Telescopic bollards (1 Viewer)

[Andrew E]

My motorhome (yes Ford based) was recently stolen from my driveway. It was recovered by the police after a high speed chase on the motorway with some damage and I expect it to come home shortly. How do I protect it better in future? No one seems to rate wheel locks so I am thinking of a telescopic bollard in the driveway sunk well into the ground. Does anyone know how difficult it is for a thief to cut through or obtain duplicate keys to these? Any advice much appreciated.

 

[PhilandMena]

Heavy duty chain from steering wheel to accelerator, make it viable too and a sodding big steering lock. Did they catch the scum who nicked your motorhome ?

 

[Wombles]

Hi - sorry to hear that - here are some suggestions https://www.motorhomefun.co.uk/foru...-vans-essential-cab-security-upgrades.132770/
Would go with the bollards too but all just a deterrent that will slow down & hopefully put off a thief. If you don't already have an alarm then the VanBitz Strikeback with Non Starter MT although not cheap is widely regarded as one of the better ones.

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[TheBig1]

get an auto electrician to fit a hidden kill switch to the diesel pump or ecu. that way they cant start it even with a programmed key

 

[Andrew E]

Many thanks, will definitely be doing something on suggested lines. Yes, they did catch him after a 30 mile chase, he jumped out and was caught in a thorn hedge! Don't know what happened to him, police very helpful initially, but have not been prepared to tell me anything since.

 

[mitzimad]

pedal box is the best

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[AXO66]

We use a clutch claw.
Would slow a thief down.

Fiddly to use at first but now less than thirty secs to fit every time we park.

Might be a quick route to peace of mind whilst you research bollards etc.

https://www.nkgroup.co.uk/product/clutch-claw-in-car-security-device/
Hope your van ok.

 

[h1ghway1]

Heavy duty chain from steering wheel to accelerator, make it viable too and a sodding big steering lock. Did they catch the scum who nicked your motorhome ?

Many years ago on a holiday in Rome nearly every vehicle had this....

 

[daveandsan]

When we had our Transit I had a wheel lock, steering wheel Disc lock, driver and passenger seat locked together at 90 degrees, Vanbitz alarm and last but not least an OBD Port Lock which is still for sale in the General Classified section.

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[DBK]

My motorhome (yes Ford based) was recently stolen from my driveway. It was recovered by the police after a high speed chase on the motorway with some damage and I expect it to come home shortly. How do I protect it better in future? No one seems to rate wheel locks so I am thinking of a telescopic bollard in the driveway sunk well into the ground. Does anyone know how difficult it is for a thief to cut through or obtain duplicate keys to these? Any advice much appreciated.

I've considered the telescopic bollards, because they will prevent the type of theft which vehicle based security measures struggle to cope with - the thieves turning up with a recovery vehicle they winch your MH onto. But I also have an alarm - I don't think you want to rely on just one system.

There will be other suppliers but these ones are not outlandishly expensive. http://www.securitybollardsdirect.co.uk/security-bollards.html

 

[dave newell]

OBD portector. Replaced the obd port with a new one that has an electronic block in between. The new port can be enabled for diagnostic purposes but otherwise doesn't give communication to the ecu.

D.

 

[TheBig1]

thankyou was looking for a supplier for a project

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[pappajohn]

Maybe not so practical for a motorhome but definitely do-able.
For my trailer I have a home made hitch post.
It's a regular 4mm walled square steel tube filled with home mixed granite and flint based concrete and a couple of lengths of 15mm rear.
An angle grinder will make short work of the steel tube but the granite and flint will make short work of the grinder disc.
The rebar will prevent the concrete being snapped if the steel is cut right around.
Because this is for a trailer its rigid and concreted into the ground but with some thought a heavily shielded padlock could easily be fitted to allow it to be either lowered or lifted out yet still protected from croppers or grinder.

