Break-ins, thiefery, the curse of Honda's?

[ab0709]

Hello everyone.

I had my 98 civic stolen and written off a couple of months ago (3 days before christmas, woo-hoo ). I am looking into buying another civic, a 2005 Lx-g or possibly something newer. I am a little paranoid though, It was a real pain in the ass with 98' civic to be dealing with my car being broken into all the time and then eventually stolen.

I am wondering if the 7th and 8th generations are just as easy to break into as the 6th generation? Or can I expect a little more piece of mind with the newer ones?



Thanks in advance for your input.

 

[raz18]

i would think that the newer ones are a little better due to lojack (if you purchase it). But in all reality if you have a Pinto or a Benz.. they all probably face the same risk of being stolen or vandalized.
I say if you have it park it in the garage, get a good alarm, club and just hope nothing happens. Thats all you can do man.

 

[joe7987]

Raz has it right. If a thief wants your car and it just has a basic alarm system or no alarm system at all, they'll have it. It doesn't matter what car it is.

My advice to you - Install a kill switch in an inconspicuous place, and buy lojack. Kill switch is the cheaper option, and if it's hidden well enough, your car won't go anywhere. However, if they do manage to find that switch, lojack will tell you right where to find your car.

I'm sorry to hear about your last car and I wish you luck with the new one (whatever you decide to get.)

 

[ab0709]

Thanks for the replies.

I am in Canada and Lojack doesn't seem to be offered here. If it does, I don't believe very many cop cars would have the system for it to make lojack even worthwile here.

As for your suggestion on the kill switch, this makes me think that the standard "immobilizer theft deterrent system" offered on at least the 8th gen (is it on the 7th's too?) does not really do a whole heck of alot? How much does it usually cost to put in a kill switch?

 

[joe7987]

I'd bet it'd be less than $100 (or right around there maybe) to get one put in. Parts are like 2 bucks. All you'd be paying is labor.

A kill switch is the more common name for a fuel cutoff switch. Basically, you flip the switch and no fuel gets to the engine. There will probably be a little fuel left, before it runs out, so the thief will pull out of your driveway, possibly make it to the end of your street (if that) and then the car dies on him. In an ideal situation, criminal panics and runs, leaving your car there for you to pick up when you wake up.

The nice thing about a kill switch is you can put it anywhere. A lot of people put it in routine places... don't put it under the dash, / in a place where it can be seen. People have been known to put it underneath a shift boot for example. that way there's no way for it to be seen, and a thief would have to be very lucky to find it. Now I wouldn't use that example, because that one has been said on the internet a few too many times, but be creative and hide it somewhere the thief wouldn't imagine sticking his hands.

Remember, without fuel, your car doesn't go anywhere.

 

[Chris.]

the immobilizer stops thieves from taking the car without the key.

i attemted to "hot" wire my car once... it would not start. a thief breaking the ignition will allow him to turn the wheel... but gettig around the immobilizer... he needs to change the ECU and have the matching key... or just have the matching key. to steal the car....he would have to tow it.

 

[Rocket350]

the immobilizer stops thieves from taking the car without the key.

i attemted to "hot" wire my car once... it would not start. a thief breaking the ignition will allow him to turn the wheel... but gettig around the immobilizer... he needs to change the ECU and have the matching key... or just have the matching key. to steal the car....he would have to tow it.

I got a copy of my key made at home depot but it wouldn't start the car, only the honda key worked. the key is chipped. the 01 and up civics dont even need a kill switch.

 

[joe7987]

Good to know, Snake. That eases my worries a bit =o)

 

[LowNotSlow]

How the hell did you not know about the immobilizer Joe? Did you never notice the blinking key light in your dash every time you put the key in the ignition?

 

[Civic_Addict]

It took the cops over 15 minutes just to try to pry my door open so that I could get my keys outta it. But Lets face it, if a thief wants something, They're just gunna break the window and take whatever it is that they want.

 

[hooked_on4]

i bought a miata...........

Good luck man, they need a biometric start or something why hasn't anyone done that yet?

 

[joe7987]

How the hell did you not know about the immobilizer Joe? Did you never notice the blinking key light in your dash every time you put the key in the ignition?

I knew about the immobilizer, I just didn't realize it was actually that difficult to get passed it. I figured there was some sort of wires you could easily cross that would bypass that.

 

[LowNotSlow]

Gotcha.

It's a pain in the ass to get around the immobilizer, even to send the ECU to Hondata you have to send both the ECU and Immobilizer.

 

[victor.m]

Answer is if you have a 7th gen Civic nobody really wants to steal it. Seriously.

It's a LOT worse with 5th/6th gens, but with 7th gens you can have a bit of ease knowing that very few thieves are out to get 7th gens, mostly because the modding scene for them is a lot smaller, and not many people put money into them because of the lack of preference. I'm not dogging on the EM2s/etc, but it's just kinda the way it is, maybe save EP3s.

Anyhow, as some have said, you also have chipped keys and whatnot. Get good security with a 2-way pager and look up the DIY immobilizer on here and you should be good.

Good luck, and be safe.

 

[Chris.]

the oem immobilizer should do you just fine from an ordinary thief...

if you got thieves like gone in 60 seconds... well... your city has more problems than your measly civic being stolen.

 

[shady422]

man that sucks...i had a 99 civic...that got stolen shortly before christmas a couple of years ago...i went out and got a 03 civic with lojack...i think if anyone WANTS your car...they're going to take it no matter what...however...having the lojack installed is definitely a better peace of mind...for me anyways

 

[Kaotic_Zeus]

Unless they have a tow truck or they happen to be carrying K-PRO, they're not going to take off with any car with a immobilizer. such as 7th gens and up.

We have chipped coded laser cut keys

 

[jbracefan1977]

sorry about your car.. and good luck with your new purchase.. I have learned a thing or two about what other members have posted on this thread. gotta stick together in keeping our cars safe...

 

[toneekay]

In all honest opinion, no theif would want to jack a 7th gen unless you have a very pretty cd player, nice rims, or money laying the dash...

 

[joe7987]

Everybody keeps saying that no thief would want to jack a 7th gen. This is not true. Not al thieves are looking for cars with a lot of aftermarket work done to them. This is proven by the massive amount of stock cars that are stolen every year. Hell, even my roommate had her Integra stolen and there wasn't so much as a bumper sticker on it, nm parts that would be worth a damn.

I don't care if you own the buddy club honda civic or if you own an old beat up minivan. Everything is at risk. People steal cars for many different reasons.