One month a go, my nefiew had his 2004 Subaru WRX STi stolen (gone in less than 2 minutes according to his office's video surveillance cameras)

That pushed me to have an intensive antitheft marking job done by professionnals : http://www.sherlock.ca/en/index.html

The guys also offered me to install their best passive theft-deterrent system. It disables ignition if proper transponder unit is not present on the key fob during startup.

At that time I answered "no thanks" cause Pass-Key II does exactly the same, disabling both ignition and fuel system. But now, I'm wondering if I was right...

What do you think? Is Pass-Key II secure enough? Did you install an additionnal theft-deterrent system?
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Key Fobs & Dash Plaque

 

There was just a thread a few days ago asking the very same thing. IMO, the VATS system (vehicle anti-theft system) is actually pretty good on the 4th-gen F-bodies. If the start circuit doesn't see the resistance it's looking for (from the chip in the key) then it does 2 things: A) disables the start circuit, so the engine won't crank over, and B) disables power to the fuel pump, so the car won't run even if you can crank it.

Can the system be beaten? Sure, but I think you've really gotta know what you're doing to get around it, and you've gotta really want the car you're going for. There's no way that your "average" car thief is going to drive away with a 4th-gen (or any GM car protected with the Passkey system that 4th-gens have) by just jamming a screwdriver into the column and turning the key.....it won't work. And it's not as simple as just "finding the right wires" like they do in the movies either.

I *personally* feel pretty safe with the factory VATS system for protecting my car in the sense that it will be left where I park it.....it won't stop anybody from smashing the windows and stealing the radio, but even in worst-case scenario if somebody does steal the car, well, that's what insurance is for.

 

I was going to rig up a kill switch a long time ago so it was under the carpet so you would have to push down inorder when turning the key so the car would start. Never did it. but it's an option.

I've parked in some pretty bad places without problem, only thing I might buy some day is the brake pedel club.

 

Every system can get beaten by the best crooks. Having anything over the stock security system will discourage beginner thiefs. Even those clubs can be removed if you know the tricks. Its up to you., the more the better. MIght as well go all out if you are worried or just get theft coverage on your insurance.

 

If the right person wants it they will get it,... its called a flatbed.

 

A professional thief could steal a fourth gen in about 5 minutes or less. The problem is, he'll have to know what he's doing, plus he'll have to know some specifics about the pass-key system. Taking the bottom trim off and finding the two wires and plugging in resistance values with a variable resistor and a multimeter isn't too hard. The likelihood of someone knowing what they're doing is pretty slim, though. Most people that are smart enough to figure out what to do aren't the type of people that steal cars. Plus, an f-body isn't really on the top of any thief's list, the only GM products that really are are Vettes and Cadillacs, which are hard to steal also, and of course the classics, which are very easy if they haven't had modern anti-theft systems installed.

I would keep the pass-key system unless your car really stands out and/or you park in questionable areas. My .02

 

I didn't think so either but talking to my insurance agent, he said fbodys are stolen all the time because of ease and they are nice cars. They often come with expensive stereos, and can be parted out very easily too.

 

How secure is the VATS system on 3rd gens?

 

Professionals have a box that has all 16 different resistors wired to it that you can select by turning a ****. The key is modified with a blank chip and has wires that come out the back. Takes less than 1 minute to steal an F or Y body for a good thief. Now a kill switch that cuts power to the PCM would surely slow a thief down.

 

Isn't it 4 minutes between attempts though? That could potentially slow them down for several minutes, wouldn't it?

 

Chances are if your F-car got stolen is was with a tow truck.

 

its the same system as the 4th gens. pass-key started on the vettes and in 88 the GTA got it and in 89 it went GM wide.
one way us third genners have an advantage is we can easily pull the coil wire along with having pas key. but without the coil wire they aint gettin it anyway. i have a location on a manual on the GM safety systems i have been planning to buy.
on another note, if you lose your key and dont know the resistance, just go buy a module and have a key made , when you fire up the ccar the resistance of the current key is burned into the modules memory.
this is from a GM cert tech friend.

 

Another option is the removable steering wheel, like they have in race cars. No way will they drive off with your car without the wheel Unfortuently you have to give up the air bag, but if I had a car without an air bag, I would definetly have one.

I say go with one of those proximity sensing alarms. The ones that start beeping and go off when you are standing within a foot of the car. Its called the ridiculusly paranoid alarm.

 

Supposedly the pcm shuts down for a minute or two after an unsuccessful attempt (wrong value), but I've never really tried this out. Plus, pulling the fuse for the pcm will kill it's memory, so you can try again immediately. With some programming and a laptop in the game it could probably cycle through all the 15 different values in a minute or so, making it likely that a thief could grab your car in the amount of time it takes you to pay for gas if there's a line. That is in the extreme, of course. People that have the capability to do stuff like that are usually working on cars or designing them, not stealing. Thank God most thieves are stupid.

Maybe I should go to radio shack and pick up some stuff, because I know some day some moron with an f-body or other gm product will tell me no one can steal his car because his key has a "chip" in it, and I will have to prove him wrong.

 

NO system is full proof. NONE. A tow truck can take any car. Unless you do in the bad neighborhoods around chicago and have a MASSIVE chain put in the ground when the garage cement is poured and hook it around the rear axle witha rediculously large padlock. I heard a story about a guy that had everything you oculd possibly think of on his car to detter theives, supposedly he woke up one day and his car was still in the garage, but turned around backwards witha note that said, "if we want it we can take it". Probably some urban legend but its a story ive heard. I worked with a few shady people that stole cars as a side job before and some of em had egos and would go for the cars with the alarm and the club and all kindsa **** on em, kinda a kick to say they still got it anyway or some ****???

Best tip ive heard from a car theif is to get a hood lock, put the alarm box and wiring under the hood. Cant get at the wires thata re cutting off the starter circuit cause its locked under the hood. Most theives wont sit there and pry the hood open with a crowbar, or have the equipment with them to pick the round cylinder lock thats on most hood lock systems. Chapman makes a great setup for that.