Awful Accessories

[Spiny Norman]

I had a pull out Pioneer stereo in a Clio and for about the first week of owning it I religiously removed it from the dash and took it into the house/work with me. Then I realised what a total ball-ache it was and just left the thing in the car. It never got pinched.

 

On another, slightly related note, do car stereo 'security solutions' ever inconvenience thieves as much as they inconvenience the owners?

 

Most blaggers seem to be able to get all the codes for, or bypass the code chip in most stereos easily enough but since no bugger ever seems to write it down in a logical place it's a right faff when you change a battery and find the stereo's gubbed when you hook it all back up again.

The previous owner of my old Alfa had the right idea, when I took it out to try and get a serial number off the back I immediately saw "CODE 5225" writ large on the unit's top casing! Way to defeat crime!

[Spiny Norman]

Surely this is the only shite accessory you need?

 

[Junkman]

[jakebullet]

I had a radio that took security too far. As well as being face off it had an inbuilt battery. Remove the radio and off goes an annoying alarm until you connect a jumper wire between 2 pins.

 

Trouble is it started going off randomly, so boxed it back up and back to argos. There doesn't appear to be a problem sir... Fortunately it then went off. Not sure what the warehouse blokes would have thought getting a box off the conveyor with sound effects.

[fordperv]

 

if that chavvy badge wasnt enough, you could make a spazzy council estate touring car and no doubt it was driven by a fat slapper who looks like the gruffalo

 

[Jim Bergerac]

Most blaggers seem to be able to get all the codes for, or bypass the code chip in most stereos easily enough but since no bugger ever seems to write it down in a logical place it's a right faff when you change a battery and find the stereo's gubbed when you hook it all back up again.

The previous owner of my old Alfa had the right idea, when I took it out to try and get a serial number off the back I immediately saw "CODE 5225" writ large on the unit's top casing! Way to defeat crime!

 

Reminds me of those keypad immobilisers on mid-nineties Pugs and Citroens. My aunt set her 106 to 1111 so she could remember it. I bet many owners were like that and thus the thinking thief would just key in something like that or 1234 and in many cases be able to make off with the motor.

[Junkman]

[brickwall]

Any of those  aerial accessories, like the clip on things

[saucedoctor]

The Blaupunkt Casablanca RCM 85 from my C280 had a wee credit card type thing in it that you could take out. Still have the set somewhere.

[Grundig]

Reminds me of those keypad immobilisers on mid-nineties Pugs and Citroens. My aunt set her 106 to 1111 so she could remember it. I bet many owners were like that and thus the thinking thief would just key in something like that or 1234 and in many cases be able to make off with the motor.

My Dad had a keypad immobiliser in a 406 he had - I guessed at the code & got it 1st go (a footie mad old giffer - 1966) 

[Timewaster]

We used to sell stick on car phone aerials too!

[Lord Sterling]

^^^ I loved those stick-on car phone ariels, I used to see them on the back window or one of the rear side windows of early 90s BMWs and Black 4-door Golfs and whatever, they really did look the 'business' in my then-young eyes.

 

Thinking about it now, I also remember seeing some 'executive' cars around Brussels with some Black box type object stuck to one of the wheels. It looked like a circular Black plastic dome stuck over the alloy, I always wondered what they were.

[Junkman]

[vulgalour]

Seeing that Mercedes reminds me, there is an accessory to cure* this problem.

 

Perfect, you'd never know.

 

If the chrome arch is just too subtle, you can go a bit further...

 

... or a bit further...

 

 

...TOO MUCH TAKE IT BACK

[overrun]

[Junkman]

That Camaro is pure class* though.

 

[Junkman]

[Bucketeer]

Reminds me of those keypad immobilisers on mid-nineties Pugs and Citroens. My aunt set her 106 to 1111 so she could remember it. I bet many owners were like that and thus the thinking thief would just key in something like that or 1234 and in many cases be able to make off with the motor.

 

I worked at a reputable* car auctions for a few years and 95% of all those PSA vehicles we had through still had the code set as '1111'.

MEGA SEEKEWER.

[overrun]

[Richard]

Reminds me of those keypad immobilisers on mid-nineties Pugs and Citroens. My aunt set her 106 to 1111 so she could remember it. I bet many owners were like that and thus the thinking thief would just key in something like that or 1234 and in many cases be able to make off with the motor.

I disabled the immobiliser on my Xantia on its first journey. All you have to do is unplug the keypad while the engine is running.

[fordperv]

What is seen cannot be unseen

[vulgalour]

Fake brake discs are a thing I'm sure Halfords used to sell back in the day to disguise the tiny little brake drums on Fiestas and the like wearing massive open spoke Fox Racing alloys.

 

 

Seems you can get all sorts of fakery for your hatchback, even a fake engine.

[Shep Shepherd]

The Blaupunkt Casablanca RCM 85 from my C280 had a wee credit card type thing in it that you could take out. Still have the set somewhere.

 

The ex-W124 Melbourne unit that's currently fitted to The Volvo has a similar arrangement

[overrun]

Fake discs were great*.

 

My mate had some on the rear of a Corsa. Anodised blue, with no fake caliper.

#youstayclassysandiego

[davidfowler2000]

Oh for fuck's sake.

 

 

 

 

I still see these things on cars now.

 

 

Pictured on my 960, this wee fella moves between the fleet...

 

M458 VAJ by davidfowler2000, on Flickr

[davidfowler2000]

We used to sell stick on car phone aerials too!

 

You still get these if you want a DAB (digital) radio in your car but don't want a properly fitted aerial. I however went for a magnetic external aerial for Das Golf. Luckily the wire was able to go around the outside of the boot seal and behind a light cluster where VAG conveniently provided a hole to feed things through into the boot area. GR12ty 4 WATER INGRESS M8S. We shall see what happens.

[Bren]

I have just spent £12 on a feu orange air freshener. It will help me relive my youth - assuming I have the bottle to take it out of the packet.

 

My wife is less than impressed. I just need to find an autoplas rear louvre for my SD1 for even more win.

 

I will be digging out my roxette and KLF cd's next.... 

[brickwall]

Remember these. Totally f'ing useless

 

[Timewaster]

^^^^ they did a triangular one to hold your sandwich too!

[brickwall]

Any cabbies?