Locking & Safety

[amcordo]

Hi All!

I park my LR Series III in a city and would like any/all advice you have for securing it.
1. Is there a way to lock the hood?
2. What else should I do to make it harder to steal?

[siii8873]

I have heard of guys installing a hidden battery cutoff switch. This would prevent starting of the truck.

[Firemanshort]

I live near Wash DC. I have owned a Series truck since 2000. I have never, ever locked anything on it - mostly becasue the locks were not there or did not work and I usaully have a soft top on.

I never leave anything inside of it.

Nobody has ever messed with it. Stinky, rusty old trucks are not on the local car thiefs top 10 lists.

Obvioulsy, your results may vary.

[Eric W S]

Leave the truck unlocked without anything of value in it. I live in Chicago. If they want it and it's locked they will smash a window.

[superstator]

I'm far more worried about vandalism than theft with mine, but so far nobody's messed with it. Like Eric said, I just never leave anything of value in it (or anything that they might mistake for something of value, like an empty box with a tarp over it). The lock hasn't been invented that can keep a determined meth head out, so I just make sure they don't want in in the first place.

[rbonnett]

I second that. i don't have keys for my doors, and a soft top anyway - so I just don't worry about it. I live in Portland, Maine - not the real city - though I did have a pickup taken here a few years ago. i agonized cuz I couldn;t remember if I locked bith dorrs - the cop told me it didn't matter. If they want your car they'll get it.

I too have nothing of value I leave in the Rover - except for my road tools. So far no one's looked under the driver's seat

[Jim-ME]

I do have working door locks but never use them because I also run a soft top. I do leave my GPS in it when its parked and have never had a problem in the big city of Bangor. I hope to someday have a Tuffy Security box which I can lock stuff in and I will also have an under the seat tool box when I swap out my seatbox. As far as someone stealing it I really think that the 3 levers on the floor plus that it is a standard will intimdate most young punks.
Jim

[Dubv1980]

Apparently, you can only respond to this thread if you live in Maine or Northern Virginia!
That said, I also concur...I lock the doors on my other vehicles, but on the series the locks are finicky and quite frankly, as was mentioned before, the kind of person thats going to steal a vehicle probably isn't going to find a 35 year old series truck to their liking...and thats if they can figure out how to start it, put it in geat (which shifter do I use!?), etc. I just wouldn't leave anything of value IN the truck and you'll probably be ok.

[SeriesShorty]

I live in St. Louis...the CITY. Remember the beginning of National Lampoons Vacation where they accidentally get off an exit in St. Louis? Yeah, that part of the city, I'm talking stone cold hood. There is at least a car or two stolen in my area each week. They've tried to steal my Discovery at least 7 times that I know of in the less than two years that I've lived here.

The Series has been parked on the street, unlocked, with the soft top rolled up year 'round and I've have no problems (knock on birmabright). When I first got the truck all the neighborhood kids would climb all in my truck uninvited and tell me that they could steal it cause it was open. So I showed the front passenger area and pointed to all of the sticks in the floor and asked them if they knew how to drive a car with 3 stick shifts, 8 forward gears and 2 reverse...then they went back to being kids just swinging from the hood sticks.

I also installed an electronic fuel pump with a switch. So unless you know where the switch is to get fuel to it you ain't going no where. Of course, they could always back a truck up to and drag it off, but so far everyone knows it's a lost cause to even bother with it.

Like everyone says, just don't leave stuff in it to draw attention. If you're still concerned, install a hidden battery disconnect. I did the disconnect in my Disco, yanked out the keyed ignition cylinder and installed 2 switches for on/accessory and a momentary switch for the starter. So far so good!

[Rineheitzgabot]

You can never stop someone from stealing your ride; however, you can make it difficult. And, this serves as the best measure for deterring theft of your vehicle.

In the mind of a criminal, being able to execute a car theft, quickly and easily, is important. The more time it takes to actually execute the theft, the more likely they will give up, or not even try. I agree with the people above, that all of the levers on the floor, alone, would make a would-be car thief, avoid any Series.

I have a battery cut-off switch, and whenever I park somewhere that concerns me, I cut off the battery, and I put the transfer case in neutral. So, even if the thief figures out why the starter won't crank and finds the cut-off switch (after several minutes of walking around the thing), and somehow gets it started, now he throws it in first to take off, and it won't go any where.

Again, all of these things will not absolutely stop a thief, however, it will really slow them down, and as I stated above, slowing them down, may encourage them to give up.