Defender security

I know there are lots of threads on security, just sat and read hundreds of posts, some from quite a while ago...

Befor I purchase my Land Rover I want to have some security elements installed prior to bringing it home. I just wondered if people would be willing to add positive comments on what they using as a deterant...

Obviously if they want it they will take it by potentially just towing it away...

So Im thinking for my security...

Cat 1 Alarm/Immobiliser

Clutch Claw

Wheel Lock

Any essential additions to this please.

Thanks in advance to those who contribute.

:welcome2: all of the above...

If they really want it they take it anyway... if you fit all of the above least it'll slow them down a little.... and thats really all you can do mate...

Clutch claw and parked in low box will make it difficalt to drag....

I'd go as far as saying that most thefts are opportunistic ones, so the more visual deterrents on show the better.

Having said that, if someone REALLY wants your car, they will find a way of taking it. So the next best thing would be a skytag or similar, so atleast you know where it's gone.

I think they can even text your phone if your vehicle is detected as being on the move.

Check out LandyWatch... LandyWatch - Portal

DiskLok would be a good starting point.

As above, if they really want it they will take it so all you can do is help stop the opportunist thief and take measurses that will help you have it recovered if it is taken away.
The following (plus a couple of other which I won't mention ) are what I have done for my 90 soft-top:-
Door-catches disconnected from locks so doors can only be locked/unlocked with a key.
FIA battery isolator / ignition cut-out, turn it off and take the key with you everytime you take the ignition key out.
Auto-arming alarm (the supply bypasses the FIA switch an arms when the ignition is switched off).
Clutch Claw, fit it EVERY time you leave the vehicle (apart from filling with fuel & stopping to up a paper).
Snap-off adapter on steering-wheel, remove the wheel whenever the vehicle is parked up.
Centinal security posts, two of these blocking the driveway when parked at home (these are serious posts and probably some of the best you can by, no exposed padlocks or hinges on these).

As I said, if they want it they will get it but everything you can do to make their job more difficult is something in your favour.


On a side note, some say the Clutch Claw is not as effective as a full peddle cover but my view is that the bigger, heavier & more clumsy the item is the less likely you are to use it. The Clutch Claw is fitted EVERY TIME I leave the vehicle other than when I am filling with fuel or have popped in to the shop get a paper first thing in the morning. It is stored in easy reach behind the cubby box and can be fitted in under 10-seconds without needing a key. The temptation to use a bigger or bulkier (and perhaps more secure item) only when leaving the vehicle for longer periods might mean that when it is parked up for 10-minutes or so it is actually at its most vunerable and that is when the opportunist might strike.:5bpiggy:

After having a bike of mine stolen in the past!! One thing I put on all my vehicles now is a monitored tracker system which has no markings on vehicle but I have found it to be very effective!! Also I have alarm/immobiliser which at least gives me a chance of hearing them under the bedroom window ;-)

Apart from the mandatory wild animal in the rear and tracker you are on the right tracks

Parking on full lock is highly recommended - makes it harder to drag

Some like chains from the axles to a concreted stud.

Others use strong metal security posts - sentinel often mentioned

Leaving the Landy where it's hard to get a flat bed with hiab anywhere near it - with other vehicles in the way - when possible is also wise

Sadly all you can hope to do is to make yours less attractive to take than others.

You can open my landy with any key; my ten year old used a coke can pull the other day so I have given up locking the doors. The fact that its a B reg seems to put off the oiks and no one has ever tried to pinch it as far as I am aware. The stereo is atill fitted as well!! maybe its just living in the country rather than owning a landy whilst living in a city??

I vote for cat 1 alarm/immobiliser and a GENUINE Disclok, with wheels on full lock as an absolute minimum, anything on top of that is a bonus

hey, one thing you can do is get insurance through these guys
Pay As You Drive Insurance From Coverbox
they will fit a tracker FOR FREE !
I've got it fitted in mine, you can monitor your mileage also online.
cheap insurance too, was cheapest for me by a considerable amount ( like £200 ! )
Hope this helps , hope you get yourself a good landy !

