Tis the Season For Break-ins; Your Truck That is

[pappy19]

For ALL you truck owners out there, but especially Ford Super Duty owners, beware, your unprotected truck is 5 seconds away from being broken into. Even with an alarm, they can "smash & grab" in 5 seconds. all it takes is a screwdriver pushed into the lock mechanism, a twist, and they are inside your truck. Also they can take the screwdriver and pry under the door latch plate and do the same thing. With the Jimmi-Jammers installed (see link below) it would take a sledge hammer to break into the door and the whole lock mechanism would have to be broken out before they could gain entry. Also a metal plate comes in the kit that prevents the screwdriver under the door latch as well. I was broken into in broad daylight while shopping and I didn't notice anything until I got home and found my tools and camera gone from my back seat. Upon close expamination, I found a little bitty chip off my lock. When I got my lock repaired, I added the Jimmi-jammers. That was on my 2002. As soon as I got my 2008, I added the Jimmi-Jammers and an alarm system. You might consider it too.

Vehicle Security and Theft Prevention Devices

[Protagonist]

Every single time I had a vehicle broken into, they never bothered with the lock. Or jimmying the door. They just smashed a window and reached in to open the door. A smash-and-grab artist doesn't care what damage he does.

When my Dodge Durango was burglarized in 2005, they broke out the driver's front window to just steal a $1 diposable Bic lighter out of the cup holder.

When my Airstream Interstate was burglarized in 2011, they broke out the passenger front window, and used a crowbar or big screwdriver to pry the Kenwood head unit out of the dashboard.

Unless you've also got armored, unbreakable windows, extra protection for the door locks or latch plates is a waste of money and effort.

[PharmGeek]

I left my car unlocked in Philly as a student once...there was nothing to steal in it...I found the passenger seat laid way back and a mcdonalds wrapper...at least he did not break my window...

People man..I swear. Frustrating.

[DKB_SATX]

Originally Posted by PharmGeek

I left my car unlocked in Philly as a student once...there was nothing to steal in it...I found the passenger seat laid way back and a mcdonalds wrapper...at least he did not break my window...

People man..I swear. Frustrating.

With the seat laid way back, you're lucky that McDonalds is the only kind of "wrapper" you found in the car.

[AWCHIEF]

Seriously locks barely slow down a pro. They can and will defeat any system you install in your ride. Locks are only good for discouraging the lame and lazy opportunity crook. Over the years I have been broken into twice. Both times they simply smashed a side window and took a few useless things that were left in plain sight. The other time they stole my X's makeup bag and left over 2K in tools on the back seat floor. The police caught that idiot. The lot had a camera system and the manager Id'ed the fool as a waiter at his restaurant. Lots of dumb want to be crooks out there these days.

[SteveH]

Your best insurance against vadalism and break-in is, well, insurance.

[pappy19]

When I got my door lock fixed, it was in Phoenix, that fellow said he repaired an average of 50 Ford Super Duty locks a week. Yes, they can smash a window, but that is not the norm. I can tell you that a screwdriver in any pickup door lock can open it in 5 seconds, silently. If they tap the screwdriver with a hammer and the alarm goes off, they will just go to your truck that has no Jimmi-Jammers or alarm and be in your truck before you can count to 5. At $40, it is very cheap insurance. The other option is to leave your truck unlocked and the window down. Maybe they will only take your King Ranch seats.

[Aluminaughty]

Wow! And I thought Los Angeles was a tough neighborhood!!

[xo1rider]

When I had a 1968 MGB ragtop I finally realized the top was worth more than the contents of the car. I started leaving the car unlocked and put a single one dollar bill in the glove box.

Let the junkie grab the dollar bill to keep him enthralled so he forgets the radio.

[SteveH]

Originally Posted by xo1rider

When I had a 1968 MGB ragtop I finally realized the top was worth more than the contents of the car. I started leaving the car unlocked and put a single one dollar bill in the glove box.

Let the junkie grab the dollar bill to keep him enthralled so he forgets the radio.

