fto theft

[ronbyrne]

i was woken by a neighbour at 4.30 am this morning, he had just arrived home from his late shift and saw a guy run from my car and jump into an awaiting car and sped off, i thought that maybe they were about to attempt to steal my fto so i got dressed and went out, what i then saw shocked me ! these guys were already in, ignition barrell removed ( proffesionaly not ripped out , they used screwdrivers ) and were in the middle of rewiring the immobiliser. they had neutralized the siren so that was usless. i took the whole day off work and studied everything they did and i now know exactly how they did it , obviously i wont give that information here. i was talking to a detective in blanch garda station and he said that alarms are not the complete answer to protection for a "classy motor" , entry is still very easy, i am in the process of sourcing whats called a triple redundancy alarm from a specialist in uk. and also some other things that if they don't exist i'll have them made by a fabricator. anyway i still have my car though it needs a few pieces. i'll let you know how things go.

[ronbyrne]

my alarms a "clifford" by the way so not a rubbish make

[CJ]

Lucky escape there Ron, at least you still have the car. Theres guys are not stealing the likes of FTOs for their value (why go to the trouble of stealing a 5-6k car?) so they must have some other motive. I'll have to keep a close eye out as I'm not 100 miles from yourself, in saying that, this should be a warning to all.

CJ

[Dave]

jesus that was a lucky escape, at least you still have your car!
so what can be done to make your car more or less theft proof apart from sticking it in a garage? or is it even possible?

[pergau]

I have a steel post in the driveway and I was beginning to think that it was overkill but I'll mkae sure i use it all the time now.

[Kace]

Mine is relatively safe at home with electric gate etc. However I always use a steering wheel lock which would hopefully take a couple of kicks to break (making some noise to wake me or the neighbours right beside the car). This is of course in conjunction with an immobiliser and alarm.

When I'm out in the city leaving the car somewhere I have a heavy duty motorcycle cable (about 2cm thick of stranded wire) and disk lock wrapped up from under the seat to the steering wheel. Not impossible to get around either but would sure give someone a pain in the tits to remove.

5 years safety so far - fingers crossed !!

[CJ]

I always use a steering wheel lock which

...which would wreck my leather steering wheel

I have a heavy duty motorcycle cable (about 2cm thick of stranded wire) and disk lock wrapped up from under the seat to the steering wheel.

...this might not however. Is it obvious or can you tuck it away under the seat?

CJ

[Mustang]

Sorry to hear that Ron. Lucky escape though!
I agree with CJ
[/quote]Theres guys are not stealing the likes of FTOs for their value (why go to the trouble of stealing a 5-6k car?) so they must have some other motive[quote]
I can't see that anyone would steel an FTO (I'm guessing, '94 to '96) for it's value, or for parts. And it's not the type of thing that you would use as a get away car...it's far to conspicuos for that (plus boot is too small for carry any serious loot!). I would think that you are dealing with a 'common or garden variety' joyrider scumbag, that said the ability and engenuity of some of these people should not be underestimated.
My car is fitted with a cobra alarm/immobiliser. Today I am collecting my new disklok steering wheel lock. It's the one that fully encloses the steering wheel. Comes highly recommended, if you believe all the marketing. But it is Thatcham approved category 3, so some of the hype must be true. Cost ~€130. Surley less than the cost of repairing a car after attempted theft!

[soc]

I always use a steering wheel lock which

...which would wreck my leather steering wheel

I have a heavy duty motorcycle cable (about 2cm thick of stranded wire) and disk lock wrapped up from under the seat to the steering wheel.

...this might not however. Is it obvious or can you tuck it away under the seat?

CJ

I used to have a heavy duty chain and lock on my 205 gti - good visible deterrant.

I'm thinking of getting the momo snap off boss from motorsport world - taking your steering wheel off would be pretty secure Could even put it in the boot if you were out and about...

Anyone know anything about window security film? How much , how easy to fit etc? And what about getting the car delocked......

[Speedyboy]

Does the clifford alarm not have proximity sensors which would chirp when they are entering the car??

I have a big lock and chain around the seat and the steering wheel, This saved me before when they broke into my old Honda.

I remember a few years ago reading about a lad in the uk who ran a large current through the body of his sierra cosworth as it was stolen a huge number of times, He got into trouble for it but I sometimes think it would be worth it to teach the thieving scum a lesson.

Im thinking of a snap off boss too, I wonder would they give us a small discount for purchasing a few of them???

