tracker fob leave the car is one of those cases.

i have been caught out by a similar edge case. I’ve arrived home and then exited the car to open my garage door with the ignition still on but with both tracker fob and regular key in my pocket. Results in instant call from Vodafone. I’ve now learnt to turn the ignition off first.

 

[iamai]

what is the point of having this service to begin with if all they do is nag you on the phone? let's assume a thief got to your car, do they they have the ability to remotely disable the car or something?

 

[DerekS]

What's the point of the tracker when the car has GPS locatiion at all times in the app?

 

[WuffvonTrips]

1. Possibly GPS drift at that particular location, so the car's GPS co-ordinates change even though it's stationary?
2. I used to get alerts some of the times I stepped out of the car with key & tracker fob in my pocket to close my garage door behind me. Since then, I power the car down with the dash button before exiting. Otherwise vodafone see that the "engine" is on without the fob present.
3. Did your wife trigger the interior motion sensor? I've had alerts triggered by my non-permanently installed dashcam falling off the windscreen.

 

[KenR]

1. Possibly GPS drift at that particular location, so the car's GPS co-ordinates change even though it's stationary?
2. I used to get alerts some of the times I stepped out of the car with key & tracker fob in my pocket to close my garage door behind me. Since then, I power the car down with the dash button before exiting. Otherwise vodafone see that the "engine" is on without the fob present.
3. Did your wife trigger the interior motion sensor? I've had alerts triggered by my non-permanently installed dashcam falling off the windscreen.

I too have had alerts caused by my dash cam falling off - both times in hot weather. I now take the precaution of parking with the car’s rear end facing the sun on the two or three days of the year where it warrants it. Maybe global warming will make it necessary more frequently…

 

[MarkR]

I have had the alerts too. For me it was because my battery had died in the tracker unit, yes, both of them for a 3 week old car. So I initially replaced them with relatively cheap batteries, dead within a couple of weeks. So replaced with a higher quality battery and bought some faraday pouches for each of the tracker units. No problems since with the batteries.

Also, I lock the car even if I am standing right next to it with the keys and fob in my pocket, to prevent alerts.

If my wife and family are in the car whilst i pop into a shop, then I leave the keys and fob with my wife. No alerts.

I believe that the tracker company can remotely disable the vehicle if it is stolen.

Bear in mind a GPS can be blocked with a jammer, so I would hope that the tracker uses both GPS and a separate UHF signal just in case. Does anyone have any information on this that can confirm what the tracker unit uses?

 

[Dr Bob]

2. I used to get alerts some of the times I stepped out of the car with key & tracker fob in my pocket to close my garage door behind me. Since then, I power the car down with the dash button before exiting. Otherwise vodafone see that the "engine" is on without the fob present.

Thanks all for your inputs.
Paul, I think your 2nd bullet is what's happening. I had just assumed the car would trigger the system if it moved and the tracker not in it. Never dawned on me that moving the tracker away from the car would trigger it.

Note to myself: 1) Leave the wife at home and turn off and lock the car. 2) Get rid of the tracker as soon as the value of the car falls below the insurance company 'tracker' value ......on renewal of the insurance later in the year!

 

[W1NGE]

(had to look up how to spell the title)


Here's an interesting one.

Picked up my Taycan Turbo in September last year and was coerced into getting the Porsche Tracker as my insurance company was nervous, it being such an expensive car and all thtat. In the showroom I was given a stern warning to always have the tracker fob in the car with me if I was going to move the car.

Message understood. All systems go.


Four months later, everything is going well, except for 2 calls in the last two weeks from Vodaphone telling me there had been a tracker alert on the car. The first time it happened, I was sat in the car in a car park apart from a quick 2 mins popping into a nearby shop. The car hadnt moved for at least an hour. Mmmmmm?

Vodaphone called me, said there had been an alert, I said it was a false alarm, they told me to phone Porsche. So I started to use the other fob (Porsche gave me two). No problems. No alerts. Battery must have gone in my original tracker. Porsche dealership told me to pop in to change the battery. Too lazy to do that – and anyway, my re-call for the software to be re-written is imminent. I'll do it then.



Today then, parked in that same car park. I got out to walk to a shop – with the fob in my pocket – and when I get back to the car, there's Vodaphone on the blower again, moaning the cars been moved again. No it hasn't! The car hadn't moved but the fob had! It was in my pocket. Mrs Bob was in the car all the time (with the key) but I'm pretty sure she hadnt been for a spin round the car park – but stranger things have been know.

Anyhoose, is the tracker set up to alarm if you move the tracker but the car is stationary? Honest Guv, I did what the nice man in the Porsche dealership told me! Having Vodaphone call me twice in the same location is a bit of a coincidence. Surely the car moving is the thing that activates the tracker?

It never crossed my mind that a wandering tracker would set of the alert. It does make me feel more comfortable that I will know if someone nicks my tracker.



I am a muppet though.

A mobile tracker with the key in the car (and presumably powered on) will of course trigger a silent alarm. Both must be present at the same location if car is powered on - it doesn't have to be moving.

When travelling there are different modes to deactivate the tracker - towing, at sea etc.

If someone nicks your tracker you likely won't know as they would have to have nicked it whilst the car was powered on. Besides a tracker fob is probs not worth nicking as it is useless on its own without the key and the car it is paired to.

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