Keep your 2 safe when Xmas shopping

[Peter Laborne]

This is something I wrote on the old mailing list, but something I feel I need to re-itterate now that Christmas is coming.

A mate of mine had his Elise nicked during the middle of the day. He had popped out shopping*. Whilst he was away a couple of blokes broke in through the back door to his house, got his keys and drove off. His neighbours did see something but said that the blokes who took the car were wearing grease monkey overalls, so they thought the car was being taken away to be fixed.

Luckily the police found his car the next day about a mile from his house.....not a scratch on it, keys hidden under the seat, and a full tank of petrol.

Where he fell foul, is probably the same with most of you. He had one of those key hooks and like most people it was hanging up in the kitchen...in view of the window. The thing is people buy these for their practical and decorative value. Then they go and put it up in a place not thinking of security. Now on it they hang their keys, for the house, the car, businesses, safes, neighbours and family houses etc etc etc.

Now put yourself in the mind of a thief. You look in the window and right in front of you is a bunch of keys to many thousands of pounds of car(s). So how do you get to the keys. Breaking the window is no problem, but what if you can see that there are motion sensors in each room which will trigger the main house alarm as soon as you walk in. How do you get around the motion sensors? Very simple....you stand at the window and use a long stick with a hook or magnet on the end.

My nan kept her keys on a hook in the hall....until we pointed out that it would take less than 30 secs to put a stick through the letterbox and take them.

So just what can you see through your windows???


* Remember most people work Mon-Fri between 8am-6pm. As it is coming up to Christmas this means that there is a very high chance that people will need to use the weekend to go shopping. And you are going to be gone for some time.

[Tem]

Good reminder post...local police has said that most new cars get stolen by stealing the keys from the house. No idea how common that is over there though..

[Slacey]

My keys are hidden away - a friends wife had her car nicked by the stick-through-the-letterbox method, so take note!

[Peter Laborne]

most new cars get stolen by stealing the keys from the house.

AFAIA this is true here. Think about it, most new cars have three keys - 2 main ones and a valet key.

The valet key is normally the one that stays in the house, but remember this can still start the car and it also carrys the key code to get new remote fobs made up!!!!

[GSB]

The valet key is normally the one that stays in the house, but remember this can still start the car and it also carrys the key code to get new remote fobs made up!!!!

Not on the MR2 apparently... According to the halfwit I spoke to at Mr T, only the 2 black master keys may be used to program a new key to the car. The key code on the valet key will get you the right key cut, but the immobilser needs a programming sequence that must be initiated by using a master key. So if you should ever lose these two keys, and only have the valet key left, you're in for a hefty bill for a new ECU...  Just a key alone is in the region of £170 plus VAT so who knows what they'll charge for a complete lock set and ecu?

Still its a good point, and well worth noting. Although seeing as even I can never find my bloody keys I think they're pretty safe...

[Tem]

So if you should ever lose these two keys, and only have the valet key left, you're in for a hefty bill for a new ECU...  Just a key alone is in the region of £170 plus VAT so who knows what they'll charge for a complete lock set and ecu?

Someone fried his ECU in SC a year or more ago...(spydermonkey or something). He mentioned the price for stock ECU and IIRC, it was around $1500. Add new locks and keys and it's probably close to $3000...

Then again, there's a cheaper fix called Apexi Power-FC, which apparently gets rid of the immobilizer as well  s8) s8)

[Slacey]

...which apparently gets rid of the immobilizer as well  s8) s8)

Surely this is a bad thing? (From a theft and insurance perspective)

[Tem]

...which apparently gets rid of the immobilizer as well  s8) s8)

Surely this is a bad thing? (From a theft and insurance perspective)

From that perspective, yes.

But if I was looking at a $3000 to get the car back and working as a stock, or $1000 to get the car working with more power and tunable ECU, it wouldn't be a hard choice.

And assuming thieves know their job, they wouldn't even try to nick the car without getting the keys first...

[GSB]

Easy fix to avoid lots of money changing hands. (this is just a bit of sideways thinking, but as yet I cant think of a reason that it wont work...)

Step 1,go to Mr Minit or some other key cutting company and cut a couple of spare keys for your car.

Step 2, take your spare key (with no immobiliser) and borrow a friends Toyota ignition key. Program your car to accept his immobiliser signal plus your blank key. (i.e. The car will start using your new key to turn the lock, plus the signal from his key to switch off the immobiliser...)

