Stone age car security

[Petrol Pete]

Anyone see the article in the Sunday times today (10/12/17) ? The one that says for some reason the sale of mechanical 'KrooKloc' type devices has gone through the roof .

The person who wrote it obviously does not own a late model Mercedes Benz but MB are mentioned in the article.

It appears that - according to the Times - that very expensive cars can be driven away by thieves using cheap technology that they can buy online.

And that people who have paid a fortune for a car are rushing off to Halfords to buy a yellow plastic coated piece of steel to jam into their hand stitched multifunction steering wheel to deter thieves.

The article states that the thieves are not equipped to deal with such deterrents , they arrive with a electronic device not an angle grinder. One of my old posts on here says exactly that, but I digress.

When can we expect to see branded steering wheel Disc locks or strong arm crook locks available colour coded or leather covered or even in Carbon Fibre (AMG of course) from your Mercedes Benz dealer ?...never, because that would mean they would have to admit that their new cars are easy to steal.

 

[flowrider]

I read a similar story in the Daily Mail, Disklok have reported their sales have doubled in the last 12 months.

 

[Joderest]

is Disklock the motorcycle one ?
It older members think back to the age where car alarms were "an after market" fitting, because of their unreliability, they were always going off. Hence at first every one sat up and took notice, reporting car alarm going off, however, as time went on, people just started to ignore them. How often do you think now " that car alarms going off, must be faulty"
Krooklocks were the only item that stopped people taking your car, unless they had a hacksaw or grinder with them. Its unfortunate that clever criminals have the ability to bypass almost all security systems.

 

[flowrider]

Disklok

 

[markjay]

I have no doubt that steering wheel locks can be defeated in very many ways.

The only reason they work is because not everyone have then, so thieves will move on to the next available C63/S4/M3 etc.

If they were factory fitted to all high-performance cars... then this would level the playing field, and your car will again be just as likely to be stolen as any other.

So for now, they are a good deterrent.

 

[a111r]

The Krooklocks of old were a visual deterrent.
They were about as robust as an umbrella, most steering wheels then were quite flexible.
Then there were those handbrake to gear lever locks; most gear knobs simply unscrewed.

 

[Quincross]

I think it's may mainly a keyless go security issue that's put the frightners on peeps - I certainly keep mine in a RFID blocking pouch overnight, but then when I'm at the pub and parked outside.....it's rare but it happens and all you need to exploit it is a receiver, an RF relay and a transmitter.

So much easier with my low tech classics - pocket the small rotor arm from the distributor and it's going nowhere without the right part!

 

[Petrol Pete]

The word here is deterrent . If the crooks have come fully equipped the car will be gone. Fully equipped is flatbed truck with car hoist.
No matter how fragile your £49.99 Halfords steering wheel lock is or the £125 Disklok full cover wheel lock is it will deter than if they have just turned up with a piece of electronic hardware and no crowbar/angle grinder.

It takes a bit more time and makes a bit more noise to remove these devices no matter how 'fragile' and IMHO the crooks will look for an easier target unless they really want your particular car.

 

[b1g1an]

Usual media hype and scare tactics from security manufacturers to drum up sales, doubling not many sales to double not many is a long, long way from everyone rushing out to buy one.

 

[artyman]

I've had a steering wheel bar security device ever since the handbrake/gearstick lock didn't fit when I changed cars. Now my W204 doesn't have ( I can't be bothered to press a button) entry but I have used it since I bought the car, whilst perhaps not a desirable model, it would be the inconvenience involved, so the extra few seconds to fit or remove is time well spent as far as I'm concerned, a visual disincentive hanging off the steering wheel I hope it continues to keep to low life's away from my car and I find it where it should be, which is where I left it.

 

[Alex225]

I’m not surprised sales of these devices have doubled.

We’d all come to expect modern cars to be harder to steal than ever and the real risk being someone breaking into your house for your keys.

Now as we’ve seen in YouTube clips that someone can turn up, essentially scan a signal and drive your car off with zero damage or disruption. I know someone who had their Ford Kuga stolen this way. Had no idea until they walked out the front door.

A faraday bag is probably the easier thing as it’ll block the signal from your key. Then deterrents on or around the car would be next. Locked pillars on the drive if it’s an option and a steering lock make sense. Why steal something that needs things cut off etc. When someone up the road has their car just sat there for the taking.

 

[markjay]

Anothee thing about steering wheels locks.... when car security systems became sophisticated, we saw car thieves move to burglaring houses for the keys or violently robbing them from their owners.

And the steering wheel lock will be secured by a key, that will most likely be kept together with the car keys... or it may have a code.

And of course as mentioned above their are other ways to steal well-secured cars such a flatbed or even carjacking.

Either way, it will only act as an effective deterrent while the car next to it doesn't have one.

So it appears that any practical solution for protecting your high-performance car from theives involves pushing the problem further down the line to someone less protected than you....

 

[Joderest]

Sort of different, but I used to ride a BMW F650 a few years ago, they were very nickable at one point, as easy to break steering lock and by pass ignition, so if I left it anywhere that I thought was a bit dodgy, I used to unplug and remove the ECU, which took seconds.
Even if it was lifted or wheeled away, at least I would have caused the offenders a problem.
I had a Suzuki V Strom after that and fitted a battery isolation switch on that.
I know a completely different kettle of fish, but sometimes the simple things are best, however, have to agree that if they want your vehicle, no matter what you do, they will have it.

 

[moonloops]

0.2% of cars are stolen each year. The risk is so low why bother?

 

[GordonTarling]

0.2% of cars are stolen each year. The risk is so low why bother?

It's clear that you've never had a high value car vanish overnight!

 

[moonloops]

It's clear that you've never had a high value car vanish overnight!

Yep, I'm with the majority. Give me a high five

 

[KeithJG]

Anyone see the article in the Sunday times today (10/12/17) ? The one that says for some reason the sale of mechanical 'KrooKloc' type devices has gone through the roof .

I never believe anything anymore as there is always some reason hidden behind it etc.

They probably have hundreds of "Krooklocs" on the shelves as nobody buys them anymore as they are old hat?

I always used them until my Capri Injection was stolen. Came out to go to work back in `86 and the krookloc was bent in the gutter with the car gone.

The thing is i did get the car back as a woman reported it left parked outside her house so she told the Police.

When i got it back the steering wheel was badly bent along with other damage like bonnet bent up to get to the alarm switch etc.

Although i claimed on the insurance their was more damage to the motor than if they could of nicked it easier!

Also their is the feeling that you don`t want the car once it has been stolen........i would rather they take the whole car easier so i don`t get it back at all?

 

[Deleted member 6183]

So, in summary, it's everybody's fault but the car thieves?

 

[bpsorrel]

Good insurance with a courtesy car and add GAP cover. At least you won't be out of pocket if the scrotes do manage to take it.

Another benefit with a lease car - you never get emotionally attached to it!

 

[Jim W]

Why make it easy for them? The thieves Keyless Go trick only works if you leave the key just inside the front door so it's close enough for their scanner to detect. Keep your keys at the back of the house or upstairs away from the front door. Another reason for not keeping your car keys by the front door, is because burglars don't break in to steal your video and television nowadays, they are after your car keys. You've got to be mad to hang your keys on a hook by the front door! People do though.

Also, don't use the button on the remote to lock and unlock your car. This is a long distance signal that can easily be picked up by a thief and used to clone your key.

These simple precautions should ensure your car is still on the drive when you get up in the morning.