A recent posting in the Courier alerted us to Thefts and Attempted Break-ins in Marsh Creek. Scott Herrington, Chair of the Community Safety Committee reminded us: “Most of us keep a garage door opener [remote] in our vehicles, so if someone got in your car, they could open the garage door and possibly have access to your home”. 

There’s a solution to that you might not know about.

I visited my sister who recently moved into a new house.  The garage was full of boxes, so she parked her car in the driveway. We went for a drive and I noticed the garage door remote clipped onto the visor in plain view.  I mentioned the same warning as Scott and added that – a thief might even be motivated to break into the car knowing the remote was there.  I asked her why she isn’t using the remote system already built into her car.  She didn’t know what I was talking about.  Even though she had the car for years, she never noticed the little buttons on the underside of her rear-view mirror.  Yup, you can program those buttons to open the garage door.  And the buttons are active only when the car is turned on. Therefore, if someone gets into your car without the key, they can’t open your garage door. 

Most cars these days have some sort of built-in remote system or it’s an available option.  Smart cars, like my Tesla, can even be programmed to automatically open the garage door when I pull into my driveway and close it when I leave. 

I’ve since learned that, like my sister, numerous other people were unaware that their car had a built-in remote or didn’t bother or know how to use it.  All of them leave the garage door opener in the car and often in clear view, and in clear temptation. 

However, a quick look at the car manual, and following the instructions … voila! The built-in remote was programmed to the garage door opener. 

There are numerous YouTube videos to show you how to do this. Just select the instructions for your vehicle.

After that, all you have to do is press a button on the mirror or a roof panel, and your garage door opens effortlessly … and safely.  No more searching for the remote (or batteries to replace)…and no more security concerns!