Thieves, mods and satnavs...

cleanbluesky · 25 Feb 2006 at 17:31

Recently a colleage got her car broken into. Wasn't a massively flash was a Yaris I believe - they smashed her window and searched through her glovebox. Why? Probably because she had a satnav cradle...

Her car was the only car that was broken into, despite the fact that there were at least 4-5 more expensive cars down that long road with many cars...

What I figure is that guys go around in a car, looking down rows of cars for satnav cradles, then smash to see if the satnav is in the car and then just drive off...

We know that satnavs get a thieve's attention - but would obvious mods do as well? Think of it this way, if someone has spent lots modding their car chances are that they may have expensive ICE in the car as well...

james.miller · 25 Feb 2006 at 17:32

its simple really. try nicking a secured headunit or a sub box that's bolted down. Takes a hell of a lot longer than nicking a satnav device from the glovebox or its cradle. Plus the satnav is worth more.

Nozzer · 25 Feb 2006 at 17:36

They just go for whatever the latest gadget is, that they can flog down the pub. Leaving anything on view in a car is a big no-no in my book.

Vertigo · 25 Feb 2006 at 17:49

If the cradle is the type which sticks to the windscreen then removing and hiding it often isn't enough as the thieves will actually look for the tell-tale sucker marks on the screen. Make sure you not only remove the cradle but wipe the screen too.

Slime101 · 25 Feb 2006 at 18:08

Vertigo1 said:
If the cradle is the type which sticks to the windscreen then removing and hiding it often isn't enough as the thieves will actually look for the tell-tale sucker marks on the screen. Make sure you not only remove the cradle but wipe the screen too.

But better to remove it and leave marks than leave it on there. Only pro's or clever thieves (and lets face it, if they had brains they wouldnt be nicking sat nav!) will be looking for marks on the windscreen!

MrMoon · 25 Feb 2006 at 18:37

take the satnav unit with you and remove the cradle as well

*Moangroan* · 25 Feb 2006 at 18:50

Yeah you really gotta take the cradle or its a giveaway isn't it...

Also leaving nothind in your glove box and leaving the glove box open may be a put off if its empty...

mattpc · 26 Feb 2006 at 11:27

I try to always pack the sat nav and road angel away, stowing the accessories in the glove box but takeing the units with me. If its a very dodgy area then I also remove the cig multiway power sockets so that it doesn't look like I way use expensive kit in the car. The headunit is stock as is the cd changer so I hope to not have any problems there.

lordrobs · 26 Feb 2006 at 11:33

I'm always leaving my sat nav in the glove box

I've got complacent living in the sticks too long

rG-tom · 26 Feb 2006 at 11:45

good thing about having sat nav on my phone, take it with me as i always keep my phone on me, and it's not a hassle as it's not a seperate device to carry

Tom.

Desmo · 26 Feb 2006 at 12:06

This is another reason why the Brodit pro-clips are so good. You can pop it off in a matter of seconds and will leave no trace of the holder being in place.

paradigm · 26 Feb 2006 at 12:15

MrMoon said:
take the satnav unit with you and remove the cradle as well

Yeah, all well and good, but if your like me and can't stand wires hanging around, and cant stand random things stuck to the dash or the screen, then you'll have it modified to be as close to part of the dash as possible, and hence not removable without re-modifying the dash.

Not something I can do everytime I park the car

lmfy2k · 26 Feb 2006 at 12:41

what is the world coming to, its sad when we have to take so many precautions to save our cars/in car stuff.

i do have tomtom go, take it out every night aswell.

masterk · 26 Feb 2006 at 13:25

Or the best idea is to park your car somewhere safe, job done.

paradigm · 26 Feb 2006 at 13:56

masterk said:
Or the best idea is to park your car somewhere safe, job done.

Again, HOW? Sometimes you have to park where you HAVE to park. :rolleyes:

lordrobs · 26 Feb 2006 at 17:25

TBH leaving your (empty) glovebox open sounds like much less hassle than taking out the cradle. Mines a PITA to move, infact if I need to use my satnav in another car I just bung it on the seat as I can't be botherd faffing about taking the cradle out

vygec · 27 Feb 2006 at 09:31

Well this thread has me thinking! I leave my tomtom gps on display on the dash, the ipaq goes in the storage compartment, and the ipod sits in the glove box.
None of the above ever gets removed!!

Phantom · 27 Feb 2006 at 10:24

i just leave the RA2 cradle and the PDA cradle suckered to the windscreen permanently... i just assumed that if they see theyre empty they'll leave it alone. Nothing else is left on display in the car, no indication that there may be valuables inside. Am i just being naive?

Phantom · 27 Feb 2006 at 10:27

vygec said:
Well this thread has me thinking....!!

hmmm...call me paranoid but someone just needs to search this forum to find out the reg of your car from a photo and given your location is shown on the left...

Confused · 27 Feb 2006 at 11:39

Phantom said:
i just leave the RA2 cradle and the PDA cradle suckered to the windscreen permanently... i just assumed that if they see theyre empty they'll leave it alone. Nothing else is left on display in the car, no indication that there may be valuables inside. Am i just being naive?

Their thinking is that if the cradle is there, then someone's just taken it off and stuck it in the glove box, and 9/10 they are probably right.

The best thing to do is remove it all from the car, and if it's a suction type holder, clean the windscreen, they will also look for the ring that would be left - it's easy to spot in this weather with the condensation in the cars at night.