Urgent warning: 240 thefts in south-east
 

Hi all,

Sad that we have to give this kind of advice, but here goes...

We have been made aware of a spate of thefts of 240s in the South-East, specifically the south-east London area. They are being stolen to order for banger racing. We aren't sure of exact numbers, but it is thought that at least a dozen have been taken by the same group in the past 12-18 months or so. So far, the police are reluctant to do anything about it, sadly.

The rogue team long-suspected of being involved in this have now been caught with a stolen car on their property, but "they just bought it down the pub", naturally. I'm not here to talk about the sort of lowlife scum who are stealing and destroying tidy cars, and in the process bringing the generally good name of the banger community into disrepute. I'm here to issue a security warning.

We now know the modus operandi of these pond-dwellers. They are levering out the tailgate locks of a target vehicle, then making a key to fit the lock at their leisure, then returning and simply driving the car away with a suitable key. I suppose it's a less obtrusive than a Hanoi Burglary, but it's still not nice.

There are two possible routes to assist with securing your car. Firstly, install 'personalised security measures'. I'm not going to disclose possible techniques, just in case the individuals involved manage to lift their knuckles from the floor for long enough to operate a computer and locate this thread, but I'm sure you can think of ways of disabling the car, which only you would know how to correct in a hurry.

Secondly, you could get the ignition lock changed for one from a different car. Record the VIN number (preferably retaining the VIN plate) should you need to order keys from the dealer in the future...or you could just get additional spares cut.

Both can be overcome with the luxury of time, but the fact that these weeping sores on the face of humanity are getting keys made suggests that they don't like hanging around at the scene - so buy yourself some time by making life difficult.

Finally, you could install a silent alarm which sends you an (SMS, etc) alert if someone tries to gain unauthorised access. That should give you just enough time to get all Tony Martin on their cowardly backsides while they stare moronically at a rev counter that just won't spring into life.

cheers

James

Thanks James for this useful warning.

Every 200 series owner's worst nightmare I imagine! Especially as we invest additional time, energy and money in our old cars to keep them in good condition as the years progress.

Reminds me of someone I know who after having spent many 100's of hours over 5 years of evenings and weekends restoring and customising a Landrover, the thing was stolen a couple of weeks after completion, never to be seen again. How gutted would you be.

Glad my car is now "retired" from London for the time being anyway and will be moving into a garage home in a month or two. Even so, I still shouldn't be complacent about security and will be looking into personalised security measures..

Cheers,

James

A tracker if you can afford it will also be a help.

Near topic: In reality, the police do not have limitless resources, would we want to pay, to be in a police state?

I was impressed by some local police with a 740 I had. A rear small window had been smashed, probably by someone hoping to find something valuable inside, and and the window glass had not yet replaced. As I drove out of town I was stopped by the police, just to check, in case I was in the process of theft.

I am not an advocate for the police. I've been a witness to assault by a uniformed police officer. But fair is fair, it's not an easy job. They really do have to prioritise. And I've been involved professionally alongside police in some seriously worthwhile jobs.

As for securing the car, I think on remembering other threads, the idea of an ignition switch from another car is interesting. And maybe removing the battery ... and one other component of choice ....

My old bus is fairly safe at the moment, both manifolds are still disconnected :(

Years ago I learnt how useless some anti theft devices are. A Krooklock was by passed by thieves bending the pedal of a Morris 1100, easily done. Those thieves tried to use the old 1100 to carry a safe they had burgled. Crazy ....

Anyway, sadly, there's no such thing as total security. :(

I have wondered whether a mobile 'phone tracker and/or app might be a modestly priced and effective tracker? I think there are facilities that can be set up by full family consent to track one's family's mobile 'phones?

I don't make a habit of criticising the police, but what I've heard in this case has made me very angry indeed. Hopefully, if I give a few more details, you'll agree...

The owner has gone to considerable trouble to locate the car, and has almost certainly found a theft 'ring' in the process...and the police are uninterested in doing any more about it. The "new owner" was interviewed, claimed he bought this exceptionally tidy 240 in a pub for £100, and they won't even do him for handling stolen goods (something which initially didn't appear to have even occured to them). The VIN plate is missing...need we say more? There is allegedly a (locked) barn on site which locals have long suspected houses a collection of stolen classics for racing. They wouldn't even check VINs on the other cars (in various stages of preparation for racing) in the yard. It stinks of "couldn't care less". I understand there's prioritisation to be done, but they might as well have saved yet more time, and not bothered even showing up.

Furthermore, the (police) recovery agent pulled the stolen 240 onto the flatbed with only two wheels fitted (the other two were nearby, but the supervising officer said they couldn't be used, as there was no proof they were his), undoubtedly damaging the underside. The owner was charged (a not insignificant sum) for the privilege. While in plod's "care", it had the same treatment at the hands on the insurance company.

I have no axe to grind with the police (at all), but the owner has been badly let down on two fronts here. If it were me, I would be screaming blue bloody murder at my local constabulary. Now I wasn't going to mention all that, but since you brought it up...!

cheers

James

I already had my suspicions the out come to this sorry state of affairs would be a sh*tty one!
So no one was charged with anything except the innocent owner having to pay to get his own propery back, great!
As i'm South London-ish i think i'll invest in a Disclock for the steering wheel.

I'd suggest a formal letter (citing the evidence of these thefts) to the Mayor of London's office, and the local MP - get signatures from as many 240 and classic car owners as possible and give the local Chief Constable a hard time...get the story in the news - one of the classic car magazines will be interested, and local papers and local TV are desperate for stories.

This is a tale of indolence and negligence on the police's part: don't let 'em get away with it.

Jon.

i remember a similar thing happening with ford granada's years ago.

trackers and alarms are all very good, but sadly these days people dont pay so much attention to alarms going off

if it was me, i would buy a simply toggle switch and hide it somewhere, and use it to break power to a random component. how long is a theif going to hang around and trying to start it?

Just remember these guys will have a car trailer that they can load the car onto. Once they have got passed the steering lock the car is then easy to move. They don not care about what damage is done as they intend to destroy the car anyway.

I have read a couple of these stories and a few others in the past and the common theme is that the police do nothing and even when you have done the job of finding the car for them they still do not want to know.

I have experienced this myself more than once with hit and runs and even once I tracked down the other car involved they still took a hell of a lot of pressure to do anything.

Is it about time bangor racing cars must have a VIN plate and be checked before every race day?