Car theft in 2022

[HMC]

My bmw 3 convertible is so low (too low for my taste) as to make cat theft less easy. M-sport FTW. Maybe we all need to lower our cars? Uncomfortable ride, but more of a pisser for cat thieving fraternity?

[warch]

7 minutes ago, HMC said:

Maybe we all need to lower our cars? Uncomfortable ride, but more of a pisser for cat thieving fraternity?

My vote is for that height adjustable suspension beloved of the lowrider fraternity, and frequently seen featuring in gangsta (sic) rap videos. Simply leave it at maximum height, tempt a grinder wielding scumbag under it then gently* lower it on them trapping them until the pleece arrive.

[Matty]

Mate at work came out to go to work this morning, big gap where his car was. 19 plate c220. Heard nothing, saw nothing. Unbelievable really 

[High Jetter]

4 hours ago, warch said:

My vote is for that height adjustable suspension beloved of the lowrider fraternity, and frequently seen featuring in gangsta (sic) rap videos. Simply leave it at maximum height, tempt a grinder wielding scumbag under it then gently* lower it on them trapping them until the pleece arrive.

Sounds like a typical green-blooded citroen, tbh.

[JJ0063]

5 hours ago, HMC said:

My bmw 3 convertible is so low (too low for my taste) as to make cat theft less easy. M-sport FTW. Maybe we all need to lower our cars? Uncomfortable ride, but more of a pisser for cat thieving fraternity?

I owned this a few years ago, first one in the country on air suspension.. I think it would have been pretty safe from thieves in general as it wouldn’t even move in that position!

[warch]

10 minutes ago, JJ0063 said:

I owned this a few years ago, first one in the country on air suspension.. I think it would have been pretty safe from thieves in general as it wouldn’t even move in that position!

Makes nicking the wheels trickier too. 

[High Jetter]

49 minutes ago, warch said:

Makes nicking the wheels trickier too. 

Though why you'd want to...

[warren t claim]

On 9/27/2022 at 7:07 AM, cpjitservices said:

Anyway all you need is old Vauxhall deadlocks to defeat local scraots around these parts - hence thwarted theft of Cavalier polans when they couldnt unlock the doors lol.

Hammer a screwdriver through the weak plastic door handle gets around the locks on those.

[colino]

Bending doors on Corsas and walking into Cavaliers (once the most stolen car in Europe) certainly made Vauxhall change their ways, but if they want it, they'll have it.  Back in the day I had my first 944 and because I didn't have the proof a CAT 1 alarm was in it, had to fit another one to satisfy my insurers.  I didn't have anything taken out so it had the Porsche alarm immobiliser activated by the key, one (working) alarm plus my newly installed one.  When it went missing sitting in a residential street one night, I couldn't believe it, but the fact it had just been in a nearby garage to replace the transaxle was a hint and a certain breakers in Motherwell suddenly having lots of porky parts suggested to me they had just copied the keychain and stolen to order.

[Markeh]

The only additional security measure I take is to not leave my keys by the front door. If someone wants the car, they're going to find a way to take it, either by breaking in and twatting me with a crowbar til I give them the keys or having it away on a low loader. Or a powerful enough antenna that can read the key from somewhere further in the house, perhaps.

About a month before lockdown hit, someone walked in through my front door looking for the keys - I was upstairs at the time, just getting ready to step in the shower, heard the door go, got to the top of the stairs, he took one look at me (6ft 3, the wrong side of 20 stone, in my pants) and legged it!

[sierraman]

I’m surprised having a steering locks isn’t mandatory on new Fiestas, they seem to get nicked all the time!

[Matty]

Just now, sierraman said:

I’m surprised having a steering locks isn’t mandatory on new Fiestas, they seem to get nicked all the time!

The horrible reality is, it's just not worth having anything nice. I like both my cars, but at the end of the day they're both 15 years old. When every other car on the estate is under 3 years old, I'd guess no one is walking past them to nick either of mine.

