Facelift Headlight Security Kit

There's a security kit shown in the "Shiny Fings To Buy" section of LRO this month, looks like a steel surround for the light unit with a 4mm bar running vertically between the main and indicator lights. Looks quite smart, and about £40 if I recall. Will get details later if I can summon up the arsed for it!

Pair of st/st tie wraps will do the job.

Sadly, a set of decent tin snips will undo the job.

I have dropped some bracket design pdf's both on this site and D2boysclub that offer a bit more resistance.

Two go at the top and one goes at the side, behind the grille.

If they do get your lights out with these fitted, the lights will be so damaged as to make them pretty much unsaleable. You might still lose the lights, but at least some scum won't gain them.

Next step is the design of brackets to hold Defender courtesey light door switches, wired in parallel with the bonnet alarm switch. these will not alarm the lights, but the lower trim that has to come off before they grab your lamps to tug them out.

no sign of pdfs......

Are they here MHM?

Would it not be easier to just engrave your reg number into one edge/side of the headlamps clear plastic so it can be clearly seen by anyone walking past?

I have done that also Lynall. But even quite deep engraving (such as by a Dremell or similar) can be obscured. Remember that engraving can only be on parts of the light that will not fail an MOT for being treated in such a manner.

As such an item can still be ripped out in 12 seconds and sold cheap(ish) on e-bay, it really is advisable to do something more. Belt and braces.

What I have come up with is probably not totally theft proof, but will (hopefully) leave a tea-leaf with something pretty much unsaleable and is better than anything else I have seen so far.

What's more it only costs a couple of quid for material and an afternoon in the shed.

Been reading this link with interest after having 3 lights stolen. I found out that not all lights are stolen for re selling, apparently there is something about the light given off by facelift headlights that is very beneficial to certain types of home grown plants that naughty people grow in their spare rooms. I've made myself some stainless bars that bolt through a small slot in the plastic bumper directly to the steelwork underneath, the top has been shaped to go under the bonnet to bolt to the original bolt holes for the headlights. The only way these babies are coming out by some thieving scumbag is with a stihl saw..

Not sure how big your bars are Carlos, but if they are like the ones you see that are on the corner of the car, I have some bad news. Go over to the D2boysclub forum and look for a thread titled "Woke up this morning".

The pictures show one pretty wrecked bumper, although luckily they didn't get the lights. Personally, I would have used bolt croppers and got the lights - available for not very much at your local tool shop.

You would need at least 16mm bar to foil bolt croppers, but the best material would be hardened hexagonal bar as the bolt croppers would tend to slide off. You are still left with the problem of an adequate lower fixing though.

The bottom part is 55x6mm to just under where the headlight reflector starts then reduces to 25x6mm stainless bar tight to the headlight so they cant get behind the bar to get a bite. Even using a hacksaw is gonna be difficult. I'll post pictures if anyone wants to copy. The only down side is I've had to drill a hole through the underneath of the bumper on the nearside to allow a socket on extension to get to the nut that bolts through the steel sub bumper. Takes another 5mins only to change the bulbs.

Stainless is certainly tough stuff Carlos, and resists failure by repeated bending better also.

I'd love to see your photo's.

Hope theze upload, better with a hammer than a computer.lol

To be totally honest and realistic, nothing we do will stop the thefts; if the toe-rags want them they'll get them whether it's lights or complete vehicles.
All we can hope to do is slow them down and make it more difficult for them.

Those look the business Carlos - and a good visual deterrant too.

How are they fixed at the bottom? I ask because of the thread that I pointed you to earlier. They made a right mess of the chaps bumper and had almost got his lights.

If you have managed a bolt fixing to steelwork at the bottom, then I think you have cracked it.

Hi Maaarrghk, I started with just the large plates at the bottom first stood up like a flag. These were bolted to the top of the steelwork under the plastic bumper as in an angle, the robbin tw*ts came back 6weeks later and bent the bumper to get the lights out, only got one but smashed it to pieces doing it. I then welded the 25mm bar to the top and shaped to fit under the bonnet as is seen in photo. The bottom part of the bars are still bolted through the steel part of the bumper under the plastic and the top is also bolted to the steelwork. Even if they have the time to unbolt the bracket from underneath then they still wont be able to pull the bars away due to the top connection and the fact the bolt is still through the hole. The nearside bkt has to be unbolted from through a hole in the plastic trim I hole sawed using a log extension bar due to the washer bottle, the o/s is just a matter of getting under with a ratchet. To change the bulbs it's just a matter of undoing the top bolts and loosening the bottom bolts enough to let the bracket swing forward at the top, the headlight then slips out of the top .I was thinking about making some more just out of 25mm bar so the cuts will be smaller and drawing a template for the holes to be cut, obviously will be a lot more of a finished look to it. What do you think? Reckon about £45 quid a pair.

if yu are going to do it - do them in stainless - slightly more expensive on materials, but looks better and is a bigger to cut through.

Sounds like a fair price to me Carlos.

Another option might be to sell drawings for a tenner or so.

Another advantage of your design is that they can't even get the lower trim panels out, something that my own solution does not yet cater for, as I have yet to make up alarm brackets.

MHM is right about using stainless, it is much tougher, but also a bugger to work with, both for cutting and drilling. It may be worth getting in touch with a local lazer cutting company to see how much they would charge to cut profiles for all components, including any holes and slots. That way all you have to do is bend them.

Lazer cutters usually need AutoCAD drawings to feed into their machines. I can knock those up if you wish.

Might I suggest that you start a new thread and include your pics. It would also be worthwhile to post on the D2 Boys Club site.

Cheers for the feedback guys. I've been in steel n sheetmetal for years now so have access to benders etc. I'll knock up another pair with instructions and templates and give them away free just as a trial tomake sure diy for customers is a viable option and to work out time, effort and price. I'll let you know when they're ready..

Carlos, you are an absolute Gent. I can see that it is not "King" Carlos for nothing.

If you do get round to posting sketches, I will be happy to produce AutoCAD drawings if you require. Just let me know.

I will crack on and knock up the alarm brackets for the trim panels that go with my own system, so that way folks can have the choice of your most excellent visible system, or my own discreet solution.

Maaarrghk said:

Carlos, you are an absolute Gent. I can see that it is not "King" Carlos for nothing.

If you do get round to posting sketches, I will be happy to produce AutoCAD drawings if you require. Just let me know.

I will crack on and knock up the alarm brackets for the trim panels that go with my own system, so that way folks can have the choice of your most excellent visible system, or my own discreet solution.

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Did anything come of any of these guards? Steve.