Lock the doors from the outside while the truck is running?

Do you turn off your car at every stop light? It takes me less than 1/10th of the time you sit at a stop light as it does for me to get my mail in the post office. Also, when the Tacoma starts it runs at high idle for longer than it takes me to get my mail.

 

Manually lock it. Keep in mind, it'll keep running without the key fob and can still be broken into and driven away.

I've never understood anyone leaving their vehicle running unattended in a public place, although I've also seen my share of people do it. I've also seen my share of said vehicles get stolen. It's about as dumb as leaving your keys in your vehicle and then being surprised some yahoo came along and stole it. Do the bare minimum to protect yourself, at least.

 

With the truck running and window down,get out with your keys, reach in the window and lock doors and hit window switch up then quickly pull arm out, it works but don't recommend, lol

 

On my 2023 the key for the tailgate is the same as the one on the fob. My wife and I tried something where she locks the doors from the inside as I walk away. I can't unlock with the fob after that. Good security feature if she is trying to keep ME out of the cab I guess.

 

I guess you could say it's sort of a regional or cultural thing. Since we don't have mail delivery, everybody has to go to the PO to get their mail. It's faster for everybody to leave it run, get your mail, leave. You can always tell the newcomers to town because they'll either turn it off before running in and out or they'll come back, get in their car and read their mail while people are queued up behind them. Seriously, it's like a drive thru to get your mail. Most people stay in their car until they can move to the coveted 1st spot. It's a one way street so we have this going on on both side of the road.

We don't have that kind of crime here. It's a small farm town where almost everybody knows almost everybody. A couple decades ago, everybody knew everybody. Farmers still have freshly picked vegetable stands out by the roads with an unattended cash box, some once-used local grocery store plastic bags, a cardboard sign with prices on it, and another sign that says "help yourself." It's just the way it is here. Growing up, my parents would leave the backdoor unlocked when leaving for vacation in case one of the neighbors needed something. We still have a 9pm curfew 7 days a week for under 18. It's literally been that way since WWII. At 9pm a loud siren goes off so everybody knows to go home.

I like it here.

 

I have a 19 OffRoad Automatic. I opted for the N2 Designs Remote Start. I Love it.
During the Winter, I either Walk Into the Grocery or Service Station and Hit the lock Button Three Times and it Starts the Ride With the Climate Control Set for how I left it.
Same With the Summer W/ AC. I always judge my time at 10min. and Restart Remotely Through the App if I am not going to make it Back in Time.
I Make Sure Gus, My Little Pup Beagle Mix Buddy Hanging out in the Truck is always covered. I will Put Down my shopping and Go out to the truck If I ever Think He is Not In Pure Toyota Heating and Cooling comfort.
So Yes. N2 Designs. Always making Sure the truck will be running and locked. Climate Control Covered. And Locked so that I come Back to my Truck and Dog. The System Shuts Off When The Door is Opened.
The N2 Designs Kit was very Easy to Install. Got the First Year or Two Covered. But Then Had to Renew for the next Few Years at a Comfortable Rate.

That Is my 2Cents.

SeeYA. Ted.

 

Dude...quit lying to yourself. Idling this truck is around a third of a gallon and hour. An hour. So 60 seconds is a thimbleful. Turn the truck off, go do your shit and move on.

 

So your argument is, it is better to always shut the truck off instead of having it idle? Even if it's for less than 1 minute?

 

I have tested it in a blizzard. It uses a third of a gallon an hour idling. How much do you save in one minute? None. Your call. Don't use that in your argument because it is fiction.

 

It sounds nice. But I, too, come from a place like that where I often hear things like "nothing happens here" or "it's (insert town name here)" after part of that underbelly shows its head and everyone is reminded that it's not just the big cities that experience those issues. My parents even fell victim as they quite literally lived in the country and never locked their vehicles (despite teaching us to do so). One day they found a man in the driver's seat of one of their vehicles at 1:30a where he came to the end of his breaking and entering spree when he was arrested after briefly trying to run away. But I digress.

My point is it's always good until it isn't. Sometimes there aren't warning signs. But there are bare minimum things you can do to protect yourself.

 

That sounds like the kind of place i would like to live.

 

Like I said, people sit in their cars until the car ahead of them moves out of the way, like a drive-thru. There is a time savings (albeit, not really but there is a perceived one) but it does take more gas to start the engine than it does to let it idle for 25 seconds. Until you are turning your car off for every red light, train crossing, crosswalk, etc your argument is really only academic. NOBODY turns their car off for all that stuff. Of all those things listed, walking in to get the mail from your mailbox is by far the least wasteful. Now, if someone has to go in to talk to someone at the counter for something, they park around the corner and go in. And even then most people leave the car running.

 

Watch the video I posted about the amount of gas required to start a car vs the amount used while idling.

 

But what about the people who want to warm their truck up in the winter but would not like the truck to get stolen.

I don't have a remote start and don't plan on installing one but for snowy cold mornings I would like to run out and start my truck and lock it for theft reasons.

 

I did. It was interesting (and somewhat surprising) but we're talking about one minute of idling. I've yet to see a Tacoma owner turn off his truck at stop lights, train crossings, etc. If it saved gas and took less time to turn off and start the truck each time I would. But what about the other things? For example, How many button presses is your push button start good for? Wouldn't you like to reduce that by 50% over the life of the truck? Hell, on my Matrix I wore the paint away on the push button start and after about 5 years it was basically just a big red blob.

 

Same for my 2020.

 

Someone who wants to steal a vehicle will go for the one that s running attended first. Make yourself a target if you wish.

There was a TV commercial a few years back ... not anymore. Some on a plane remotely turns on the car parked in long-term-parking at the airport so it is warm when the finally (1) land in the airplane (2) navigate through the airport (3) pickup their luggage (4) ride the airport bus to the parking lot (5) walk to the car (ASSUMING IT IS STILL THERE!).

You assume the risk you take with a very expensive possession, but I am not sure how insurance comapies will play it when they hear you left it unattended and out of sight.

 

If I’m traveling with my dog and it’s hot out I leave the truck running with the AC on and lock it. Shit happens and sometimes you have to go inside somewhere. Too many people here whining about this question for no reason.

 

I do it all the time, but I have a MT. Where I live, we keep keys in the ignition 24-7, doors unlocked, etc.. Good place to live, I like simple. But its changing as city slickers moved in during Covid and brought a bit more crime with em.. We all or most (town folks) leave their cars running to run into our little market or post office.

 

With the truck running and the doors locked, the truck won't be able to be stolen. My truck is parked right outside my front door so running out and starting my truck 10 mins before I leave is a nice thing to be able to do when it's zero degrees outside or the truck is covered in ice and snow.

In my area in the winter, thieves go around in the morning and look for cars running by the steam from the exhaust tip. It's an easy way to tell if the car is running outside.
They don't want any confrontation, so they usually won't attempt to steal if someone is in or near the car. They want the running unattended vehicles and to make a quick get away.

So, for someone like me being able to have the truck running and locked would be a nice feature.