How to theft-proof your car

[Flo-w]

G'day,

it's been a while since my GQ got stolen and I finally bought a new one. Why change when you're on a winner? I'll introduce her once she's in my driveway.

Now I don't want my new rig to suffer the same fate as my last one. My mechanic told me that he knows of a number of GQs which disappeared in recent months. Not a good sign. What have people done to theft-proof their cars?
I was thinking GPS tracker (~$150 + $70 for 1-year Telstra prepaid sim) but that's for more urban areas and only to get the car back once it got stolen.
The other option which comes to mind are different kill-switches. Needs to be hidden enough but not too hard to access for myself. It also must not break and disable my ride somewhere outback.

Any ideas?

[MudRunnerTD]

Good alarm system with a professional kill switch and a hidden iphone4 on permanent charge and "find my iPhone" app installed and the phone locked with a password. It won't be missing long if it gets stolen and can't be hidden in a shed. You will drive straight to it.


Congrats on the new purchase mate and good luck with it.

[04OFF]

You just need the right car alarm and you don't need a hidden ph................


http://www.vipersecurity.com.au/smartstart-vsm250i

[rkinsey]

GPS tracking system definitely the way to go.

My Ford explorer has an interesting start feature, the clutch has to be depressed all the way in before it will start.

Cheers,

Rob

[BigRAWesty]

GPS tracking system definitely the way to go.

My Ford explorer has an interesting start feature, the clutch has to be depressed all the way in before it will start.

Cheers,

Rob

Yes that clutch idea is a good one.
Should be easy to instal a pressure switch into the ignition line.
Mine has a switch which overrides the fuel cut Off.. So they can crank it all day until either battery motor dies or starter motor gives up..

I guess how far do you wanna go?
Keep to the KISS principle for easy outback maintenance,
Or go extreme car systems which could leave you standard..
In-laws were stuck in the high country with a dodge immobilizer. Cost em a pretty penny for a bloke to come out and help em.

[Flo-w]

Almost forgot to thank you guys for the replies.

I'll get a professional kill switch installed from my mechanic and will have to do some research in regards to a GPS tracker. Much cheaper than an iPhone4 and with features like vibration alarm (for when the car gets moved) and geo-fencing (for when the car leaves a defined area). I'll have to think about an alarm as well.

[megatexture]

You just need the right car alarm and you don't need a hidden ph................


http://www.vipersecurity.com.au/smartstart-vsm250i
Looks good what did it set you back?

[04OFF]

Looks good what did it set you back?

I don't have that exact set up myself, I have a older version Viper with a few little "add ons" I installed myself, but just to give you a idea, that system starts at around $400, plus you need to factor in about $100 a year for the GPS service/tracking side of things.

There are other costs that come into play, so its all far from dirt cheap, but how much is your car worth ?

[rkinsey]

There are other costs that come into play, so its all far from dirt cheap, but how much is your car worth ?

And if you use your car for work, its all tax deductible..

Cheers,

Rob

[bamr33]

Theft proof is hard with flat beds being used by professional thieves but all preventative measures are good. GPS tracking is good at least you see where it has last been taken.

[P4trol]

Think outside the square.

There's a few bikies around the place, presumably out of work?

[Drewboyaus]

Think outside the square.

There's a few bikes around the place, presumably out of work?

Huh......?

[P4trol]

Employ one as security for the GU...

(sorry, I realised the autocorrect made it not make sense - fixed)

[Drewboyaus]

Employ one as security for the GU...

(sorry, I realised the autocorrect made it not make sense - fixed)

LOL.
Now I see where you were going with that!
Might need to upgrade the springs if your gonna take that option......

[Flo-w]

GPS tracking is good at least you see where it has last been taken.
Thieves use GPS or mobile phone jammers. At least for expensive cars. They are of course illegal but so is stealing a car. The GPS tracking is not as reliable as one might think.
I'll put one in anyway. Not everyone is highly sophisticated.

[sil3nt_dr3ams]

Thieves use GPS or mobile phone jammers. At least for expensive cars. They are of course illegal but so is stealing a car. The GPS tracking is not as reliable as one might think.
I'll put one in anyway. Not everyone is highly sophisticated.

Agreed.

Make it hard for them to steal the car make it such a time consuming job getting to the immobilizer box and ignition wires. Run a continuous line of zip tie after zip tie and several layers of electrical tape. Exposing the wires would be a right pain in the ass and not something that you would do if you where in a hurry. Making the immobilizer box itself hard to get is more important as most immobilizers can be bi passed on the board itself, open it up fill it with sikaflex then seal it again zip tie it right up hi under the dash with shitloads of zip ties. The common car thief will pick off easy targets,not one where it will take literally an hour cutting thru tape and ties. When you park your car turn the wheel full lock makes it hell of alot hard to pull onto a truck.

Think about where you store keys inside your house leave them lying around makes it pretty easy to drive your car out the driveway while your sleeping or not home. I lock my spare sets of keys in gun safe and hang main keys in a spot where you would have to spend considerable time trying to find.

Professional car thieves are more interested in high end cars.