Safety concerns

[inmyprime]

Excited that the Model S is now on a ship and en route to Europe...According to the website!
Suddenly a worry came up:
We have recently had a number of burglaries on our street (with cars being stolen). Certain cars seem to attract more thieves (usually sports cars).
I was wondering whether Teslas are more or less likely to be targeted by thieves? I am worried our house might attract more burglars as a result (we have off street parking but do not have a garage).
Also: does the car have good security tools? Is it harder to steal, quickly ship it and sell off or is it the same as with any car?
Any advice appreciated (also on how to keep the car safe).

 

[kevinof]

I think stealing is going to be limited. Can't imagine a thief having to stop at a supercharger for 40 mins after he stole your lovely S! They are not that sophisticated. I used to leave my Ferrari on the street (Saint Johns Wood) without any problems but have heard of Range Rovers and so getting nicked.

Breaking into the S is another thing but that could affect any car.

 

[culverwood]

Part of my insurance originally required a tracker to be fitter however once the insurers understood the control that each owner and Tesla themselves has over the location and ability of the car to work etc. they realised it was not necessary. No doubt soon some tea-leaf will hack the car but I would suggest it would probably never be able to supercharge nor would any software updated work and so on.

 

[cezdoc]

The conventional wisdom seems to be that Teslas are if anything less likely to be targeted. The continuous tracking and the fact that any parts would be hard to sell on supposedly act as deterrents. I'm on a number of forums and haven't seen any reports of thefts in the UK (except for a charging cables - I guess the Type 2 cable is generic and easier to sell - and this could be secured with a lock in addition to the charge port lock if it's a worry).

There has been some concern about devices that can defeat the hands free / key proximity unlocking: some sort of amplifier can be held near where the key is stored (i.e. near someone's house) and relayed to a receiver next to the car to trick the car into thinking the key is nearby so the car unlocks. If this is of concern it can be disabled in the settings, alternatively the keys can be stored in a tin (or well away from the car). This issue affects a number of car manufacturers, not just Tesla (although not the Model X I think as it uses Bluetooth).

There have been a handful of reports of cars being stolen on the continent, so it is theoretically possible but presumably done to order by experts who know how to disable the car's on-board tracking etc.

Other than the above, usual security precautions would apply, e.g. lighting, security cameras, dash cams, don't leave anything tempting in view on the seats etc. Oh, and bear in mind it is theoretically possible to open the frunk without a key - I believe this is a safety requirement in case an emergency responder needed to disable the electrics.

 

[cezdoc]

Oh by-the-way congrats on the new order! Last minute worries are to be expected at this stage! Sounds like you should have a fantastic new toy in time for Christmas

 

[cheshire cat]

re the type 2's I have painted my plugs flourescent yellow and engraved the post code on the black part hopefully easier to find if they appear on fle-bay

 

[Tam]

...I was wondering whether Teslas are more or less likely to be targeted by thieves?..

There have been reports of broken in in the USA (breaking Tesla's windows) which do not trigger alarms but door/hatch openings would.

There have been reports of stolen Teslas in the USA and Canada because a fob was left inside.

There have been reports of stolen Teslas in the EU with no fob needed: Tesla has implemented an option to turn off Passive Entry to deal with that.

 

[Peteski]

Yeah I think they will stick to nicking Range Rovers and Audis. A Tesla would be a much harder proposition to move on for profit. But you may still get targeted by the break-in-and-steal-your-keys muppets. Whether you hide the keys or make it easy for them is your call, but personally I'd rather they take the car than start searching through the house for keys at 3 am.

 

[Subevo]

Yes watch out for keyless entry cars.as the thieves are using an amplifier to relay the weak signal from the house where your keys are stored to a guy at the car with a laptop.place keys in a faraday cage i.e. A tin. If your worried. Range rovers, fast Audi cars like s3 rs3 are on top of the list.teslas not a problem yet.

 

[WannabeOwner]

There have been reports of stolen Teslas in the USA and Canada because a fob was left inside.

I read one story (on this site I think) where the owner left the key in the car, found car was missing, looked on the APP, saw the car was parked a few streets away, took the spare key and jumped on his bike, found the car (I think some indication that kids nearby were smoking weed or similar ...), put the bike in the boot and drove it home ... and presumably made a mental note not to leave the keys in the car again!

I have painted my plugs flourescent yellow and engraved the post code on the black part

Good idea. In case not common knowledge: the bonnet/frunk can be opened without key/tools (required for emergency services to get to electrical isolator, or someuch) so although I leave my cables etc. in there, to leave the boot free for "stuff for the trip", its not a very good idea ...

 

[Solarman004]

Yes watch out for keyless entry cars.as the thieves are using an amplifier to relay the weak signal from the house where your keys are stored to a guy at the car with a laptop.place keys in a faraday cage i.e. A tin. If your worried. Range rovers, fast Audi cars like s3 rs3 are on top of the list.teslas not a problem yet.

Also, turn off Passive Entry under Settings.

 

[inmyprime]

Thanks very much - great info.

 

[kevinof]

Congrats on the new car! Enjoy it.

 

[JonG]

One more security point, the frunk or froot (front storage) is relatively easy to open as there are manual release cables hidden but accessible. Probably wise not to leave valuables in there.

 

[TC56]

Congrats on the new car. Teslas, and others are prone to the key fob relay attack where a thief will use a laptop or other hardware to amplify the signal from the key fob to a receiver/amp relay close to the car. The car then thinks that the key is nearby. One way round this is to block the signal from the key fob when in the home by keeping the key in a tin.

 

[louis moriarty]

Excited that the Model S is now on a ship and en route to Europe...According to the website!
Suddenly a worry came up:
We have recently had a number of burglaries on our street (with cars being stolen). Certain cars seem to attract more thieves (usually sports cars).
I was wondering whether Teslas are more or less likely to be targeted by thieves? I am worried our house might attract more burglars as a result (we have off street parking but do not have a garage).
Also: does the car have good security tools? Is it harder to steal, quickly ship it and sell off or is it the same as with any car?
Any advice appreciated (also on how to keep the car safe).

 

[MagicMagicD]

I'm fairly sure that whilst Tesla stop short of saying the car has a tracker, because of the telemetry and diagnostics they have, if it was stolen, Tesla could probably locate and remotely limit the car...

 

[CotswoldS3X]

One way round this is to block the signal from the key fob when in the home by keeping the key in a tin.

We bought a signal blocker pouch off Amazon. £6.99 and free delivery. Not as fancy as this rather splendid tin, but works a charm. I can stand right next to the car with the key in the pouch and it won’t respond, even if I actually press the buttons through the pouch!

 

[DJP31]

We bought a signal blocker pouch off Amazon. £6.99 and free delivery. Not as fancy as this rather splendid tin, but works a charm. I can stand right next to the car with the key in the pouch and it won’t respond, even if I actually press the buttons through the pouch!

Me too, I tried a tin and it wasn’t good enough so got a couple of these

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Defender-S...pID=51NSqroN3PL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

 

[DJP31]

I'm fairly sure that whilst Tesla stop short of saying the car has a tracker, because of the telemetry and diagnostics they have, if it was stolen, Tesla could probably locate and remotely limit the car...

They can indeed track the car, and presumably disable it. However if the thief removes the SIM card then Tesla loses touch with it. Very few are stolen but for the sake of a few pounds the signal blocking pouch is well worth it.