Step 3,Now, If the worst were to happen and you lost both your masters, you buy a new master key, (£120ish) have it cut to fit your locks and then use your friends igniton key to program it to your car.

Hey presto, you just avoided paying £2000 to MR T.

The procedure for programming keys is a convolulted affair though, I know that for a '98 Avensis it goes something like this, you can expect the MR2 to be similar...

Code Select Expand

Open driver's door and insert programmed black key into ignition. Close door.

1). Within 15 seconds
Switch ignition on and off 4 times.
Switch ignition on.
Open and close the driver's door.

2). Within 20 seconds
Open and close driver's door 5 times.
Remove key from ignition.

3). Within 10 seconds
Insert black key to be programmed into ignition.
Switch on and leave for 1 minute.
Remove key.

Repeat step 3 for further keys.

To exit programming open and close the driver's door.

[Tem]

The procedure for programming keys is a convolulted affair though, I know that for a '98 Avensis it goes something like this, you can expect the MR2 to be similar...

I guess the MR2 is same...I remember seeing that sequence in SC.

[rande]

This is the key programming instructions from the BGB for the US spec MRS.  Don't know if they would be different for you or not.  

 m http://www.planetkc.com/rande/tsb/key/BE-96.htm m

[Humble Jim]

When we picked up the wife's Beamer we were given a warning that due to the high security features of a BMW that many thieves in Leeds (and this must apply everywhere) had stopped breaking in to them but had taken to using fishing rods to get keys they spot through the post slot of a door. Once they've got the keys everything else is easy peasey...

How many people leave keys on a table in a hall or on the stairs in view of the post slot in the front door? The keys are often in a bunch or on a ring that include a house as well as car key. I have to own up: I sometimes did - until that warning from Mr BMW.

What applies to BMWs applies to any other car too. So all our car/house keys are invisible to anybody looking in to any part of our house. Don't get paranoid but do get sensible...

[aaronjb]

Stick a draft excluder behind the letterbox on your door (like a pair of brush bristles that meet in the middle) et voila.. nobody can see through the post slot  s:) s:)

Downside is that all your post comes out concertina shaped, because it's quite hard to get post through the bristles, but..  s;) s;)

[Anonymous]

You could just live in your car.  No dilemas on where to put the keys then.  And if you're like Slacey or Buster, nobody will dare touch.

[Anonymous]

Our 2 is garaged at all times.  The garage keys are kept separate than the house keys.

Our garage is seperate from the house, so would be difficult to figure out which is ours, we have a garage defender in place on the garage door and the garage is part of the house alarm with is monitored by ADT.  

Most of all Kerstie has been well trained by me not to leave keys anywhere in the house that would be obvious, and she will not even leave an empty sweet bag in the car for fear of someone busting the window.

Another warning for the ladies.  As well as locking your car doors when travelling - make sure your bags are out of site, its a well known passtime for the scum to smash and grab at lights!.

Keep safe - be paronoid!  Its what keeps you alive!

[Chris]

cars get stolen by stealing the keys from the house. No idea how common that is over there though..

Yep, just to confirm that's true - a mate of mine had his m3 evo nicked by theiving scum that broke into his house to get the keys.  s:evil: :evil: s:evil:

[heathstimpson]

cars get stolen by stealing the keys from the house. No idea how common that is over there though..

Yep, just to confirm that's true - a mate of mine had his m3 evo nicked by theiving scum that broke into his house to get the keys.  s:evil: :evil: s:evil:

And I have had two mates loose their motors this way in the last month  s:cry: :cry: s:cry:

[Anonymous]

well i think if you leave your keys near the door on a hook or in a bowl somewhere then you deserve to have your car knicked for being a prat!   s:roll: :roll: s:roll:

[heathstimpson]

well i think if you leave your keys near the door on a hook or in a bowl somewhere then you deserve to have your car knicked for being a prat!   s:roll: :roll: s:roll:

The people I knew had the keys hidden away but they broke in just to sniff them out because they wanted the nice motors in the drive  s:cry: :cry: s:cry:

[Anonymous]

This is something I wrote on the old mailing list, but something I feel I need to re-itterate now that Christmas is coming.

Excellent reminder at any time of year    s:) s:)  

So just what can you see through your windows???

2 x 7 stone Rottweilers  s:!: :!: s:!: