What the heck is this thing on my battery?

So finally got my truck back from my son borrowing it, and was cleaning out the engine compartment and came across this little device on the battery, It has a lead going to the positive and negative terminals and one to the fuse box.

Any ideas??

• Wife tracking me? Lol
• Government tacker?
• Alien tracking device?
• Dealer alarm?
• Battery monitor?

Can I remove it without issue? I'm installing a battery terminal mounting system this weekend and wanted to get rid of the Wife/Alien/Government/Dealer tracker. Lol

Thanks in advance . . .

 

I'd just 'disable' it.

 

That looks like a tracker that was either part of a dealer upsell for "security" or from a dealer that didn't trust the buyer to make their payments

 

did you just buy the truck? look at your paperwork. I wonder if its one of the "Rust preventers" that shaddy dealerships are adding on to vehicles.

Supposed to stop the battery from rust and or corrosion

 

do you have an alien wife that works for the gubment?

seriously though, not sure what that is. is it just that device connected to the battery with 2 leads. or is there another wire going somewhere else? can you crack it open and see whats inside? maybe more identifying marks inside the case?

a google image search returned "car rodent repellant" hmmm.

 

Well dang if it is that I will keep it. I had a Grand Cherokee SRT that had a rodent chew up the injector wiring harness. $5K in damage.

 

Looks like a tracker. Sanford & Son style. I'd pull it off & open it up just for a look see.

 

Test with a rodent.

 

Pull the fuse and see what happens

 

Well, you've got a fused positive connection and a black wire to the battery neg post. Then you've got a bundle of wires that go somewhere. I'd start by following those wires in the bundle.

 

Thats weird!!
Can't say I've ever seen anything like it.
Did you buy the Truck used from somewhere other than the dealer?
Sorry if you already covered this but yeah,thats weird as F!!!!
If it were me and nothing was said in the contract I'd take that MFer off immediately!!!
Or at least disconnect a wire and make it look like an accident and see what happens.

 

What I was trying to get at and failed....
If you buy a used vehicle some dealers will put a tracking device on it in case you fail to make the payments.

 

Never knew that, learn something new everyday.

 

Remove it and see what happens. If we never hear from you again, we'll know that it was important.

 

You could buy a cheap 12v battery pack, connect it to this device, and ship the connected assembly to some far-flung place. If it’s important, you will likely be contacted.

 

They mainly do it to high risk customers.
And I really can't blame them.

 

Well disconnected it and took it out. Only the red and black wires exit the harness. Looks like a tracker from the dealer.

 

FBI !! ON THE GROUND NOW !!!

 

Yep: https://stargardgps.com/

I'm sure they installed it for your protection

 

I'd drop it in a Port-a-Potty

 

Now that’s an idea. Lol

 

Seems pretty simple for something marketed as “the most advanced vehicle protection system”

 

My local Toyota dealer sells a tracker the call Star Guard for $1000 and put on every vehicle. Supposedly protects you in case of theft...they put it on during the PDI inspection. Sales will sell you on the benefits...they had it on my truck and wouldn't take it out of the deal, but gave me a substantial discount. I since bought a new car from them that they agreed not to install it on or charge me for. The truck was a demo.

 

Toyota dont come with lojack anymore?

 

Lojack is something a dealer upsells and installs, not Toyota

 

I'd ask my lawnscaper to hook it up to one of his zero-turn mowers...

 

Toyota has their own version of LoJack in a lot of the cars now via their connected services GPS (Safety Connect). Same pathway you can remote start your car with the toyota app and it can tell you if your doors are locked, etc... For privacy issues I think you have to file a police report to activate this via Toyota so I would imagine for the dealers add on devices like these are more of a money thing??

 

Just like "ceramic coatings" that are nothing more than a spray, nitrogen fill in tires, etc. It's all about adding a bit to the in-house bottom line

 

That's what the OP's little black box is...StarGard. It is a dealership up-sell. They get them for a very low cost (less than $50) and charge you a very high cost to put it in ($300+).

 

In this instance, only the "person" it's registered to can access the truck's location. The "person" is the dealer. Toss the damn thing or better yet, use it for target practice.