Whether it’s catalytic converters, headlights, or whole vehicles — thieves can’t steal what they can’t see.
As a typical boy growing up, my favourite movies were; Fast and Furious, Gone in 60 Seconds and The Italian Job. Stories of radical heists, brazen theft and miraculous getaways. Gone in 60 Seconds resonated with me on so many levels; fast cars, dramatic set-pieces, and of course Nick Cage.
25 years on, just about every facet of that movie still hits, but the fact is that people aren’t really out “boosting” cars all night. Well they might be somewhere, but the car theft landscape is a lot different to how it was portrayed in the movie.
What does car theft look like now?
These days, car security systems are more advanced, drivers are more aware of the risks, and our connected society often makes whole vehicles ‘too hot to handle’ for re-selling in shady, black-market deals. Instead, enterprising would-be car thieves are turning their skills towards more specific parts of cars. This usually goes one of two ways; either thieves are taking cars and driving to hidden garages (chop-shops) to part them out quickly and efficiently and selling those parts to make their cash, or they are taking the parts right off the cars in car parks or on our driveways.
You may have heard of catalytic converter theft over the last few years. The catalytic converter in a car’s exhaust system is filled with rare metals – these are used to filter all the dirty exhaust gases and make cars greener and cleaner. With nothing more than an angle grinder, a thief can be under your car and cut out the gold (or should I say platinum, palladium and rhodium) in a matter of seconds. Take the haul to an unscrupulous scrap dealer and they can be making £1,000s a night!
For high-end cars, the risks are even higher. Many modern, exotic vehicles are all equipped with modern, exotic headlights. A single headlight for something like a Porsche these days will have several zeroes attached to the price-tag. Not hard to imagine a world where a minor ding in a car park leads to a seriously hefty bill and less than honest individuals might look to alternative means of sourcing repair parts to keep costs low.
So what can we do about it?
Well, it would be great if car manufacturers could find ways of making it harder to sell on stolen car parts in the first place. Or maybe if a pair of headlights wasn’t ten grand then they wouldn’t be targeted so much.
Failing that, we need to protect ourselves (and our precious automobiles) more effectively. Here’s 5 top tips that might make the thief turn away;
- Use RFID blocking storage for your keys.
Modern keyless entry keys work on wireless technology that can be easily spoofed by thieves with a little technical know-how. Protect your keys from being cloned remotely with a Faraday box or pouch that blocks wireless signals to and from the keys.
- Get a professionally installed intruder alarm and CCTV system.
Keep your car locked away in a garage with multiple layers of professional grade security. Some money spent on a good, interconnected and even monitored alarm system now might mean avoiding a huge amount of stress and inconvenience later on down the line.
- Rotate your parking and vary your routine.
If you’re always parking in the same spot, it can be easy for a thief to work out your routines and know exactly when you will be away from your car giving them time to take what they want without being caught.
- Install a GPS tracker in the car.
Even something as simple as a hidden AirTag might mean the difference between getting your car back and never seeing it again, but a dedicated GPS tracker that can monitor its status and communicate alerts instantly is even better.
- Install a physical kill-switch or immobiliser.
If all else fails and the thief makes it to the driver’s seat of your car, a hidden kill-switch that disables key functions of the car (such as a full battery cut-off) would mean even if the thief did everything right the car still won’t budge off the driveway.
Oh yeah, and one more thing. Smoke Screen!
Our products are designed to do one thing, and do it really well – deter intruders. No matter how determined a car thief might be – even if they make it past all your physical security barriers – they aren’t going to be able to steal your car (or parts off of it) if the car is hidden from view by a thick cloud of fog. Layer your security system and make your garage as inhospitable as possible with fog, strobes and sounders and you can sleep easy knowing that your pride and joy is safe from crowbars, angle grinders and grubby fingers.
Want to make your garage truly off-limits to thieves? Contact us and find out how Smoke Screen can stop them in their tracks.
Oh and by the way – I know there was an earlier Gone In 60 Seconds movie, but that one doesn’t suit my narrative here!
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