Hey guys, i wanted to ask what would be the best way to stop people from driving away with your car. I am one of those people who always like to think of the worst possible outcome and id have way more peace in mind if i knew that someone coudnt drive my significant other to Tijuana or somewere. What is the best way of stopping people in their tracks?

 

It is smart to think defensive but don't become too obsessed with it. Each step you take to prevent a criminal from taking your car is a plus. Starting out with a simple 'club' (that fastens to your steering wheel) is inexpensive and will eliminate a certain percentage of thieves, just like simply locking the car door will eliminate some thieves. Each layer of prevention eliminates more and more. Next up would be a 'kill switch' in which there are many possibilities, tied in from the ignition to the cutting off of the fuel pump. Of course an expensive alarm system is the best and will eliminate 9 out of 10 criminals who have an eye on your car. A professional thief will get any car and some are simply towed away in an enclosed carrier. The likelihood of one of these thieves stealing a 10+ year old F-body is remote though. They are targeting much more expensive cars. I have a club for my cars and the doors are always locked. 16+ years of F-body ownership in both FL and NC with no issues. I imagine San Diego has a much higher percentage of auto thefts so it matters where you park your car and when. Are you in a tougher location out there with lots of homeless and bums, or in a rather good area where you leave your car??

 

Yea outside of base its pretty bad. We have alot of workers that come in and they have been known to even drive off base with stolen cars its pretty easy since the border is only about 20mins away. Its more for when i park my car outside of base. What alarm do you use? I dont want one if those that go off wenever someone so much as shakes the ground. Is a killswitch worth it?

 

I don't have an alarm so maybe someone else can chime in. I have just the 'club' for some instances. I have a friend who has a kill switch for his SS and it was very inexpensive to rig up. I'm sorry I don't have the specifics but his is rigged up so that the fuel pump is cut off if he doesn't activate some switch. It was quite impressive as the car died almost immediately after being driven off. Most thieves would not have a clue.

 

Yea it seems like a for sure way to prefent a thief from driving off im probably going to look into that. I woudnt worry about this to much anywere else but its pretty dirty and shady around here and being so close to a border town is definetly not comforting, doing this will give me peace in mind so i dont have to worry once i start dumping money into it.

 

Well said. Agreed, anything you can do to add time to the potential thief in getting your car only helps them decide to move on and look for another. It can be a club, a club and an alarm, a hidden kill switch, where you park and how you park. Perhaps you have your car parked between two others and your wheels turned- making it difficult to tow away (instead of an open space where they have lots of room around it to work). Also, not leaving easy to steal stuff out in visible sight helps, too. some thieves will even use your jacket/ bag, etc to carry the stuff they stole from you, so don't even leave those out if you can avoid it.

I always like making my own hidden kill switches, because this way the thief can't be prepared to deter it. They might know a typical aftermarket alarm and how to defeat it, but it makes it harder if they don't know where to look or what they are up against. I've used kill switches that were hidden in arm rests, under the carpet, etc all in easy to access view so I'm not making an obvious reach for it. Never just under the dash or under the driver seat....

 

Yea, thats my plan right now is making a killswitch which im going to probably going to tuck into the carpet or somewere. How have you ran yours and whats the best way of making one.

 

Two best ways (statistically) to prevent theft

1) lock your doors - thieves are well known to walk down the street or through a parking lot, lifting up on the door handle of every car until they find one thats unlocked. An alarm goes off, they walk away... door is unlocked, they climb in like they own it and...well...own it

2) dont be predictable - if you park a nice, clean car in the exact same spot at the exact same time every morning, walk into the exact same door at the back of the same building, even the dumbest of criminally-inclined will notice the pattern in a matter of days.

Beyond that, the average car thief can defeat an alarm and get a car running in under 30sec. If it takes you longer than that to get out to your car, kiss it goodbye.

 

I made a kill switch that cuts the ground from both the starter and the ignition circuits and then hid the switch away from the operator compartment.

 

Im gona look that up, think im going to do this that way.

 

I did...

1. Hidden key on kill switch
2. Red blinky light wired to an easy to reach toggle switch

cheap and effective.

 

Just keep your car locked and insured. I was sitting in my car with my wife and son in Imperial Beach after going to the look out area by The Plank on Christmas day '09. I noticed some dipshit checking door handles, and I guess he didn't notice us in the car due to the tint. He walked right up and opened the passenger door to my GTO. I jumped out of the drivers side, and he bolted like nobody I have ever seen before, haha. I love San Diego, and plan on moving back one day, but it has its sketchy qualities like anywhere else.

 

Simply pulling the fuze for you fuel pump and moving it to an empty slot will help.

 

I used the Club for years but after a while I got lazy and stoped using it. With that said, the Club is a good deterrant and so is a kill switch. Alarms don't do anything. People set off alarms in parking lots accidently all the time and I never see cops checking it out.

 

Don't the 99's have that secondary black plastic key deal that must be plugged in to start.
Mine has it wondering if this is stock?

 

Kill Switch and a Glock.

 

Here's what i did. http://www.thirdgen.org/techboard/el...mobiliser.html. It works well and uses a magnetic reed switch to disengage that can be hidden anywhere. The magnet can be placed in an empty remote key fob and just brushed across the hidden switch.

 

Damn thats pretty trick.

 

Thats crazy coy haha he just came right up i bet he had to change his pants right after

 

Hmm thats pretty nifty, itll give me something to do too