ok, so how hard is it to steal a mini? i'm really really close to committing to a cooper S convertible, but i'm concerned that it might be really easy to steal. i currently own a subaru wrx wagon and it got stolen. i came to find out that factory alarms are a joke and are incredibly easy to bypass.

is there much of a concern for the mini one? is anyone familiar with how it works? for example, the subie one is a simple ignition disabler. if the alarm triggers you can't use the ignition, but you can pull down the plastic shield under the steering column and hotwire it in seconds. add that to the fact that frameless windows make a car a piece of cake to break into. i upgraded my alarm to a starter disabling one which makes it a bit harder to bypass (well, i did that after my car got stolen and then recovered).

anyway, does anyone have any insight?

 

from what i heard on mini2, minis are pretty good... their key is laser cut so until the proper code is input into the key slot, the car will just not start...

from one post i remember awhile back on mini2, says 90% minis stolen are from breaking into the owner's home, taking the keys itself..

 

There are 2 ways to steal a mini/bmw. Tow it away or by using the keys. So Lojack would be a better alternative to an alarm.

 

good, thanks for the info.

 

There are more ways to make a MINI tougher to steal.

I have an aftermarket Clifford Alarm installed. You'll need the remote control AND the keys, a key copy won't do.

I have a brake pedal lock. That will slow them down.

And if you are really sneaky you can pull one spark plug wire out and sleep with it under your pillow.

Check out the end of the Sound of Music and fast forward to the scenes with the "nuns" that sinned.

I dare anyone to break into my house and "find" the car keys. I can't find them myself most of the time!
Yeah, I don't keep them by the front door like others do.

 

Dont forget carjacking....

As for lojack, it only works if the police department in your
area have the units. If they do not have lojack, they have
no way to find your car unless they use a similar system
to On Star.

 

That's right the only way to steal your MINI is to tow it away or have a key to it. The key is laser cut like said before and the code in the key is a rolling code it is impossible to duplicate. The code changes everytime you start the car and is a digital squarewave signal sent from the EWS module to the DME to release the injection and ignition for starting. So you can't just hotwire the car without the chip from the key with the correct code. And you can only get the key from the MINI dealer. To do that you MUST prove that you own the car with the title and your drivers lic.

As for someone towing it away. That is simple and most tow truck drivers and tow about any car in less than a minute. So it doesn't matter if you have a MINI or not for that. But if you are worried about that you can get an alarm. I would suggest the OEM alarm. It has a tilt sensor and an interior motion sensor. The tilt sensor would go off if you jack up the car or lifted the car trying to hook it up to a tow truck. The motion sensor would go off if anyone reached into the car, or broke a window. If the door opens it would set it off also. And if your thinking that someone could just pop the hood and pull out the siren wrong, it has a battery in it and will go off for several minutes even if disconnected. You can install it in less than a 1/2 hour, and pay the dealer a 1/2 hour labor to code it for you.

Hope this answers your questions. If you want more info or to order an alarm feel free to PM me.

 

Don't minis have some sort of built in immobliser as well? One that "safely" stops the carjacker after about a mile out so you aren't in danger or something?

 

What about us without the factory alarm? Were ok cause of the laser cut key and just need the car to be towed away right? Thats not to bad.

 

Never heard of such thing. Besides unless the driver had on some type of tag, there's no way for the car to know a carjacking had occured...

 

Some aftermarket units, inlcuding my Alpine have anti-car jacking immobilizers. The stock does not. They work by pressing a carjack panic button wither on the fob as you exit (yeah like you'll be thinking about that) or by a 2nd smaller transmitter on your person (yeah like you'll carry that all the time as well). It's a pretty stupid idea that's made zero impact on the problem.

 

No

 

the key looks like it's been milled... but then again, i don't recall seeing laser cut keys, except for the MB keys in gone in sixty seconds, but that came out of a dog's arsehole. No really, the contours look fairly rough, like someone used a crappy endmill on it. Maybe someone cut my (former) keys with a laser pointer.

Eh. like the saying goes... "if they really want it, they'll get it". or they'll become vengeful and start tearing your crap apart instead.

good luck!

no, really. it should be pretty fantastically hard to steal with the transmitter and specially cut keys. If you decide to add an aftermarket alarm, then more power to ya. make sure you get remote start! it's handy, and scares puppies.

 

That's a lot of protection!!! BTW, you are in Hawaii, I guess there is a lot of car theft there and besides, where will the thieves take it?

 

In Hawaii "Ice" addiction is a major problem. So car theft is bad.
Usually the cars are chopped up for parts BUT
MINIs are not the target of choice.
Hondas and Toyotas are easy to find and easy to steal and blend in with the traffic.

MINIs stand out like a sore thumb. Ya can't have too much protection.
I don't drive my MINI to bad areas- I have a spare car for those trips.

I also have an aftermarket stereo but I remove the face plate when I park.

 

how does the rolling code work? I used to buy that line but once I had to use my plastic emergency key from the glove compartment because my wife drove away with my MINI keys in her car...


using the plastic key the car started right up...with no electronic gizmo on the fob!

 

I think the plastic key has the electronic chip in it.

 

i have a viper alarm + disabling switch + a clutch pedal lock on my WRX... after having it stolen once, i didn't want that to happen again.

 

the plastic key is supposed to have the chip.

 

If someone is serious about stealing your car, they will steal it. Period. Anti-theft devices may irritate them and slow them down, but nothing will prevent your car from being stolen.

I agree with the previous post though; Camrys and Accords are the cars that are more at risk of being stolen. Why steal a MINI? There aren't many around, so there's not a huge market for parts. And talk about stealing the one car you'll be noticed in...a MINI would be it.

Just get the car and enjoy it.

 

Something really sly you could do, is get a 6 switchpanel if you only needed 4/5, and make the extra an ignition cutout relay. Just solder to the one switch to ground on one side, and the other to the ground leg of a bosch 12v 40a relay (I trust bosch relays, used them for years without a single problem). Cut your ignition wire . Put the side thats hot when you turn the key into the positive leg of the relay as well as to the common post. Put the other on the NC leg.

If you try to start the car with the switch on, it powers the relay, which opens the contacts, preventing the car from starting. Flip the switch down, and the relay doesnt have a ground, so when you energize the other side, nothing happens and sweet lovely voltage flows through the relay to the NC side!

If you really wanted to be sinister, you could tie the NO terminal to the positive side of a really loud alarm horn, and ground the negative lead.

 

oldie but goodie http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/africa/9812...e.thrower.car/

 

With a convertible, I would worry about break-ins. A gal here at my office has had her Miata top slashed twice while in different parking lots. Her mistake: Leaving a brief-case on the passenger seat. Nothing of value to anyone else was in there, but put her work back by a couple of weeks. Lesson: Hide anything that looks valuable.

 

The best strategy to take owning a convertible is to leave the doors unlocked.

Most of the time anything they take out of the interior is going to be cheaper than the top they would have slashed. Of course, some thieves are just stupid. I knew a guy who intentionally left his doors unlocked and still had his top slashed. I forget what, but something really worthless was taken.

I've always been a big fan of hidden kill switches to prevent theft.

 

Move to NH, I always leave the keys in the car...

If I go into a store in the winter I leave it running to keep it warm..

16 years, never been stolen.

I grew up in NYC so this took a little getting used to.

But, I had my Austin Healey stolen right after I bought it when I lived in Boston, I wired a togle switch into the fuel pump and turned it off when I left it after that. My theory was if they took it they would run out of gas down the road and just leave it.