 

[Wildbill]

Hiden Fuel cut off valve and Hiden emobilisor switch
Bill

 

[rosalan]

I agree with having more than one method of security. My backup system has the drivers seat facing backwards with a clutch lock fitted through the seat plate. Cheap and easy to fit. I will not announce my other systems

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[mitzimad]

my seat locks backwards and i remove a plug under the dash

 

[Andrew E]

Thank you to all who responded. Can't do it all but shall certainly do at least 2 of the suggestions. Daft thing is that have never had any problems in 10 years mainly wild camping in Europe and then the van disappears from my front garden in South Devon.

 

[The Wino]

Did you have any security already fitted (replacement locks OBD lock etc) ? Just wondering what makes a difference

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[two]

Security can be applied in 'layers'.
Start by making it look tricky to nick. You'd much rather they didn't get as far as even entering your vehicle. Add visible deterrents, like a camera (could be a dummy) overlooking the van. They may not even bother to come and inspect other measures if they think that they might be on TV.
If you can live with the 'shame', keep it un-loved and looking as undesirable as possible.
Hopefully, they will move on somewhere else (but not to where I live).

 

[The Wino]

Security can be applied in 'layers'.
Start by making it look tricky to nick. You'd much rather they didn't get as far as even entering your vehicle. Add visible deterrents, like a camera (could be a dummy) overlooking the van. They may not even bother to come and inspect other measures if they think that they might be on TV.
If you can live with the 'shame', keep it un-loved and looking as undesirable as possible.
Hopefully, they will move on somewhere else (but not to where I live).

I asked a policeman about visible deterrents but he said I was assuming the criminals were a lot brighter than they really are!!

 

[two]

I asked a policeman about visible deterrents but he said I was assuming the criminals were a lot brighter than they really are!!

I'd suggest that they may be 'out of it' on drugs, or simply 'up against it' and desperate.
I'd also suggest that they are likely to be just as bright as an 'average' policeman.

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[rosalan]

The very first line of security is your KEYS....... If they get your key, then many of the alternative methods of security are pointless.

 

[Garfields]

bollards or similar words

 

[RogerThat]

get an auto electrician to fit a hidden kill switch to the diesel pump or ecu. that way they cant start it even with a programmed key

I like that idea - especially in a motorhome as you could get the switch hidden in the Hab area, they'd never find it

How strong are these bollards in general, would a thief not just drive your van straight through it / over it? Sure, they'll make a mess of the front bumper, but that'll not take them long to fix.

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[TheBig1]

I like that idea - especially in a motorhome as you could get the switch hidden in the Hab area, they'd never find it

How strong are these bollards in general, would a thief not just drive your van straight through it / over it? Sure, they'll make a mess of the front bumper, but that'll not take them long to fix.

they are 700mm tall steel post with 700mm+ set into concrete. you would destroy the van ramming it, not just the bumper but rip the sump off the engine

 

[RogerThat]

Ah, good point.

I've seen some on peoples driveways but in this instance I was thinking some posts might be really thin metal (regardless of height) and cause very little damage to the van if simply "pushed" by the front bumper to bend it.

 

[gus-lopez]

How strong are these bollards in general, would a thief not just drive your van straight through it / over it? Sure, they'll make a mess of the front bumper, but that'll not take them long to fix.

the 1m high reinforced set in 1m x1m x 1m deep concrete are the best. The smaller ones I'm not a fan of

they are 700mm tall steel post with 700mm+ set into concrete. you would destroy the van ramming it, not just the bumper but rip the sump off the engine

My mate drove over his own 700mm one.& it didn't do that much damage to his van ( not a motorhome) Under tray took most of the impact. sump not touched. It cost more getting the old one & concrtete torn out to replace with a proper one than the repairs to the van.
One near my nephew has the 700mm (28") high one & although the drive has a slope I don't think it is that steep yet it only reaches to the bottom of the rear bumper.

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[RogerThat]

I wasn't completely barking up the wrong tree for a change then