Theft Prevention Suggestions

[solder_guy]

Suggestions for theft prevention?

 

I have a removable steering wheel setup by Grant.

 

Battery cut off switch.

 

Business cards in the seat back bottoms, etc.

 

Other ideas?

 

Rob

[lucky dawg]

An immobilzer. Car won't start or run without the chip in the key.

[JohnK]

And be thankful we don't own Ferraris.

[slomove]

I run the ignition switch supply voltage through 2 pins of a DB9 connector (Submin-D) in the dash. To get the car going the key (i.e. DB9 plug) connects these pins. All other pins are grounded so if somebody experiments it will short the wrong pins and blow a fuse. If I ever lose the key (happened twice), it takes a trip to the next Radio Shack to make a new one. I did learn to remove the metal shroud around the front end of the plug to avoid inadvertent shorting of the pins while engaging.

 

Cheap, reliable and few people would suspect the computer connector in the dash is a key (if anything probably a data logger). On top of that the whole wiring is non-standard and pretty inaccessible under the dash. The ignition relay is self-holding so even if the plug should fall out, the engine keeps running until turned off.

 

When I park the car overnight in the open (e.g. hotel lot) I usually string a heavy duty motorcycle cable lock through a wheel and suspension and remove the steering wheel to make it more difficult to roll away. I also prefer old fashioned motels with the car in front of the door over big box hotels with dimly lit lot.

Edited June 18, 2012 by slomove

[JohnK]

Slomove,

I like the cable through the spokes and suspension - kind of like an inexpensive boot. DB9 plug is really elegant: simple and not intuitive to most.

[Off Road SHO]

The anti-theft relay that Ford used in some of their cars was neat, the key fob had to be within a certain distance for it to allow anything to work. I was going to sneak one into my son's dune buggy and drive him crazy by being able to start it, only to have it die on him a few feet away. But then I remembered who might be picking my rest home.

 

If you just want to deter people from stealing it while in storage, a flat tire or two will do the trick.

 

Tom