Security Scare - Please help

[redmaestro]

Hi all,

I have spent the day cleaning my nice E reg EFi, and when I finished I stood back proudly to look at my sparkling car (dont you just love that feeling!!). Anyways, 3 lads who were walking past stopped and admired it as well, asking me all kinds of questions like is it for sale, whats its BHP etc. One lad even said that he has a 1.6 MG and started talking about it. They seemed decent enough, and seemed genuinely interested in cars in general.

After about 5 mins, they walked off and I locked the car up and headed back to my house. Before I got to my front door, my neighbour called me over and started explaining that the lads I had spoken to are the village scallies. They have a reputation for stealing cars, joy-riding in them up into the middle of no-where and setting them alight!!

As you can imagine, now I am really worried! I am fairly security-minded, I never leave anything valuable inside, always lock it etc. I have just emptied out the car, put on my steering wheel lock, and taken off the front of my stereo.

Here is my question: Is there anything I can quickily and cleanly remove which would prevent the engine from starting? I am probably worrying over nothing, but I have a very uneasy feeling!! Any advise would be appreciated!!

Redm

[D87 SMW]

Originally posted by redmaestro
Here is my question: Is there anything I can quickily and cleanly remove which would prevent the engine from starting? I am probably worrying over nothing, but I have a very uneasy feeling!! Any advise would be appreciated!!

Redm

Tip: Remove everything bloody possible!

Remove HT leads, battery, gear linkage ( ;) ), starter motor (??), and anything else you can think of.
Just don't loose them. ;) :eek:

[SimonR]

I think you've done the right thing by putting a steeringwheel lock on it - visible immobilisation is a good thing.

You could just remove some part of the ignition system such as the 'king lead' - the one that goes form the coil to the distributor so that it won't start at all - the other thing you could try is to simply remove the positive supply to the coil (spade clip). The engine will turn over but not run.

Of course you could also fit a Unipart immobiliser which consists of a hiddden switch and an LED indicator for the scallies to see.

Finally, if you leave it parked on the road or driveway for long periods then you may consider a nice yellow wheel clamp - there's no better way of saying 'leave my car alone'!

Oh, one other thing - if you have a driveway and another car with better security to hand then park the Maestro so that it is boxed in by the more secure car - that way you'll have them both safe.

Good luck :D

[MGTurbo]

Pull up the plunger on the inertia switch behind the radio. Also remove the fuel pump relay in the engine compartment. Won't get nicked then!

Gareth

[Peter Davies]

It is 13 March 2003 at 2.50pm.I am preparing to go and give blood when I notice a lad in his early 20's walking down the middle of the road with paper in his hand. We are a corner house on a T-junction and I am in the bedroom with a bay window on the corner of the house. 'What are you up to?' I muse. He turns left up our avenue and seconds later there is short ring on the bell. Ah - canvassing! I have my coat on and start downstairs.
Meanwhile my wife has gone to the door but on seeing no-one through the glass exclaims as such. I stop on the landing and look out through the side window up the avenue to see if he has gone that way. She returns to the lounge and looks out of the bay window and then shouts 'There's someone in the car!'
She dashes to the door and I rush downstairs. As she is in front she is the first out narrowly missing being knocked over as the thief reverses in an arc and out on to the avenue.
With the engine revving like mad, I thought it isn't worth it for a £100 car and let it go. I was through to the police before he had negotiated the junction.

This is a 1986 1.3LE - who would want one? It was Thursday; we recovered the car Sunday pm, still with a good half tank of fuel.

To reconstruct events, he had punched through the door skin, probably with a screwdriver, adjacent the lock. He then wrenched off the Eagle Claw leaving him with just the bottom 20% of the steering wheel to steer with. He smashed the steering lock, probably with the screwdriver, then pulled off the plastic cowl at the bottom of the lock to access the ignition switch. Started the engine and was off - LESS THAN 30seconds.

So you thought your car was safe. I am not at all surprised that the car was stolen, what staggers me is the speed at which it was done. I cannot do it that fast with keys!!!

Immobilisation is the thing to do and for months I kept whipping the HT lead off between the coil and distributor, but it really is such a fag. A hidden keyed switch cutting off an electrical fuel pump or the feed to the coil is probably the easiest and most cost effective method of immobilising.

[Mat_C]

If your steering lock is anything other than the type that covers the whole wheel and spins freely - it will probably help them smash the steering lock/be removed in seconds. I know they (cover wheel & spin) cost 70 notes but they are the biggest pain in the arse for car theives.

