LoJack Stolen Vehicle Reply Codes (Hits/Tracking Pulses) (LoJack Receiver)
For those who may be using the SDRTrunk program specifically to decode LoJack "Reply Codes" (the stolen vehicle codes seen by police on a LoJack receiver/police tracking unit display), it should be noted that there will continue to be occasional false decodes in the SDRTrunk program.
If the following two events are true then you are most likely receiving actual Reply Codes from a stolen vehicle:
1.) It is a "Function F" tracking pulse (which appears as "CORRECTED" in the message tab on the "live" screen)
2.) The identical address is received more than once (typically evenly spaced apart in time)
3.) And the certain give away to verify you are receiving live tracking pulses from an actual stolen vehicle in your vicinity is when you see a Function F tracking pulse every few seconds with the same address!
Those living in large cities have the greatest chance of receiving signals from stolen vehicles which typically have a range of 3-5 miles. Using a rooftop mounted antenna may extend your reception area.
Viewing the
LoJack coverage area reveals that 30 states are included in the coverage area. A whopping 20 states have basically no LoJack coverage at all. And, only 3 states in the entire country offer statewide coverage. Throughout the majority of the United States there are large areas where there is little if any monitoring taking place for stolen vehicle pulses on the LoJack frequency! How many stolen vehicles are hidden or being driven around in these areas of the country? Thieves may intentionally be driving stolen vehicles into areas not covered by LoJack to prevent being detected.
Once a LoJack transponder/transmitter in a stolen vehicle is activated (begins transmitting stolen vehicle pulses) the LoJack transponder will continue to transmit stolen vehicle pulses indefinitely whenever power is available to the LoJack unit. It is possible there could be literally hundreds of stolen vehicles all over the country actively transmitting stolen vehicle pulses which are outside the range of any LoJack receivers. Some of the newer units will slow down to one tracking pulse transmitted every minute or even one tracking pulse transmitted every three minutes after a certain length of time has expired. Older units will continue to transmit stolen vehicle pulses several times per minute. In either case an activated stolen vehicle transponder, also called a vehicle locating unit or VLU, will continue to transmit for years on end until the vehicle is recovered and the LoJack transmitter deactivated.
What does this mean? On your next road trip (vacation) keep the LoJack frequency plugged into the scanner. You will certainly travel through areas of the country where there are no LoJack receivers and you might just be the one and only person that would ever receive the signal from a specific stolen vehicle. By providing the details (time, approximate location and reply code) to law enforcement you may just help someone get back their vehicle or other piece of stolen equipment (generator, backhoe, light pole, skid steer, boat, tractor, trailer, etc.)
Stolen vehicles are often occupied by armed and dangerous criminals. Therefore, it is
strongly recommended to never attempt to track the actual location of a stolen vehicle. If a criminal was to see or detect someone tracking the vehicle they stole the story may not have a good ending especially if a gun is involved if you get my point.
It would be interesting to hear from anyone that actually picks up stolen vehicle pulses using the SDRTrunk program and even more interesting if reporting it to the authorities leads to the recovery of a stolen vehicle or to an arrest.
Shawn
73s
