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Auto Theft Prevention/auto break in/theft of radio

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Expert: - 2/26/2010


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QUESTION: a brief background on this...last night someone broke into our 2008 ford mustang hardtop.  they got our stereo and damaged the driver's door.  I have part of the break in on video tape but due to the conditions last night, it's not very clear.  so i was wondering if you could tell me how (if you can) they might have done it so that I can try to prevent it from happening again.  we went out this morning to find the hood popped and when we tried to open the door, it wouldn't open unless we really pulled on it and that is when i noticed the entire door was shifted forward so that the gap between the door and front fender was gone and there was some metal torn like a screw driver had been inserted into the hinge area.  the car has a passive factory alarm on it and was armed and doors locked, windows up.  but my alarm never went off.  why?  what method did they use to shift the door forward and why would they be up under the hood?  did they disconnect some electrical cable/harness or pull some fuses to disable my alarm.  cause this whole incident lasted only about 3-5 minutes and everything worked when we went out this morning. the horn, the locks, the interior light.  but we did not see the light come on or hear any horn from the alarm when they thief was in the car like we should have.  what else can I do to prevent them from doing it again after i replace the radio they stole?  any info you could provide would be greatly appreciated.  I know that i may not get the answer due to the fact that if i were a dishonest person i would use that info to my advantage but it just bugs the heck out of me not knowing how they did it so fast and damaged my door.  all without setting my alarm off.  now i have about $1000 worth of damage to my car and want to prevent this from happening again.  thanks again.

ANSWER: Hello,

Factory alarms are worthless. Most don't even use impact sensors that detect noise similar than what you are referring to would have happened.
Here is the bad news, no matter what I tell you to do to protect your car, the honest truth is that cars cannot be protected from break in. By nature they are not secure. If you reinforce the plastic door handles, they will break the glass. If you have smash proof tint put on, the door can be slim jimmed in seconds.

Parking in a lighted area contrary to what the experts say, gives the thief light to work by. The flip side is that you endanger your personal safety, but that assumes if someone sees a crime being committed, others will get involved--very rare.
I am sure that over the years you have heard alarms going off and dismissed them.
Its going to get worse with the economy, drugs and gangs. Budget cuts are affecting the amount of officers that can respond to a personal property issue.

I would suggest getting an alarm with a pager. It will not stop a break in, but will notify you when it is happening.
You must check with your state laws however because what is the game plan if you confront the thieves?

I am now in Texas and we can protect personal property by any means necessary. In Wisconsin, the criminal has all the rights.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: I hear what you are saying but it still leaves the question as to how he got the door open and damaged the hinge area not to mention the whole door is shifted forward against the front fender.  How do they do that?  The other question was what could they have been doing under the hood?  Is there something electrical that you can do to the car to keep the alarm from going off?  Because as I mentioned, the hood was popped the next morning.  It almost looks like they were in my fuse panel.  Can the alarm be disabled through the fuse panel?

Answer
Hello,

Your break in was by amateurs, probably kids. Nothing professional here or either many parts or the whole car would be gone.
I can't tell you what they used or what they did to shift the door like that.
You may get answers from the local cops and they will give you all sorts of scenarios, but they are in fact speculative unless they are interviewing the guy that did it, assuming he tells the truth.

I have been involved in the repair of far more than 10,000 theft recovered and vandalized vehicles and I found one common denominator about the thief. There is no common denominator.

This could have been a cracked out kid going for your stereo not even realizing and obviously not caring as to the extent of the damage.

The factory alarm can be disabled buy pulling the fuse, however doing such disables many more things at the same time.

I do not understand why your factory alarm did not trigger though. In theory, it should have. If the door lock is ripped out the alarm is triggered by a sensor on the back of the lock. If the door is open, current sensing from the dome light should trigger the alarm.
If the alarm is armed, it should have a pin switch under the hood that once the hood is opened, the alarm should trigger.

