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The Motoring Review

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We asked a former car thief which security products made him walk away. He didn't pick the expensive ones.

He served time and now works in logistics. He asked us not to use his surname. We asked him a simple question: what made you skip a car and move on?

As told to The Motoring ReviewUpdated July 20266 min read

A GPS tracker, Faraday pouch, car alarm siren, Ghost immobiliser unit and a yellow Lock'd steering lock lined up on a workshop bench.

I stole cars for about nine years, mostly between eighteen and twenty-seven. I did time for it. I don't do it now and I'm not proud of any of it, but I know the answer to the question they asked me better than most people do.

Here's the part people get wrong. I wasn't breaking into cars that were easy to break into. Almost all of them are easy. I was picking the ones that looked like they'd be quick, on a street where nobody was about, and I made that decision from the footpath in a couple of seconds. Whatever you'd fitted to the car only mattered if I could see it before I made that call.

  1. 1 ChoosingFrom the footpath, before they touch itLock'd · The Club
  2. 2 EntryGetting inViper alarm
  3. 3 Start / drive-awayOnce they're insideGhost II immobiliser
  4. 4 After it's goneRecoveryTK905B tracker
The four stages of a theft, and where each device acts.

How I judged them

I scored them on one thing: time. Not how strong they are — how much of my time each one was going to cost me, and how exposed I'd be while it did.

  1. Could I see it from the footpath? If I couldn't, it played no part in whether I chose the car.
  2. How long would it add? Anything over a minute or two on a street, and I'd rather walk to the next one.
  3. Would it make noise or draw attention? Not the same thing as stopping me. Most noise doesn't.
  4. Would it stop me driving off if I got in? Some of these do. That's a different job to stopping me choosing the car.
  5. Was it on every car, or just this one? If a whole street has the same thing, it stops meaning anything.

The five, side by side

How they compare at a glance. Full write-ups below, best first.

Scroll sideways →

Device What it does When it acts Upfront price Ongoing cost Pro install Score
Lock'd Car Defender Visible deterrent Choosing $79.99 ✓ None ✓ No 9
Autowatch Ghost II Immobiliser Hidden immobiliser Start / drive-away $600–1,200 ✓ None ✕ Yes 8
The Club Visible deterrent Choosing $129.99 ✓ None ✓ No 6
Viper 3103V Car Alarm Alarm Entry $300–600+ ✓ None ✕ Yes 5
TK905B GPS Tracker GPS tracker After it's gone $150–400 ✕ Subscription + SIM ✓ No 3

Prices are indicative Australian retail, July 2026.

#1 Pick · Editor's Choice

#1

Lock'd Car Defender

Acts at: the moment of choosing

9/10
A bright yellow Lock'd Car Defender cable lock looped through a steering wheel and clipped into the seatbelt buckle.

The Lock'd Car Defender was the standout product for acting while a car is still being chosen, rather than after a thief is already inside it. It's a high-visibility steering lock — bright yellow, visible through the windscreen from around twenty metres — and that visibility is the whole mechanism. A thief scanning a street sees it before he approaches and moves on to a car that hasn't got one. It works as a deterrent rather than a reaction.

It fits nearly any car and goes on in about five seconds, with no wiring, no professional install, and no PIN to enter every drive — the practical reasons a visible lock actually gets used rather than left in a drawer.

Could I cut one? Yes. Anyone with an angle grinder can. But that's not the question. The question is whether I'd stand in someone's driveway at two in the morning cutting one, for a car I hadn't even decided I wanted yet. I wouldn't. I'd take three steps to the left and try the next one.

Pros

  • Acts while the car is still being chosen — and does it best
  • Visible from ~20m through the windscreen
  • On in about 5 seconds, no install or wiring
  • No PIN, no subscription, no professional fit
  • Fits nearly every car

Cons

  • A grinder will still cut any lock, this one included
  • Only works while it's on the wheel

Check the price →$79.99 · Free Faraday pouch · 120-day money-back guarantee

#2

Autowatch Ghost II Immobiliser

Acts at: start / drive-away

8/10
An Autowatch Ghost II immobiliser control unit fitted behind a car's dashboard.

The Autowatch Ghost II is the most sophisticated device on the list. It's a hidden immobiliser — a small unit wired into the car — and the engine won't start until you tap a secret PIN into the dashboard buttons.

So even if a thief pulls off the relay attack that steals most keyless cars, the car still won't start. And if someone gets hold of your actual keys, it's the only product here that stops them driving off.

It never once stopped me choosing a car, because I had no way of knowing it was there. But there were two I got into and couldn't start, and had to walk away from. That's more than I can say for anything else on this list. It costs me everything — it just charges me after I've already put your window in. Whether that's worth six hundred dollars and a trip to an auto-electrician is your call, not mine.

Pros

  • Genuinely stops a thief who already has the keys
  • Widely trusted
  • Relay-proof — beats the keyless theft method

Cons

  • Invisible, so no deterrent while the car is being chosen
  • Professional install, several hundred dollars-plus, and a wait
  • PIN on every drive
#3

The Club

Acts at: the moment of choosing

6/10
A classic metal bar steering-wheel lock (The Club) fitted across a car steering wheel.

The Club is the steering lock most people picture — a metal bar that hooks across the wheel so it can’t be turned. Like the pick at number one, it works by being seen: a thief spots it through the glass and moves to an easier car.

