How to TRY and prevent our trucks from being stolen

[Dewey]

S000. What color is your new truck???

Camera’s everywhere so I quickly cleared out before I became a suspect.

 

[Trooper4]

Put a kill switch on the battery is what I did with my Silverado. Worked great when I had to use airport parking and the like. When I got back, the truck was still there, and the battery was still charged. No problems.
But then, that might be more inconvenient than having the truck stolen.
Or a switch under the dash that disables the start button.
Either way.

 

[CrazyWorld]

Besides, it is easier to bury the bodies.

We've got so many animals buried on our property.....someday down the line when I am long gone..... will be digging and think they hit an Indian burial ground.......probably will need to bring in all kinds of specialists....oh well!

 

[jl13]

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.

a lot of that here too

 

[Jako]

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!

Lighting (motion/dusk to dawn) with the cameras on the house may be an additional deterrent.

 

[Ninety-9 SE-L]

Disconnecting the battery seems like a good way to keep someone from starting it (unless they have the time to re-connect it). Unfortunately, it also disables the factory alarm, which may or may not be effective. It's also a huge inconvenience, since you would need to use the key and pop the hood every time you start the car. With proximity keys, my biggest fear is someone using a repeater to unlock my vehicle, or someone just breaking a window and taking what's inside.

Few Ideas I've thought of, and some I actually use:
1. GPS tracker. I use an Invoxia GPS in each of my cars/trailers. I pay a 3yr subscription on each vehicle. It's as big as a pack of Wrigley's gum, powered by USB and have a 2-4wk battery, draw almost no power. They are wired to an always-on source buried deep inside the interior panels, my trailer ones are solar powered. I can track all my vehicles at all times and you'll never find it, you'd have to unbolt my vehicles/trailers piece-by-piece to get to them.

2. Hidden Fuel or ignition kill switch. You could turn it off each night or each time you park in public. Your keys will still work, it's not super inconvenient, your truck will simply not start.

3. Mount insanely loud sirens and red/blue flashing LEDs all over your vehicle and wire them to your dome light. They would only come on when the dome light comes on, but there will be a bypass switch on the outside that only you know about. Arm the car by turning on the switch when you leave, disarm the system before unlocking the door.

4. Same idea as above, but use an in-cab motion/occupancy sensor to detect someone entering the vehicle, breaking the window, or reaching in an open window. Ultrasonic sensors are great for this purpose and can be hidden in the pillars.

5. At home, if you don't have a garage, try parking in the side-yard or behind a fence. Create a desire path where a person will be funneled through a gate or opening. Using a decent IR beam sensor, mounted at the correct height, you can trigger lights and noise to scare someone off. Better yet, have it kill ALL the lighting, then have a speaker play the sound of slow footsteps in the leaves. Get creative with the special effects. Maybe some bright strobes and loud booms to simulate the sound of a flash grenade.

 

[CrazyWorld]

Wow......all these suggetions are incredible.......I got one......get a trained rottweieler.....teach him to sleep in your truck......good theft deterrent plus......you got a friend for life.

 

[Robman700]

I wouldn’t worry about it, that’s what insurance is for. If mine gets stolen I’ll just call Jake from State Farm.

 

[SnowBlaZR2]

I wouldn’t worry about it, that’s what insurance is for. If mine gets stolen I’ll just call Jake from State Farm.

I think a lot of people drive with this mindset, too.

 

[bigdodge]

I wouldn’t worry about it, that’s what insurance is for. If mine gets stolen I’ll just call Jake from State Farm.

and wait for what like a year for a replacement....

NOT!

with the state of trucks coming out of ram, fat chance i would get another one the way I want it

 

[Shots]

Wow......all these suggetions are incredible.......I got one......get a trained rottweieler.....teach him to sleep in your truck......good theft deterrent plus......you got a friend for life.

Aaaannnnd check.

Of course that's just his war face when told "gib laut".

He looks scary but he's not aggressive. This is his normal expression.

 

[Shots]

Disconnecting the battery seems like a good way to keep someone from starting it (unless they have the time to re-connect it). Unfortunately, it also disables the factory alarm, which may or may not be effective. It's also a huge inconvenience, since you would need to use the key and pop the hood every time you start the car. ....

Not only that, but disconnecting the battery would probably mean you'd have to reprogram your radio every time you drive it too. That sounds like a huge pain. The fuel pump shut off sounds better.

...... With proximity keys, my biggest fear is someone using a repeater to unlock my vehicle, or someone just breaking a window and taking what's inside.

This is why I install security tint on my windows. Pretty cheap compared to replacing a window or stolen property. Although I try not to keep anything too valuable in the truck, but what is there, I want to keep.
Like anything theft deterrent, obviously security film (which can be tinted or clear) isn't completely full proof and if they try hard enough for long enough they'll get through it. I've seen this stuff in action and with a properly installed quality film you can waylay a window (repeatedly) without breaching it.
Although on the topic of this thread, it doesn't sound like these thieves are breaking windows to steal the trucks. It sounds like they're tricking the truck into letting them in. Security film obviously does you no good if the door can be opened without force. Good to prevent smash and grab, maybe not so much from this type auto thief.

 

[HSKR R/T]

Not only that, but disconnecting the battery would probably mean you'd have to reprogram your radio every time you drive it too. That sounds like a huge pain. The fuel pump shut off sounds better.

Battery disconnect should not clear out radio presets. The radios have their own memory. It's not like aftermarket head units.

 

[Shots]

Well that's interesting. Guess I'm used to old cars. You unplugged the battery (or it died) and you had to figure out all your stations again. That's actually a very nice update.

 

[Grimgreg]

An idea popped in my head the other day for at home, have a large eyelet set in the driveway and run a chain and lock through it and your tow hooks. They can get in and start it, but aren't going anywhere.

 

[Scram1500]

I always liked the idea of the Chameleon XLE

Watch Saturday Night Live Clip: Chameleon XLE - NBC.com

Watch Saturday Night Live highlight: Chameleon XLE - NBC.com

www.nbc.com

 

[Bluesurf]

Satisfaction:

 

[Ninety-9 SE-L]

An idea popped in my head the other day for at home, have a large eyelet set in the driveway and run a chain and lock through it and your tow hooks. They can get in and start it, but aren't going anywhere.

That's how I've considered securing my trailers, I haven't yet had the opportunity. You need pretty strong concrete and anchors.

 

[Rich6896]

I remember in the '80 my dad's friend who got home from 3rd shift job saw a guy going at his car with a slim jim. He put a .22 hole in the guy's knee with a scoped rifle from a second-floor window. No charges, no lawsuit.

 

[Camelot]

Its a vehicle, take it, I get another. Could not care less if I lost it, although there is some stuff inside that I would hate to loose.