Did they cut the horn wires under the hood? The lights should have still been flashing.

All this with the assumption that you have the factory optional alarm.

I need to ask a question when you say it has a passive alarm. People commonly get these two separate entities confused.
The car comes with PATS Passive anti-theft system. Is this what you are referring to? PATS is an ignition based transponder system that makes no sounds. In theory, it requires the correct programmed key to start the engine. If this is what you are referring to, it would explain why there was no triggering of an alarm.

If equipped with the factory alarm, then you have a problem because it does not appear to be working.

As for the damage to the door where it meets the fender, these are pretty close tolerances from the factory and the metal does not need a lot of force to become misaligned.

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Rob Painter, ASE, CFL, CFEI

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My background in auto theft is extensive. I have been directly involved in the repair of over 10,000 theft recovered vehicles. I also do insurance investigation as to how a vehicle was last operated. My clients are insurance companies and attorneys. Was featured in the A & E auto theft documentary "Stealing Wheels" July 26, 2000. Has consulted with Daimler Chrysler steering column engineers to make their steering columns harder to defeat. Holds patent # 6,039,140 for 8 different variations to protect air bags from theft.

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ROB PAINTER, ASE, CFL, CFEI Forensic Vehicle Component Analyst Diplomate, Board Certified Forensic Examiner ASE Certified Auto, Collision, Med/Hvy/Duty Truck Technician Certified Forensic Locksmith Certified Fire and Explosion Investigator Certified Vehicle Fire Investigator Certified Forensic Auto Theft Examiner Certified Auto Theft and Fraud Expert http://www.autotheftexpert.com Email-rpainter@wi.rr.com P.O. Box 190 Big Bend, WI 53103 Phone (414) 698-9696 Fax (262) 662-1352 As per federal court rules of evidence (702) (Daubert) my testimony has qualified me as: Auto Theft and Fraud Expert Forensic Vehicle Analyst Fire Origin and Cause Expert In the trial transcript of Holiday vs Progressive Insurance Company (March 12, 2002?Eugene, Oregon) with Holiday being my client-named ?the expert for experts.? BUSINESS EXPERIENCE Founder of the ?Forensic Institute of Auto Theft Analysis? (January 2002). This is the training school that will set the standards in determining the last operation of a reported stolen vehicle-burned or unburned. Much of my testing and procedures have been accepted as the guide for the forensic community. 1986 opened Auto Recovery Specialists Inc., providing exclusive repair of theft recovered and vandalized vehicles. The initial concept of the business was to return vehicles to their original shape before the theft, vandalism or fire. In 1987 bought the rights to the theft deterrent known as the ?Chicago Collar?. Duties include complete component replacement: dash, stereo system, interior, locks and coding, rebuilding steering columns, repairing and installing vehicle security system components (factory and after market), engine components, body repair, glass replacement, repair and service of air conditioning components, brake and suspension repair, and replacement, wiring harnesses etc. to return vehicle to pre-theft condition Complete reconstruction. During the past 17 years directly involved in the repair of over 10,000 theft-recovered and fire damaged Personally examined and rebuilt thousands of steering columns on both import and domestic vehicles Internationally acknowledged as expert in auto theft including court, consulting with insurance companies, attorneys and law enforcement. Consultant on steering columns, locks, stereo systems and vehicle security for Special Investigation Units for many large insurance carriers during the past eight years. Consulting services include but not limited to: How a vehicle was last operated (with or without keys in burned or unburned vehicles), Origin and Cause of vehicle fires, and vehicle defects. Provides services as a consultant and researcher to attorneys and insurance companies, and private industry throughout the US in cases related to vehicles. Has worked with crime prevention