I also read an article about the disklock before it is supposed to rotate freely around the steering wheel so there is nothing to force it against

R

[soc]

Im thinking of a snap off boss too, I wonder would they give us a small discount for purchasing a few of them???

I think Motrosport World are fairly good like that so it's worth a try - anyone else interested in a possible group buy?

[pergau]

It's slightly off topic but I used to work for a contract hire firm in the UK and I once had a customer contact me to beg us to take back his Sierra Cosworth. He had only had it for six weeks out of the previous 9 months and was sick of having it stolen.

[CJ]

I think Motrosport World are fairly good like that so it's worth a try - anyone else interested in a possible group buy?

Put my name down as interested!
Whats the current retail price by the way?

CJ

[soc]

I think Motrosport World are fairly good like that so it's worth a try - anyone else interested in a possible group buy?

Put my name down as interested!
Whats the current retail price by the way?

CJ

they're on the site at 75 sterling I think - I just ordered a hub kit from them and debated getting the snap off adaptor too but didn't bother - but if we can get a group deal I'd probably re-consider....

[Kace]

I always use a steering wheel lock which

...which would wreck my leather steering wheel

I have a heavy duty motorcycle cable (about 2cm thick of stranded wire) and disk lock wrapped up from under the seat to the steering wheel.

...this might not however. Is it obvious or can you tuck it away under the seat?

CJ

I have covered the steerign wheel lock with fabric to protect my new Momo.

The motorcycle cable is a little bit obvious as it is so big and tough it doesn't full fit under the seat. The options for getting around this would be :
1 - Cut several sections of the steering wheel
2 - remove the front seat

Neither are particularly good for a thief in a hurry.

[Daz]

i was woken by a neighbour at 4.30 am this morning, he had just arrived home from his late shift and saw a guy run from my car and jump into an awaiting car and sped off, i thought that maybe they were about to attempt to steal my fto so i got dressed and went out, what i then saw shocked me ! these guys were already in, ignition barrell removed ( proffesionaly not ripped out , they used screwdrivers ) and were in the middle of rewiring the immobiliser. they had neutralized the siren so that was usless. i took the whole day off work and studied everything they did and i now know exactly how they did it , obviously i wont give that information here. i was talking to a detective in blanch garda station and he said that alarms are not the complete answer to protection for a "classy motor" , entry is still very easy, i am in the process of sourcing whats called a triple redundancy alarm from a specialist in uk. and also some other things that if they don't exist i'll have them made by a fabricator. anyway i still have my car though it needs a few pieces. i'll let you know how things go.

Wow you were a lucky guy i'm guessing that your neighbour will be getting a couple of pints his way, seriously thou you can't be too carefull when it comes to your baby, you should fit a second seperate immobiliser, just to be sure, as it is my black on has 2 alarms 3 immobilisers and a kill switch and a steering lock, overkill maybe but i'd rather it that way. Anyway i'm glad the scum didn't get to take it on you.

Daz...

[Mustang]

The detachable steering wheel is quite effective or so I’m told. But are the mounting bosses for each wheel unique? Could a determined thief simply order a similar wheel, and steal your motor

[philip]

I remove my momo steering wheel all time in Dublin or if I'm not using the car for a few days, six bolts using a allen keys.

[CJ]

I remove my momo steering wheel all time in Dublin

But you don't remove it when you're in Castlebar or Westport, right?

CJ

[philip]

Yea never remove it when in Ballina, but totally freak when in Dublin or Cork for a few nights...

[soc]

The detachable steering wheel is quite effective or so I’m told. But are the mounting bosses for each wheel unique? Could a determined thief simply order a similar wheel, and steal your motor

shhhhhh -

I suppose they could - they'd have to have a momo snap off kit and a a steering wheel - would want to be a pretty determined thieving scum joyrider - I still think it would give you some extra security at a reasonable price

[soc]

The motorcycle cable is a little bit obvious as it is so big and tough it doesn't full fit under the seat. The options for getting around this would be :
1 - Cut several sections of the steering wheel
2 - remove the front seat

Neither are particularly good for a thief in a hurry.

I like the motorcycle cable idea - I think I might get one of these

[Speedyboy]

Every snap off kit is supposed to have a unique key so thats not a worry !

My finace's family leave the car keys in the ignition the whole time in westport

There always slagging me off for the big chain and the face off radio but better safe than sorry

[Ivan E]

Rob their car and teach them a lesson.....

[CJ]

My finace's family leave the car keys in the ignition the whole time in westport

Ralph, I hope no one reading that line knows where your future parents-in-law live

CJ