Jury's also out on whether it makes my house less likely to be burgled as well ("no point breaking in here, they won't have anything. They can't even afford decent cars" 😁)

[Patent]

I've started parking at my local train station and reckon about 25% of the cars in the car park have crook locks fitted each day. No idea if there's an issue there or people are just more nervous generally.

In that scenario I guess your car just needs to look like more effort than the one next to it

[tom13]

14 hours ago, JJ0063 said:

I owned this a few years ago, first one in the country on air suspension.. I think it would have been pretty safe from thieves in general as it wouldn’t even move in that position!

That is gangster. I love it. 

[Soundwave]

9 minutes ago, Patent said:

I've started parking at my local train station and reckon about 25% of the cars in the car park have crook locks fitted each day. No idea if there's an issue there or people are just more nervous generally.

In that scenario I guess your car just needs to look like more effort than the one next to it

I've actually just bought a stoplock pro for my recently-acquired Saab 9000, it's parked down the street and I'm nervous about leaving it since they're allegedly piss easy to get into and start. At least they were, 15 years ago...

I might be worried about nothing, I wonder if car thieves even know how to hotwire a car these days or whether it's all tech based?

[S2000]

It's like curry to a piss head, if they want it they will do anything to get it. A friend had his Disco 4 removed from his drive earlier this year (drive is a 30 degree gradient bending right at the top to form a L shape), all that remained was the R/H wing mirror on his wall and the empty pack lunch box. He was insured with NFU and they provided a hire Car and paid him out market value within a short space of time.

Like our legal work may provide rewarding challenges, so does making a car disappear and people will do anything they can to complete the job.

I don't bother locking my L200 at night as I can't be arsed to once again have to clean up glass from the drive if someone attempts to nick it, for my BMW I hide the key out of site. The best thing I have is decent insurance that will pay full market value without affecting my NCB as quickly as possible if it ends up in Nairobi.

Krooklocks et al are great visual deterrants but if they defeat someone you've still got a slightly borked steering wheel, column potentially. 

The best deterrent IMO is for the wife to sleep in the Car and they can deal with the wrath of the 'Gorilla'!

 

[Dave_Q]

Was looking for something else diagnostic related.

[maxxo]

41 minutes ago, Dave_Q said:

Was looking for something else diagnostic related.

maybe it's time for each manufacturer to have their own OBD style interface sockets?

far from ideal for most people, but in a way i feel it would help prevent stuff like that from getting into the wrong hands

actually, when could that get into the right hands?

surely, there is no need for such a product?

[bunglebus]

Land Rover should have to recall and modify all those models, no recall = no insurance cover

[Dave_Q]

12 minutes ago, bunglebus said:

Land Rover should have to recall and modify all those models, no recall = no insurance cover

Yes it's so endemic I am surprised that they haven't tried to fix it (or been made to)

[AnthonyG]

On 10/3/2022 at 4:44 PM, jakebullet said:

These things have gone missing a lot in my area. Must be a mega easy steal if you want a couple just to smash up for a laugh*

IIRC these are designed in Brazil and the ones we get are made in India, so I imagine they have all the theft protection you get with a 2001 Suzuki Alto or the like. 

They do seem to have taken over from the last generation Mokka as a default horrible cheap giffer car. 

 

[S2000]

1 hour ago, maxxo said:

maybe it's time for each manufacturer to have their own OBD style interface sockets?

far from ideal for most people, but in a way i feel it would help prevent stuff like that from getting into the wrong hands

actually, when could that get into the right hands?

surely, there is no need for such a product?

Once a solution is created the problem will be overcome with the latest OBD type replacement. Even if you look at using Wi-Fi, VPN or Bluetooth that’s the challenge/code that will be cracked by someone most likely in a bedroom in Solihull who is a whizz at this kind of thing. 

