mehran888

Kicking up this thread again just to see if anyone has new ideas or thoughts.

They tried to steal our GX460 (third time in 3 years of ownership). And broke the window (again). However, they didn't seem to damage the door lock this time.

We have:

1. Cameras (yeah I know these do nothing)
2. Floodlights (ditto)
3. Secondary immobilizer
4. Club steering wheel lock

The second time, the club was a deterrent (they instead stole my neighbours RX across the street). However, this time... not so much. A neighbour has a video of their Highlander club being cut off with an angle grinder.

We're in Ontario Canada. And I'm stubborn and don't want to get rid of the vehicle, despite the $2-$5K in damage each time they try to steal it. Anyone have experience with wheel locks, and which models "work best". I know that's a relative term. My worries with wheel locks are a) Getting dirty every day putting them on and removing them b) the additional hassle my wife will have to put up with, and c) if they're not noticeable, what if a thief drives off with one on and does more damage to the vehicle.

I'm at the point where I'm considering spending $500-$1000 on a California immobilizer, and just leaving it on my driveway when not in use, and putting it on every night. Based on what I've seen of them and how they work, they address most of my A-C issues, but add issue another issue which is d) I have a huge device sitting on my driveway for the foreseeable future.

Garage parking isn't an option. Parking another vehicle in front is, but given Canadian winters and everything else, rearranging vehicles every day (the GX is the daily driver because of winter tires, size, kids, dogs, etc) is something that adds much more work than you'd expect. ~10 mins 2x a day re-arranging cars.

EDIT: Apologies for starting a new thread. I had meant to kick up an old thread where this was already discussed.

Acrad

NewB2Lexus

Glock and Beretta make great immobilizers.

ASE

If someone wants your vehicle ... it's gone ... so my attitude ... take it ... would rather take the insurance payout versus recovering a vehicle that has been thrashed or otherwise.

Easier solutions like the plug-n-play Shift-Power Module that has the ability to kill the pedal when parked ... via Bluetooth ... no acceleration whatsoever ... and otherwise has the benefit of an improved throttle response. No thief will take the time ... even minutes ... to figure out anything beyond OEM systems ... too much time and risk ... for $200-odd ... Boom ... Done ... Easy ...

M4rk

@mehran888 IGLA is quite popular around here, or just install a basic kill switch. Lockdown used to be top-notch for things like this in the GTA. I would highly suggest adding a shock alarm of some sort, or some type of system that will detect unauthorized entry to the vehicle and make lots of noise. I think this will prevent damages to the vehicle.

To those suggesting to shoot the thieves: yeah, don't we just wish? If we even lay a finger on them, it'll be us going to the can for assault on a poor teenager (or insert other sob excuse for the POS thief).

ASE

Years ago ... stats in Canada had the GX in the #1 and #2 position for theft rate ... crazy ... apparently concentrated in port locations where they quickly disappear into containers headed for Asia ...

Romanova

Not sure why they want to steal a GX. These never even make the radar here in Houston for vehicle thefts when there are so many vehicles that are easy to steal and highly sought after (Kia/Hyundai for ease of theft, F-150 or 1500 Silverado for stripping parts or sending the whole car across the border). That being said, there are no good after market electronics like an immobilizer or an alarm that are installed professionally. Seems like every time you encounter an alarm or something like that, it's a huge mess of wires, poorly used wire taps, etc.

ASE

^ ... "Seems like every time you encounter an alarm or something like that, it's a huge mess of wires, poorly used wire taps, etc."

With this easily detected and disabled by thieves ... they know all of the alarms and disablers out there ... so best to go non-mainstream ...

mehran888

Tx for all the replies. Not going to quote responses but go bullet by bullet:

• Glock? No thanks. As upset as I am I hold no ill will or anger towards the thieves. Before I get upset at them I can get upset at:
  • Toyota/Lexus for not upping their antitheft game (yes I do understand the more deterrents they put in, thieves will create new methods to steal)
  • The fact that we live in an economy where a thief is willing to risk jail time for a few hundred bucks
  • The lack of systems in place to prevent vehicles being smuggled out on shipping containers
  • Corruption within our systems that allows or facilitates this to happen
• Yep - if someone wants the car... take it. True pita for many reasons, but there's only so much you can do. I figured a secondary immobilizer and club were enough, but I still want to add more.
• Devices that thieves won't notice till they get in... appreciate that but at that point I still have a broken window/door.
• IGLA - will still look into this
• Shock system. Will also look into this. I like the idea of this a lot because it creates discomfort

I'm also going to just put in the additional 10-15 mins of effort a day rearranging our vehicles. That was the easiest thing to do but I got lazy.

Tx all, this has given me some things to think about and research.

skeener

This not a very pragmatic/logical assessment. The thieves deserve slack, but Lexus is to blame?

ASE

^ Huh ... What ... Seriously ? ... Thieves are the victim ? Please elaborate ...

ScaldedDog

Some folks earn their problems.

Mark

ASE

To the original post ... how about a police-level wheel lock ... a PITA for installation and removal ... but ...

"The Club" steering wheel solutions are so 80's ... no deterrent whatsoever. All easily defeated ...

skeener

This pretty much reflects the "Trudeau mentality."

LeX2K

If you're not angry at thieves vandalizing your truck and trying to steal it then just hand them the keys.