Ravelco as featured in Overland Journal

[07 Elephant]

I saw the ravleco write-up in this month's Overland Journal and was intrigued.

So me and ravleco guy installed it today. I say we cause I can't let anyone else work on my rig without lending a hand. It worked out alright. My electrical work has always been clean and this install is clean too.

I'm pleased with the function and security and ease of use of the little ravelco plug.

Here are a few pictures.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oh no we're taking that apart?

Enough of that. After it's all put back together and taped and zipped tied and cleaned...

The plug goes here.

The plug.

And then here.

Or here.

Might stay. Might not.

 

[07 Elephant]

Has anyone else read the article in OJ? Does anyone else here have one?

 

[C Red]

I had Ravelco system installed on my truck 2 years ago. It has given me peace of mind that it would be very difficult to steal. So now I lock my stuff in my Tuffy box and leave the doors and windows unlocked without worry.
Glad to see OJ had a write-up about a product I have found fantastic.

 

[J-man]

Seems like a good idea, however i know my luck id knock it loose and it would get lost when im in the middle of baja and then i'd be screwed!!!

 

[Dave Bennett]

I really like this system :drool:

 

[Jonathan Hanson]

07, thanks for the writeup and photos.

After I wrote the news item about the Ravelco in Overland Journal, we were scheduled to have one installed in Roseann's diesel 60; however, it's having some clutch issues addressed at the moment, so we had one put in our 911 SC in the meantime.

Short of simply never leaving sight of your vehicle (or leaving a doberman in it), I can think of few things that could better guarantee it will still be there when you get back. The best thing for those of us who travel to remote areas is, there are no moving parts to the system, thus literally nothing to go wrong and leave you stranded. Admittedly, it does absolutely nothing to stop someone breaking in and stealing your cameras or GPS, but the truck won't go anywhere.

I see and use a lot of new products in the course of a year, but this one really impressed me.

Those of you in southern California, we had Richard Biscevic do the installation. California Ravelco

 

[Corey]

I read it in the OJ, it sounds very nice.
I have a good alarm system now with a pager in the remote, but I am thinking of adding this too.

 

[Jonathan Hanson]

I'm thinking a near-perfect setup would be a Ravelco to keep the vehicle safe, combined with an alarm/pager system with no ignition cutout - just noise/alert in the even of a break-in. That way if the alarm malfunctioned in the middle of nowhere, you wouldn't be stranded, but it would offer some protection to your gear.

 

[RMP&O]

07, thanks for the writeup and photos.

After I wrote the news item about the Ravelco in Overland Journal, we were scheduled to have one installed in Roseann's diesel 60; however, it's having some clutch issues addressed at the moment, so we had one put in our 911 SC in the meantime.

Short of simply never leaving sight of your vehicle (or leaving a doberman in it), I can think of few things that could better guarantee it will still be there when you get back.

It looks like a good product but....what is wrong with just using a good ole heavy duty steering wheel lock? If you get the right one and lock it correctly it is very difficult to steal a truck. Sure you can cut the steering wheel or perhaps even the lock but that will take some big time work. As I say if you just put it on right it is super hard to cut off. Dual hooks that go in the right place on the steering wheel is what I mean.

I used one all through Mexico and Central America and never had a single problem.

 

[Toyotero]

I'm thinking a near-perfect setup would be a Ravelco to keep the vehicle safe, combined with an alarm/pager system with no ignition cutout - just noise/alert in the even of a break-in. That way if the alarm malfunctioned in the middle of nowhere, you wouldn't be stranded, but it would offer some protection to your gear.

That sounds like the best combo to me. I had an alarm with an ignition cut-off once. I loved that the alarm locked the doors automatically (I had an extra key hidden outside just in case), it chirped if the vehicle was bumped, and it alarmed if more happened. One evening out at a restaurant with the little lady, the starter cut-out wiring connections or the alarm relay crapped out and the vehicle wouldn't crank over and the vehicle was parked nose downhill against a wall. :-( Pushing a truck backwards and uphill on a gravel parking lot in dress shoes is not something I'd like to ever repeat.

Lesson learned... go with quality and don't let Circuit City do an alarm install. These ravleco systems look great... as long as the install and wiring is done well, there is nothing mechanical to break like there is in alarm start cut-offs.

It looks like a good product but....what is wrong with just using a good ole heavy duty steering wheel lock? If you get the right one and lock it correctly it is very difficult to steal a truck. Sure you can cut the steering wheel or perhaps even the lock but that will take some big time work. As I say if you just put it on right it is super hard to cut off. Dual hooks that go in the right place on the steering wheel is what I mean.

Those look like a great addition to a basic alarm system; cheap, easy to use and a great deterrent. If a thief sees it in place on your wheel, they might move on to an easier target. Having one could prevent a broken window where as a less visible system may prevent vehicle starting/theft better, but won't deter them from breaking in and trying.

 

[Jonathan Hanson]

I can tell you what's wrong with a steering wheel lock, as detailed by several convicted car thieves who were interviewed a few years ago by one of the alarm makers. When asked about Club-type locks, they smiled and said they loved them. Apparently a Club device provides an excellent lever with which to break the steering column lock. The thief then saws through the wheel with a piece of hacksaw, and poof - car's gone.

Ravelco maintains that in three million installations, not one vehicle has been stolen by bypassing their device. If even close to true, that's an impressive record.

 

[goodtimes]

While I cannot fault the Ravelco type devices, what do they add to vehicles that are already using the ignition interlocks like the Sentri-Key that Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep, BMW, and others, have been using for years? These devices are already built into the vehicle, and from what I understand, are not easily removed.

The downside to these OEM systems is the failure of the antenna ring can leave you in a pinch, but since it is built into the car, it is not easily removed.

Now, on vehicles with no interlock, it's a no-brainer. But on vehicles with the OEM device what is the Ravelco adding, other than complexity (and one more thing to lose)?

 

[Jonathan Hanson]

Easy answer: Factory anti-theft systems are, by their nature, all the same, therefore thieves only have to learn one bypass technique to access hundreds of thousands of vehicles. It's axiomatic that the good guys are always racing to stay ahead of the bad guys, not vice versa. Not that factory systems aren't far more advanced and effective than they were 20 years ago. But after all, Chrysler presumably had to invent the Sentri-key system because its previous system was no longer working . . .

The Ravelco is unique in that every installation is different. The installer has numerous options as to what the device controls. Yet since we were told what that was on our car, if for some extremely unlikely reason we need to, I can reverse it.

Ultimately, supreme simplicity and reliability are its strengths. You're literally just connecting several disconnected wires when you insert the plug.

 

[lt1fire]

It seems like a great product but it is one more thing to carry around. Can you get multiple keys made for it??

 

[07 Elephant]

It comes with 2 key plugs. You can order more. You just need some information from the plug itself and some documentation related to your installation and your vehicle. I don't know how much they cost. I might get one or two but for now I'm fine.