officers throughout the US establishing training programs designed to protect the public from becoming victims of auto theft. PATENT: 3/21/00 issued patent# 6,039,140 for 8 different variations of airbag anti-theft devices. PUBLICATIONS Currently authors articles and test reports on an ongoing basis for SIUs and the forensic/vehicle fire industry. Published author: (1,297 slide training course) Auto Theft/ Fraud Training Course) ?The Modern Forensic Approach to Auto Theft Investigation.? (January, 2001) Author: ?Variables to Be Considered In Vehicle Fire Investigation after Suppression.? (Insurance publication-November 2001) Author: ?Ford Magnesium Steering Columns and the Results to Ignition Components after a Fire?. Article for peer review from the fire and forensic community. (November 2001) Author: ?The Truth About GM VATS.? (Article) (November 2001) Author: ?The Truth About GM PASSLOCK TM? (Article) (November 2001) Author:? Auto Theft Investigation: Hollywood vs. Reality? (Article) (February 2001) For the John Cooke Fraud Report. Published author: (Manual) ?Forensic Vehicle Fire/ Arson and Auto Theft Investigation? (October 2000) Published author: (Article) ?Petty Claims? for the John Cooke Fraud Report (October, 1998) Published author (Manual) ?AUTO THEFT: LET THE TRUTH BE KNOWN!? (1998) (Previously distributed by Barnes & Nobel) Co-authored the investigation manual, ?Surreptitious Entry & Auto Theft & Burn & the Investigator.? (1999) Authored test questions on the subject of steering columns and vehicle security for CFL designation to be given by the International Association of Investigative Locksmiths. January, 2000 Published author: (Manual) ?Saginaw Steering Columns-What Has Not Been Told? Training manual for fire investigators. (March 2000) Published (Article) ?Beyond The Lock? (May 2000) Published Author: (Article) Fraud Defense Network-August, 2000 Edition-?Melting Steering Column Tests.? http://www.fraudreport.com/index.cfm?month=08&year=2000 Published author: (Test Report) ?Burned Toyota Steering Column Testing to Determine How Last Operated?. Tool marks and procedures. (December 1999) Currently at the FBI Crime Lab in Washington DC and the US Army Crime Lab in Atlanta, GA for peer review. ACCOMPLISHMENTS Defeated the ?unstealable? Ford Securilock transponder system for a court case 10/10/00. They said it could not be done! Primary designer of a state of the art ?bait? car for a police department to catch car thieves. Worked with The National Highway Safety Transportation Administration and discovered a potential fire hazard on a vehicle and determined origin and cause of under hood fires on this type of vehicle. Featured as ?Auto Theft Expert? in the A & E auto theft documentary ?Stealing Wheels? that aired July 26, 2000. Contacted by Sears and Edelman Marketing to be a national spokesman for an anti theft device for vehicles. (November 1999) Invited to provide evaluation and consulting to steering column engineers at Daimler Chrysler Corporation in Auburn Hills, MI (10/19/99-10/22/99). The purpose of this project was to demonstrate how steering column locking mechanisms could be defeated without the use of a key and how to reinforce the columns against theft. Court Qualified as an Auto Theft Expert and my videos of defeating columns were also accepted by a Cleveland, Ohio Court in October 1999 as a valid piece of evidence. Contacted by Disney Touchstone Pictures for technical assistance in making the movie ?Gone in 60 Seconds? (March 1999) CONSULTANT FOR FOLLOWING ORGANIZATIONS ? Former contributor for The Insurance News Network (Auto theft and prevention) includes heading a forum for the public on how to protect their vehicles for 3+ years. ? Former editor and consultant for the public on matters involving auto theft and prevention 2000-2001 on the web at http://www.autotheft_forum.com. ? The Insurance Career Center (Auto theft and fraud). ? National Association of Investigative Specialists (Auto theft and fraud) ? Expert Find (Auto theft and fraud} TECHNICAL EXPERIENCE ? ASE (National Institute of Automotive Service Excellence) Certified in Auto: brakes, steering and suspension, engine repair, manual drive train and axles, air conditioning. Med/Heavy duty truck: gasoline engine repair, electrical/electronic components. Collision: elec.....

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