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How can I prevent my car from being stolen?
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You can't! If somebody really wants it, they'll steal it! But you can adjust the odds in your favor in a variety of ways. I'll list these in increasing order of cost. You can implement some or all according to the health of your pocketbook.

1. Install a hidden switch in your fuel pump line. Not hard to do, costs only a buck or so for a switch from Radio Shack and a yard or so of wire. But you have to remember to turn it off when you park the car and on again before you start it. And it's an intrusion into the factory wiring, which is never a great idea.

2. A relay in the fuel pump and starter solenoid coil lines operated automatically by a little keypad device. I've seen these for $10 or so at electronic parts stores. Another wiring intrusion.

3. A brake/clutch locking device like this one. Forget about The Club or similar steering wheel devices. They're a joke.

4. A factory alarm system. Or an immobilizer, which most new cars come with anyway.

5. An aftermarket alarm system. Clifford is recommended.

6. Lojack . The crème de la crème of car alarms. The cops can track down your stolen car by radio direction finding! They can get into a high speed chase and use PIT maneuvers on your expensive fenders!
The only drawbacks to Lojack are
The above methods may slow down or even stop a casual crook, but you can do nothing about the professionals short of keeping your car in a secure garage when you leave it. Also, the amateurs are unlikely to first determine if you've installed an immobilizer. They're more likely to just dive in and attempt to rip out your ignition lock cylinder or break the steering column covers off. This will give them access to the ignition switch or its wires. They may not get away with the car, but your interior will be very much worse for the wear afterwards.

Professionals steal cars to either sell overseas, or to break down for parts. They're experienced, are in it for the cash, and they mean to get your car. These guys are like repo men: They scout you and your car for a while, show up (when you least expect it) with a tow truck or flatbed, and just hoist 'er and go. If you've ever seen an actual repossession, you'll know they can have the car up and away in less than a minute. You'll never even know they were there until you find a blank spot where your MDX was. And no, it won't matter which way your car was pointed, or whether the parking brake was on or not.
Your only real defense against the pros is to buy a car the pros don't want, like a 15-year-old beater. A new MDX would not be a good choice.

However, increasingly I'm seeing component thefts rather than thefts of whole cars, especially of airbags and computers (ECU / ECM). Factory radios now all come with anti-theft disabling features, and crooks tend to leave them alone. Airbags however, are another story. They're extremely expensive, small, unmarked, and easy to fence. It takes experienced crooks a minute or less to swipe both front airbags, and they'll do a LOT of damage to your interior in the process. Alarms and immobilizers are useless against this. Only a securely locked garage or brightly-lit and constantly patrolled parking lot will keep your airbags where they ought to be.
If your car gets broken into and jumbled about but it appears nothing was stolen, they probably got your ECU. Check the right-side kick panel, just under the dash and ahead of the door. See a gaping hole? Then the computer is gone, and you'll need to source a replacement from the wrecker's. And you'd better hope the bastards unplugged the cables properly rather than just cutting them...

It's really unfortunate that automakers haven't added radio-type anti-theft to airbags and ECUs. I think that would go a long way towards preventing theft of those items.


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