Car-specific security is an excellent way to go about it, but you would still have the basic need for a good and reliable alarm. Only then you can begin addressing specific problem/weakness.
My confusion stems from the fact that you can get a 2-way alarm system for the same price of a 1-way alarm from a reputable brand. So, which is better? That's the dilemma really. What would you recommend, personally?
How do I go about researching about how my model is generally stolen, coz I seriously don't know where to begin. Thank you for your help!
Well, there's no right or wrong.
My personal opinion is to resolve the security issues first. In the case of my Myvi, I spent a lot of time getting the hood release cable to be un-yankable so my hood isn't accessible by
their standard way of pulling the hood release to open the hood (will not reveal how exactly on a public forum). Then only did I source for an immobilizer, alarm module, etc etc. Ultimately your alarm is going to run off the battery unless it has a standalone battery (which is pretty rare), disabling the battery from the hood would render your alarm useless. Well, in my case anyway.
The dilemma with 2-way alarms is the range. Most have a very limited range and can only work up to xxx meters (I'm not sure exactly how far) so unless the alarm manufacturer has verified claims on their product, I wouldn't consider 2-way alarms. The battery consumption on one of those 2-way alarm fobs is crazy and changing battery is more frequent than the 1-way version.
As for researching how cars are stolen, easy. Youtube does wonders. For those uninformed, Civic and City does not have any sensors or triggers in the boot. Arm your car and open the boot and the alarm will not trigger. I strongly suggest you work on that first cuz breaking into the boot is a very simple task.
Consider a strong brake pedal steering rack pinion lock. Those are pretty useful for automatic Hondas since you can't engage gear unless you've pressed the brake pedal.
Clifford used to have those wireless immobilizers so it was damn near impossible to trace where you hide it so that was pretty good too. But Clifford systems are way above your budget range, some hovering in the 1.5 to 2.5k range.
I think as long as you have a reputable brand, it'll work. What you really need is a good installer. With a properly hidden module and properly wired up setup, it can make cracking the setup difficult if properly done. And customizing your setup like adding a hidden fuel cut switch or something like that helps. My wiring was completely replaced with all black wires. No coloured wires at all! That should be a massive headache for anyone trying to hotwire or anything.
Tilt sensors and microwave sensors are useful to detect cars being towed or broken into.