How to TRY and prevent our trucks from being stolen

[Jay905]

Not sure how many of y‘all have had your truck stolen or heard of all the thefts but I thought I’d ask…. What have you done or are considering doing to try and prevent it from happening to you.

I had my factory ordered 2021 Ram Sport for all of 7 months and it was stolen from my driveway a couple of weeks ago. I woke up to an email from SiriusXM Guardian that the anti-theft was triggered in the middle of the night, looked out the window and sure enough it was gone. Tracking it via the UConnect GPS tracking showed it was still in my driveway so it was likely stolen by being reprogrammed from the OBD port or that FOB relay attack. Then driven around the corner and fuses pulled so it couldn’t be tracked.

Been doing lots of research online looking for ways to slow or stop the next theft down. Things like:

- Faraday bag with the fobs at night to try and stop the relay attack
- OBD Dummy port (maybe with piezo siren) to cause some hearing loss to the thief and slow them down trying to find the real port and unzip tie it
- OBD port lock (instead of above)
- Steering wheel lock (Not really interested in the hassle of putting it on all the time)
- Apple AirTags to track it (kinda)
- Aftermarket GPS tracker (like SmartThings Tracker)
- Cameras on the house (which won’t do anything likely)

What have you done? If you’ve got pictures or links to options I’d really like to see/hear. The next truck is likely to be a Limited so it has even bigger target on it that the last truck and want to do what I can to try and deter/slow the person down next time. Heaven knows if I’m there to witness it, the person won’t be walking away.

Thanks!

 

[cevans6318]

Most people aren’t around when their truck is being stolen.

If a thief really wants your truck they will take it. Seems the technology that’s out there that’s used in order to steal a car/truck is becoming more advanced daily.

 

[31RamIt]

Most people aren’t around when their truck is being stolen.

If a thief really wants your truck they will take it. Seems the technology that’s out there that’s used in order to steal a car/truck is becoming more advanced daily.

Oh I was just playing. There's no way to 100% protect any car unfortunately.

 

[eye exaggerate]

I’d opt for the high DB method, have been thinking of adding this protection to my tailgate and or the 3rd panel on the tonneau as well. Any attention pointing to the fact would be helpful.

 

[Mountain Whiskey]

Fentanyl injector set at night. Dump out the body in the morning and tell the cops to get the junkies and thier drug problems under control. They're shooting up everywhere and ODing.

 

[djevox]

In the past on customer vehicles, I’ve installed a physical switch (wherever they want) that cut power to the pcm when the vehicle was parked. You could use a 12v remote relay instead. That won’t stop someone from dragging the vehicle on a tow truck, which is way easier than trying to start any modern vehicle.

 

[eye exaggerate]

Alternatively, a sticker from your friend in the life that you could put on the port. You would definitely hear that “oh sht” sound and the pitter patter of dumb feet from inside your house

 

[Dewey]

Last night I was checking out trucks at my local dealer hours after they closed for the day. Looked in a new Limited and one of the key fobs was sitting right on the center console.

 

[jimothy]

Last night I was checking out trucks at my local dealer hours after they closed for the day. Looked in a new Limited and one of the key fobs was sitting right on the center console.

100% off MSRP Easter special!

 

[Dewey]

100% off MSRP Easter special!

My thoughts exactly

 

[jl13]

Around here cars are being stoles left and right, day or night and cameras have being useless. My dad uses one of those steering wheel to pedal locks and i went ahead and upgraded his insurance to full cover. At home vehicles stay indoor, we still do have cameras, german sheppard and looking to purchase a fire arm, but at work the parking lot has been hit a couple of times even with a parking attendant, but he still has to go an eat.
Sorry that happend to you.
I purchased that karr ins that pays off up to 20k if the car is stolen and not recover at $799 i felt i was worth it since i don't know how good or bad my car insurance pay off would be. Never experience car theft but i have heard good and bad stories about the pay offs.
Interested as to what others might be using as well

 

[Grimgreg]

More likely to lose the cats than the whole truck here. The car thieves just have it way too easy with the Hyundais and Kias, and the plethora of them to choose from around here (over 600 stolen since New Years). I got some high temp paint and hit my cats, hoping it would deter them if they target my truck.

 

[ekaz]

They are probably plugging right into the SGW so a dummy OBD port wouldn't work. I posted a video of a guy in New Orleans rigged a flash bang that went off when someone tried doing a smash n grab.
Ravelco is good but you lose the ability for remote start as you need to have the "key" plugged in.
Faraday bag is a great option, all my keys go in a faraday box I got off Amazon as soon as I get home.
I am thinking about an aftermarket alarm like the Compustar Drone or Viper Smartstart. Just make sure everything is hidden well so it can't be ripped out easy.

 

[Aseras]

I have my vehicles insured for replacement value instead of actual cash value. Its not much more and it saves all the BS if you need to make a total loss claim.

As far as making sure the truck can't be stolen, anything OEM can be bypassed. They've been stealing anything with a hellcat motor here right from the airport parking garages, even with cameras and 24/7 security. They can unlock, open the door, program a key and drive away in seconds. They aren't cloning keys, they are making them with special tools. A hidden kill switch might annoy them. If they really want it they'll use a flatbed and it's gone.

There are a few rings that put gps trackers like airtags on wanted cars, establish patterns and then tow them when they are out in public with easy access. The pros know all the tricks and how to kill all the anit theft and lojack or whatever BS devices you think will save you.

 

[Eighty]

Ravelco is the solution that many of the TRX guys are using. 100% disables the truck - the only way to steal it is to use a flatbed (or spend hours rewiring). Yes you lose remote start when the plug is removed, but the peace of mind is well worth it.
I have it installed in my truck, and I don’t lose any sleep when it’s parked outside.

 

[Aseras]

I've seen the ravelco things before. If you are just a typical mechanic it seems daunting. Do any kind of real electrical work and its cake to bypass if you have a few minutes and a wire toner. I don't care if you "camoflagued" the wires and ran them obscurely with the same colors. A toner gives a nice warble and you can follow and find the route in a second blind. Same things the wire tracers guys use to find buried lines and stuff.

It's the same as any other discouragement security device. Pros don't care. Plus you've now saved them the hassle of needing to disable any other security things by cutting the power.

 

[HSKR R/T]

I park in a garage at home and live next door to two local police officers who have their cruisers in driveway. One of my other neighbors leaves his garage almost all the time even overnight. Granted our neighborhood is very low crime rate, but haven't had any issues.

If you are really concerned, pulling the fuel pump relay when you park, or wiring in a hidden kill switch for the fuel pump is easiest route. Pulling the relay will discourage most thieves, and they usually won't spend the time trying to figure it out. It's easily overlooked. Could even go as far as to make a dummy relay to put back in place.

 

[CrazyWorld]

Get out of the cities if you can......get yourself some acreage.......don't have neighbors......enjoy life.......don't worry about your truck.

 

[Neil McCauley]

I'd move.

 

[CrazyWorld]

I'd move.

I did.....20 yrs ago....best decision of my life.