Oh, and when not at home I keep the keys to the Defender in a Frostfire Mooncode Box locked to a shackle

[ame=http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0011U1U8E/ref=oss_product]Frostfire Mooncode 1555 Portable Key Storage Security Lock: Amazon.co.uk: DIY & Tools[/ame]


No point having Disklock and Clutchclaw if someone can just break into the house and take the keys!

You'd be amazed how many people have car keys on hooks by the door!

Paint it pink wiff a hippi flower pattern on the side. No one would ever want to be caught pinching it then.

On a more serious note: the above comment about sensible parking is a must. Don’t leave it round the back of a building where it can’t be seem. Same for poor lighting. If they try to pinch it at night when it’s dark then you’ll need some sort of deterrent fer when they open the door. At first your might think a car alarm is the bettterer solution. Few people bother to look out the window when these go orf. You’d be betterer to fit a Pink fluffy steering wheel cover. That way yer would hear them laughing when they open the door un the curtsey light comes on.

parky91 said:

hey, one thing you can do is get insurance through these guys
Pay As You Drive Insurance From Coverbox
they will fit a tracker FOR FREE !
I've got it fitted in mine, you can monitor your mileage also online.
cheap insurance too, was cheapest for me by a considerable amount ( like £200 ! )
Hope this helps , hope you get yourself a good landy !

Click to expand...

Just filled in 3 pages of questions to get a quote only to be told at the end that "your vehicle (it's an R reg Defender) is too old and is not applicable". Wish I'd known that before wasting 10 minutes on the questionnaire.

Still aint got my Defender yet but nothing stopping me looking at what security features I will be putting on it to ensure the scum bags have as much difficulty as possible stealing it...

Spotted a few related articles today that I found interesting..... I not saying that I will be adding these 2 items but its still interesting reading....

Stolen car recovered in 12 minutes - Car and Car-Buying News - What Car?

Defender Direct Ltd Homepage

Im thinking tracker, Cat 1 Thatcham alarm/immobiliser, clutch claw, steering wheel lock and wheel on full lock If I could afford it, Id stick on the Defender devise with some cctv just to watch the scum bags trying to work out what was happening.....

Had an interesting one last night, someone had tried to undo the hinge bolts on my rear door! Found them loose, only thing I can think is that they had a go but they just span after they got looser. Split pinned the nuts now! may weld thebolts to the hinges so they can't try it again!

Karlos28 said:

Had an interesting one last night, someone had tried to undo the hinge bolts on my rear door! Found them loose, only thing I can think is that they had a go but they just span after they got looser. Split pinned the nuts now! may weld thebolts to the hinges so they can't try it again!

Click to expand...

Must have needed a door for the next ringer...

Or their door had fallen orf in water.

Was parked right outside my window aswel! Something must have spooked em. They must have known what they wanted, to have the right spanner or socket!

Minimum Cat 1 alarm and Immobiliser with vibration sensor (like Toad) with very visible stickering to hopefully act as a deterrent, clutch claw or similar, and ideally a separate isolator switch so you can "secretly" immobilise the car when parked.
If you also want to invest in hopefully getting the car back if stolen then by all means try a tracker, but I`m never sure they operate as a deterrent ( I was advised against stickering the presence of a Tracker on one vehicle - in case it incentivised a thief to try to find it to kill it, and damage the vehicle in the process )
One very simple trick that some horsebox owners use is to paint their post code on the roof - visible from motorway bridges and the Police helicopter if you can persuade them to launch it. I`ve often thought that if I had a roofrack with say a fibreboard floor, I`d paint the postcode on it, nobody could see it from ground level if they looked.
If you have screw in number plates I`d also get some of the special screws plus caps via crime prevention which break if tampered with - stops people pinching your number plate or trying to steal your car having swapped plates (where I live number plate theft is reasonably common). Mine were free as part of an anti-crime intiative.
Finally see if your local neighbourhood watch does the Owl system of email alerts - your local PCSO will know. In my village we usually get email alerts within hours of criminal activity, much of which seems to follow a pattern, so you might get early warning, particularly if you can get them sent to a smartphone. Rural Watch operate a similar system I think