God forbid we go oldskool and use a garage if we have one….. lol

As I said above, if yo have an expensive motor insure it honestly with a reputable company, it may cost more but if it does vanish you won’t be kicking yourself.

[Scruffy Bodger]

On 10/4/2022 at 1:21 PM, Soundwave said:

I've actually just bought a stoplock pro for my recently-acquired Saab 9000, it's parked down the street and I'm nervous about leaving it since they're allegedly piss easy to get into and start. At least they were, 15 years ago...

I might be worried about nothing, I wonder if car thieves even know how to hotwire a car these days or whether it's all tech based?

Do you actually bother arming the steering lock when you park up? If you don't the barrel is VERY easy to remove with a slide hammer on most old vehicles. If you do arm the lock it's a very different game indeed, you'll be there a while trying to drill, prise/butcher it off.

Unless it's a Nova, I've seen a mate snap one of those just by mauling on the steering wheel.

[Soundwave]

7 minutes ago, Scruffy Bodger said:

Do you actually bother arming the steering lock when you park up? If you don't the barrel is VERY easy to remove with a slide hammer on most old vehicles. If you do arm the lock it's a very different game indeed, you'll be there a while trying to drill, prise/butcher it off.

Unless it's a Nova, I've seen a mate snap one of those just by mauling on the steering wheel.

I do indeed... park up, engine off, turn the wheels slightly towards the kerb (to make rolling it away more difficult), key out, flick the wheel to put the lock on, then the stoplock goes on. I'm probably way too neurotic about this sort of thing TBH.

I'm the same with all my cars, except the Rover which has a fantastic immobiliser - to the point where even having the fob is not a 100% guarantee it'll disarm. 😆 Good old Lucas electronics...

[Rod/b]

20 hours ago, maxxo said:

maybe it's time for each manufacturer to have their own OBD style interface sockets?

far from ideal for most people, but in a way i feel it would help prevent stuff like that from getting into the wrong hands

actually, when could that get into the right hands?

surely, there is no need for such a product?

You can fit a Ghost device to prevent OBD devices like these being used, as well as key cloning and key theft. It works on the basis that you have to enter a sequence of button presses on the car’s standard controls before the car will start even if you have the key. Bit of a faff but less faff than having your car nicked.

https://www.autowatch.co.uk/veh-sec/ghost-2-menu

 

[Datsuncog]

My Subaru Forester had a keypad hidden in a little binnacle in the driver's footwell - according to the owner manual, the security system could be set to a number of different intensities, including 'holiday mode' where, even if you had the key on you, unlocking the door would still trigger the alarm and immobilise the car until the correct PIN code was entered on the pad.

I never tried it; I had enough bother with the standard settings of that alarm...

[Crackers]

On 03/10/2022 at 16:44, jakebullet said:

These things have gone missing a lot in my area. Must be a mega easy steal if you want a couple just to smash up for a laugh*

Seen a number of these in Police service down here. If they're that easy to nick, that'd be quite funnya shame, wouldn't it? 

[Rustybullethole]

Quite a lot of handy info for car snatchers in this thread. Just saying. 

[GeordieInExile]

On 9/27/2022 at 9:00 AM, SRi05 said:

Driving early to mid 00's shite is the way to go these days for me. Reliable enough to be used as daily transport, need a key to start the car, and they aren't old or interesting enough yet for scrotes to want to nick. 

Basically all hail Saab 2003-2011

My 90s Volvo has remained untouched, mercifully. I even put a nice big dent in the front wing just to make sure it really looks like crap.

My missus' Jazz was involuntarily de-catted, though. There's been a spate of cat thefts across the Tyneside area of late, a pair of scummers in a can driving around. Someone saw one of them carrying one through a back lane in broad daylight the other day - so brazen.

[omegod]

10 hours ago, Rustybullethole said:

Quite a lot of handy info for car snatchers in this thread. Just saying. 

It's pretty common knowledge across the world how these thefts occur