i was at my friends place, and it is kinda ghetto.

suddenly there was the sound of a car alarm, which caught our attention.
(my mini doesnt have an alarm though)
the alarm went off,
and there was the sound of a car starting. it didnt fire, so the starter motor went again and again

upon hearing this, i jumped to my feet thinking it was my car (it needs a couple of starts to fire up) and ran outside.

it was nothing and i made a fool of myself, but throughout that time, i was so scared, i left my battery on, and a 35 year old car isnt too hard to start.

i was careless to leave the battery connected.
if you dont want your car stolen, go out and buy a connecting switch (green handle, screw in to connect, twist out to disconnect) and put a steering wheel lock on it.

when i was parking, i thought it was a friends place, i was only gonna be 2hours, and no one steal it.
my friend's gate was opened, the van was started, and it was driven out. dont let it happen to you.

http://www.angelfire.com/mech/ducho
ill put a pic of it. very cheap, easy to put in, itll stop hotwires
if they want the car that badly, theyd let the handbrake down and push it away. thats where the steering lock comes in to place

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I reckon you can't have too much hardware security- simple things as stated. A couple of kill switches help too, and a steering wheel/brake `sta-put' lock, and... and...

Alarms are a waste of time I reckon- people just ignore them.

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

pics are up now
the switch is a simple thing, its just a brass screw with a round green handle, you attach it to your battery and the other end to the battery lead, screw down to connect, unscrew to disconnect.

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I always liked the thought of taking the the rotor out of the distributor. Cant push start or jump start the car without it.

Alarms are definitely good. You WOULD hear your own alarm if it went off - maybe not someone else's alarm.....

But its not uncommon to hear of (and i know people who are victims of) cars being stolen by being pulled onto towtrucks or car trailers with a winch, then taken away. If the crim WANTS the car, they go to any extreme to take it.

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[NATHAN] -- Sold everything mini related and am back in big beautiful BMWs

That happened to a friend of mine. MK2 Cooper S. Lived in Newtown. He had alarm and all, one morning car just wasn't there..

Anyhow, 2 or more years later some f'wit tried to register it at Blacktown RTA. Cops were called and he got it back...! It had been thru about 5 people by then.
It was all rebuilt, new 2 pack paint (Guards Red) , fully retrimmed.. nice car!

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

"Anyhow, 2 or more years later some f'wit tried to register it at Blacktown RTA. Cops were called and he got it back...! It had been thru about 5 people by then."

Bit harsh to him an f'wit... If it had been through 5 people, he was probably unsure it was stollen... Although he should have checked that out when buying it.

I'm not accusing the last guy of being a crook, but I'd sure check out a car before I spent 13$K on it.. it was unreg when he got it..
Still had the original VIN and engine numbers..!

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

I too belive in alarms.....ive got an alarm ... ultrsonics...witch i might add dont play up and go off all the time...like some peole would say....if they do they have been instaled wrong...
and i use a club lock but mines different to the ones you buy now as mine gose from the sterring wheel down to the brake pedel.and i have kill switchs.my cars a daily driven one....it stands out like pigs balls....red with union jack on its roof....its loud and it has a $8000 of sterio in it....its never been touched....or broken into ...yet...now days you just have to be carefull were you park.....so far this has worked for me....

I did have a nice battery isolator switch but I lost the key

So for the mean time I've resorted to taking out the rotor and the #1 lead. It's also got a club lock (which do jack all really but its a couple of seconds for me to put on and about the same for the crims to get it off so its worth it).

I try and consider all the types of people who are going to touch your car and the locations the car will be.... then have something special in store for them.

Eg:
Punks who just want to bust in to steal cash/cds/stereo etc.
They pretty much have 2 options, either jimmy the door lock which is easy and quiet, or they can break a window. Breaking a window is loud, so some quality door locks like maybe Solex would be good. So entry in a crowded place can be minimised with decent locks but if you're car's parked in a quiet spot in the dark... there's not much you can do.

non-premiditated...
This is your average scum who just wants to flog a car to either get home or go for a joy ride. What they have up against them is getting into your car AND getting it running. So the same as above applies for them in terms of getting inside, you then have to make it as hard as possible for them to start it. Typically anybody who is going to have a serious shot at stealing a mini is going to know how older cars work and how easy they are to hotwire. They will also know what to look for. You can assume they'll be able to hotwire it. At this point, 2 things a couple of things can happen, they might get no power at all (which they will know straight away is a kill switch/battery isolator), they could get starter motor but no spark (which they will know is an ignition issue), or they might get the car going and drive 50m and it will die (which will be the electric fuel pump). If its not premeditated, they're pretty unlikely to be able to deal with any of these situations except for the kill switch/battery isolator.

Premeditated
Other type I'm worried about is the person who knows your car and has set out to steal it. I've no idea how you can avoid that situation apart from keeping the car within close range.

In the end its just common sense:
Keep no valuables in the car.
Make it hard/noisey to break into (make them break glass)
Make it as difficult as possible to drive

dewey

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dwightgunning.com

two hi tension wires hookedup to the dissy and then cliped to the seat fry there nuts )
makka

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Anonymous moderation means the agro that is built up towards the mods isn't aimed at an individual (fewer "Makk" attacks). Less stress for mods means less moderator "retirements".

youre a smart ass makka
would like to have your ideas

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Appreciation without Depreciation
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I still like my starving Rottweiler idea. If the dog doesnt scare em off at first, he gets fed, and no more scumbag to worry about later.

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"He's always been a dickhead, He always is a dickhead, He will always be a dickhead. So stop complaining when he acts like one."

My mate had a Falcon V8 ute, and a BIG diamond python...

Nobody ever pinched it...!

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

One of the best security features of my Mini is the heater - if it wasn't there it takes approximately 3 seconds to hot wire the ignition. I have a touchkey immobiliser, basically because of the flashing light, which will deter some thieves, but it really isn't much. The steering lock is a great visual deterrent but not much use when you can take the steering wheel off and put a different one on (if you're keen).

Taking the rotor arm out is quick and easy, as is removing the dashpot from the carb (just watch em try to figure that one out!)

My brothers VL Bommodore has a fully kitted out alarm - triple point immobilisor, two stage shock sensor, and a microwave sensor. If you walk within a metre of it the alarm goes off. He fitted the microwave sensor after some dickheads broke in to the car when it was parked at home, and managed to steal a few thousand dollars worth of gear without setting the alarm off (didn't even set off the shock).

Anto.

I am just wondering, a few of you guys are talking about steering wheel locks, My clubby has a steering lock if the key is not on the ignition. Is this too easy to overcome that you need another measure.

I have an alarm that seems to be fairly effective. Two stage sensor, central door locking too which makes it a bit more modern for entry. No offense but some of the measure u guys take you would have to get everywhere 5 minutes early just to set the mini up for 'ANTI THEFT MODE'. I would hate to have to get in my boot or alternatively under my bonnet everytime i pulled up, and then again before i go again. I suppose i live in a smaller city where car theft is almost non existant.