The cops could only act if the car was on the street without getting a warrant first and they would not even consider that unless he went to the area in question and made the car do something distinctive enough.

We all know that even if the cops would file for the warrant, it would not happen quickly and the car would be chopped and gone long before.

So basically, yes this was a useless feature. Perhaps if it happened in a small town/remote area the outcome might have been different. Major city? I doubt the result would be much different than NYC.