I like that. It's sort of like what the ranchers do in the Southwest part of Texas close to the Mexican border. They leave the house unlocked, with canned food and an opener on the table with a note in Spanish saying "have a good trip, friend".

[AWCHIEF]

My first MG had a 8-track player. I kept hoping someone would steal it so I could get a cassette player.

[LimeyRich]

LOL .You aren't supposed to say that Steve. Since "they" have decided that leaving water or food is aiding and abetting. But, I figure that anyone desperate, or greedy ,or crazy enough to be out in the Chihuahua or the Sonorran desert on foot is probably going to go through me, if they can't go around me .
As far as trucks go, thieves will break into your Porsche, or your F-100, or your PT, or your one ton dually. They don't care, they are just after the quick buck.
At my old storage space, someone had an overnight break-in spree. They smashed the front window of a really nice sprinter based RV, the owner said they got a coffee maker, and something else small ( I can't remember what).
At my bay they smashed the lock, got in, and missed the two guitars and a small amp. But, they managed to break into a cheap little fake jewelry box, full of fish hooks! I hope they really enjoyed that little rummage!
All the best. Cheers! Rich.

[4RXLA]

Same thing happened to me at Costco in broad daylight last year.

[SteveH]

Originally Posted by LimeyRich

LOL .You aren't supposed to say that Steve. Since "they" have decided that leaving water or food is aiding and abetting. But, I figure that anyone desperate, or greedy ,or crazy enough to be out in the Chihuahua or the Sonorran desert on foot is probably going to go through me, if they can't go around me .

Well, what I didn't say is some of those same ranch houses, with permission from the owners, are "rigged" with an alarm that goes off at the Border Patrol office when someone not knowing how to disable it, enters the house. Of course it's silent at the house, but anyway, they have lots of "tools of the trade", but still only catch a fraction of the illegals entering.

[robert claus]

My Ford Van had the passenger side door opened by punching a screwdriver or other object through the door under the lock. The back door had the plastic lock frame pried twice to gain entry. Once they just threw a brick through the side door window to get in. When it was new, they pried up a back door and drove a rod into the mechanism to crank the spare down and steal it. All of these instances took place in public parking lots or on a side street. Once, they took the stereo, other times a bin with some spares. All of this was between '99 and '05. Fords are just an easy mark that thieves have learned how to master.

[Protagonist]

Where I live, smashing the glass is the norm for gaining illegal entry to the vehicle.

They might jimmy the lock if they plan to steal the whole vehicle; no one wants to sit on broken glass while stealing a car. But the general consensus in my part of the world is, it's just not smash-and-grab unless you actually smash something. Until this thread, I'd never even heard of someone breaking into a car by using the screwdriver-in-the-lock technique. Houses and apartments, yes. Vehicles, not so much.

[pappy19]

The reason it is so easy to screwdriver most door locks, especially Fords, is that the end of the lock mechanism is a small metal clip. When you twist the screw driver, it pops the clip and thus enables you to turn the lock mechanism and unlock the door. You could actually just buy a small hose clamp and run it around the clip, same as in the Jimmi-Jammer kit. That would stop the screw driver method in the lock, but they could still pry under the door latch plate and do the same thing. The Jimmi-Jammer kit has a steel plate to stop that as well. After I got broken into, I watched the fellow fix my door lock and he installed my Jimmi-Jammer kit. He had not seen such a kit before and remarked that the kit should really stop the easy access via screw driver. You will never stop the window break in but the silent screw driver will not work if the Jimmi-Jammer kit is installed.

[Nuvite-F]

Can you still get a trunk monkey?

Trunk Monkey - YouTube

[slowmover]

Man, that is too funny.

Jimmi Jammer, GPS locator, RAVELCO, interior ear-splitting alarm, pager alert. No end to ideas.

Just let it still be in the same place as I left it.

[Big C]

I like the line in the movie Fried Green Tomatoes, "I'm older and I have more insurance"...