Immobilising the car is one thing - stopping the scallies having a go in the first place is another!

Another trick I used to do was swap no.1 and 2 HT lead round - virtually impossible to spot, and you don't have to worry about loosing anything. Pulling the inertia fuel cut off is much easier though!

[Dave]

Take the steering wheel off. Thats what I do if i have to leave the car for any length of time - unless there reeeally keen, i cant imagine they would want to steer with a mole-wrench or similar!!

I remove the king-lead if im going to be leaving the car somewhere 'dodgy' for even a short length of time.

Dave.

[redmaestro]

Well, Sunday morning I nervously opened the living-room curtains and was relieved to see my EFi looking back at me!!

Thanks for all your ideas, i think in future i will whip out the king lead and do the fuel cut-off thing just to be safe!

Cheers
:)

[Alan the Vanner]

Originally posted by Peter Davies

This is a 1986 1.3LE - who would want one? It was Thursday; we recovered the car Sunday pm, still with a good half tank of fuel.
[/B]
An ex colleague had his ashtray nicked twice! It was fairly ratty looking so it does make you wonder.
The second time round, the Police found a young woman driving it in Birmingham! She claimed that she bought it in good faith. (with a punched door lock, cracked steering wheel cowling and no documentation - yeah, right!) I reckon in your case it was someone with bugger all else to do - one of life's wasters. With a bit of luck matey boy might come across someone who will knock him down a peg or two.:rage: ;)

[SimonR]

Originally posted by redmaestro
Well, Sunday morning I nervously opened the living-room curtains and was relieved to see my EFi looking back at me!!

Thank God! Maybe the scallies had good intentions afterall. If you see them again and get into conversation let it be known that you immobilise the car every night because you were worried that it might get stolen, just don't tell them how you do it!

[Peter Davies]

I've searched the workshop manual but cannot find any reference to an inertia fuel cut-off switch. I presume it is to cut-off fuel in the event of an accident. Can anyone elucidate as to where it is?

[E_T_V]

It cuts of the power to the electric fuel pump in the event of an accident.. From memory it is tucked up behind/under the radio behind the dash. If you reach round behind the radio from the drivers footwell you'll find it. It doesn't apply to 1.3 or 1.6's as they have mechanical fuel pumps.

[Peter Davies]

Ah! It doesn't apply. I have a 1.3.
Thanks Dan.

[Bertybassett]

Hi folks,

When I was visiting London every weekend a few months ago and my alarm and immobiliser died.

I just used to pop the bonnet lock the car and remove the fuel pump relay (next to the starter motor) and take it into the house with me. There is no way in hell they are going to take the car then, unless they happen to have a spare relay in there pockets.

[matthewsemple]

Originally posted by redmaestro
One lad even said that he has a 1.6 MG and started talking about it.

This should have made you suspicious. The MG Maestro 1600 is extremely rare and went out of production in 1984 - but I have spoken to lots of GTi/XR3i types who think all MG Maestros were fitted with a 1.6 engine. The only other MG with a 1.6 engine that I know of is an MGA - although I think there is now an MG ZS110 with a 1.6 now.

I agree with lots of these other comments. I have a disklok and it's brill. An experienced locksmith with a full toolkit took 45 minutes to remove it. They are on offer at the moment for about £60 and you can get silver ones as well as yellow.

Also when I bought my MG1600 (yes I actually do have one!) I took it to a car stereo place and had a Toad immobiliser fitted. It cost £130 but it's worth it for piece of mind and I get an insurance discount because it is Thatcham approved.

Great to see someone driving pre-facelift MG Maestro. Lets hope it stays that way!

This is a 1986 1.3LE - who would want one

My first Maestro was a 1983 1.3HLE very similar but with a 4 speed gearbox and chrome door handles. It was a great car and someone tried to steal mine too. Luckily my neighbour disturbed the lowlife scum and they ran off. It still had to replace the ignition barrel.

They were very professional - they broke in to the driver's door and left only a slight nick in the keyhole and no bodywork damage. They didn't damage the door skin, door frame or break any glass. They also cut right through the chunky clasp that fixes the barrel to the steering column with metal cutters. I reckon they were well equipped and skilled enough to break into much more modern cars so it is a mystery why they picked our 19 year old Maestro. I think they must have been burglars and they were going to use it for house break-ins as an getaway car that the police would not stop.

[MaestroMatt]

A quick note about Discloks - if you are a member of, or know a member of, a Costco cash and carry store, you can pick them up for under £50.