All very nice but a determined thief can and will steal any car no matter what protection is in place.

The best you can do is deter the "casual" thief: i.e. the guy who wants your backpack, stereo, nifty doo-dad, or whatever; and the "joy-rider."

As stated, removing visual clues as to anything of value limits broken windows and dangling wires.

The joy-rider wants to have a quick get-away and denial of fuel is one of the best for that.

Another class not as common in the USA is the "subsistance thief." That's the guy who REALLY needs a set of tires (or whatever) but cannot afford them and knows that law enforcement is slack enough to get away with stealing them. Again, here in the USA few if any pieces (especially the rims and tires) are worth diddly squat to a down and out person looking for a freebie.

So that leaves the pro. No real protection except skyjack or other technology like it. Basically it is a system of installing a remote sender in the rig that allows law enforcement (or the company providing the service) to track the vehicle no matter where it is (via sattelite). Still won't keep your pride and joy from being molested but at least there is a good chance of catching the perp and retrieving the better part of your car.

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Mike!

I turn the gas knob to the Reserve tank (my car doesn't have a Reserve tank). So you don't get very far on the fuel left in the carbs. Even knowing this, I have started the car and driven a couple blocks, stalled and sat there for 10 minutes scratching my head wondering what was wrong. I figure if a thief tries this they won't be able to figure it out either (hell, I can't even remember). They'll be in the middle of traffic, panic & flee. The cops will get ahold of me promptly to inquire why my car is stalled in the middle of the freeway..

At least that's the way it happens in my vivid imagination anyway. :)

I'm more worried about somebody stealing my hubcaps than the whole car. They're probably worth more than I paid for the entire car now that they're newly rechromed and have the red =Volvo= stickers on them. It would have to be somebody who didn't know a thing about old Volvos that would steal them. If they ever showed up on ebay, I would definetely recognize them.

Hi. I use 3 devices on my 121 amazon:

1. A kill switch (under floor?, mine is handled by the old thermostat switch on the dash - in my city cabin heat is necessary like air to fish) - you need to route the earth wire (coming from the battery) to that switch.


2. A alarm (Prestige APS15 is easy to install and you can buy one on US, of course, a lot of models and brands available). On my 121 it block the starter and also manage the door locks (and every time I open the trunks without disconnect it I need a ear overhaul). LED blinking on dashboard say "dont mess with me" to wackers. (You can see the siren over the kill switch on the previous image)

3. A lock bar on the steering wheel (alone is not the best option, but work as a visual deterrent). Lot of brands and models - select one at your preference.

Additional: locking lugnuts to prevent wheel theft (good ones really works). The rightmost one on the wheel is a locking lugnut (it need a special key to be unscrewed):


Two times the thieves try to stole my car. Both times they managed to open the doors (scratching it on the process), one time they unlock the lock bar (unscrewing the steering wheel, a sport non standard model), but don´t manage to start the engine (they cut half of the cable unders the dashboard, but the alarm and starter blocker cables is under the vinyl floor cover and remain undiscovered).

Btw: Afer the first tefth attempt, I eliminate the key locks on the doors, and now I open the car using the alarm remote control. Also a old police officer recomend me change the lock buttons on the interior side of the door for someone without "top mushroom" due thieves unlock it with a wire passed trought the upper border of the glass (he believe it was my case).

I take the initial ideas from the article:

http://www.oldclassiccar.co.uk/classic_car_article5.htm

(btw, i suggest a reading of that whole site - lot of other ideas): http://www.oldclassiccar.co.uk/

Also another link:
http://vintagecars.about.com/od/restorationadvice/ht/theft_prevent.htm

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Joaquin / Rojo 121 / Lima, Peru

A hidden kill switch, and/or a hidden starter button... tuck it up under the dash where nobody can find it easily. The SWEM kit might be a good choice, as I'm sure Ron provides good instructions. Best talk to him about that.

Past that though, not much you can do short of a steering wheel lock. I know full well that if the doors were open, I could be off in any pre-140 series Volvo in a matter of minutes with a couple parts... Not that I would mind you...

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-Matt '70 145s, '65 1800s, '66 122s wagon, others inc. '53 XK120 FHC