The idea is sound; it’s the hardware that lets it down. It’s bulky and heavy, so it lives in the boot — and a lock in the boot is one you stop bothering with after a fortnight. It’s slower to fit than a cable, the hard steel can scratch the wheel, and the long rigid bar sits close to the glass — catch the windscreen putting it on or taking it off and you’re up for a new one.

As a visible deterrent it still does a job against an opportunist. It’s just the heaviest, most awkward way to do it — and it’s no cheaper than the modern alternative.

Pros

  • Visible deterrent — works at the choosing stage
  • Solid, hardened-steel build
  • Nothing to install

Cons

  • Bulky and heavy
  • Slower to fit, and the steel can scratch the wheel
  • The long rigid bar can crack the windscreen going on or off
  • No cheaper than a modern lock
#4

Viper 3103V Car Alarm

Acts at: entry

5/10
A Viper 3103V car alarm siren and control unit.

The Viper 3103V is a well-built alarm — a two-stage shock sensor, a proper siren, professionally installed. The whole idea is that the noise brings attention, and attention makes whoever's at the car leave.

It never brought anyone. I've had them going while I worked. You get maybe ten seconds of someone looking out a window, then they go back to whatever they were doing. If anything, one going off told me the car was worth taking.

Pros

  • Well-built hardware
  • Set-and-forget once installed

Cons

  • Car alarms are widely ignored now
  • Acts only after entry
  • Needs professional install
#5

TK905B GPS Tracker

Acts at: after the car's gone

3/10
A TK905B magnetic GPS vehicle tracker unit.

The TK905B is a recovery tool, not a deterrent. It's a magnetic GPS unit that sits under the car and reports its location to an app, on a monthly subscription. It does nothing to stop a theft — its entire job begins after the car is already gone.


I never once thought about a tracker. Not because I was clever about it — because it isn't a factor at the point where the decision gets made. By the time one is doing anything, I've already got the car. Whatever happened after that was someone else's problem.

Pros

  • Can aid recovery and help police
  • Works without you doing anything

Cons

  • Does nothing to prevent the theft
  • Ongoing subscription and SIM
  • Only tells you where the car went

What it costs

$79.99RRP $99.99

  • Free Faraday pouch (KeySafe, $29.99 value)
  • 120-day money-back guarantee
  • 2-year warranty
  • Free tracked shipping
  • Australian-owned, Melbourne

View Lock'd Car Defender →$79.99 · Free Faraday pouch · 120-day money-back guarantee

Comments (16)

  1. Greg Mullins4 days ago

    had mine about three weeks. some little grub tried the door on my hilux last tuesday, took one look at the yellow and just kept walking. didnt even touch it. best 80 bucks i ever spent honestly

    Sandra Kelly3 days ago

    same thing happened two streets over from me. they dont want the hassle they just move to the next one that hasnt got anything on it

  2. Pete Donnelly1 week ago

    ive run an autowatch ghost for years and rate it highly, but ill admit the writers got a point i hadnt thought about. it only does anything once theyre in the car trying to start it. by then my windows already smashed. still worth having, just not the whole answer

    Marcus Hale6 days ago

    yep got mine after the last one got pinched. brilliant bit of kit but youre right, doesnt stop them having a go. window still cost me 400

  3. Wayne Fitzgerald5 days ago

    not sure id put a visible lock at number one. a determined bloke just cuts it off. id rather something hidden they dont even know is there

    Karen Sultana5 days ago

    wayne thats the bit though, the determined ones are rare. round my way its random kids and they take one look and move to the next one. different threat

  4. Bianca Cole1 week ago

    we had a viper on the old commodore. went off every time a truck rumbled past and not one person ever looked. ended up turning it off ourselves in the end lol

  5. Jason Middleton3 days ago

    nearly bought a gps tracker last year, glad i didnt. all it does is show you where its gone. thats not stopping anything

    Ruth Ashby3 days ago

    had one on my old ute. got taken, we knew exactly where it was, in a container at the port. never saw it again. recovery isnt the same as stopping it

  6. Megan Trevisan1 week ago

    genuine question because i dont know much about these. cant they just cut it off with an angle grinder in a few seconds

    Rob Fenech6 days ago

    a grinder cuts anything, no lock stops that. but the kids nicking cars round here are 16 and carrying a screwdriver not a power tool. its about not being the easy one

  7. Trevor Willis5 days ago

    is this just the old club under a new name. we had one of those in the 90s

    Dave Papadopoulos5 days ago

    its a cable not a bar, loops the wheel and clips onto the seatbelt then folds into the door pocket. the club was a pain you never had it handy. this one lives in the car

  8. Faisal Rahman1 week ago

    i just run the lot after being done twice. faraday on the keys, lock on the wheel, tracker as backup. call me paranoid but im not going through that again

  9. Marv Kessler5 days ago

    was sure 80 bucks meant junk so i nearly skipped it. the 120 day money back is the only reason i tried. two months on its still on the wheel every night, didnt send it back. does the job

  10. Janet Coleman1 week ago

    didnt think a bit of yellow cable would do much but my streets had three cars go this year and the ones with something on the wheel are the ones still sitting there. that told me enough

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What it adds up to

None of this is an argument for going without the others. Security works in layers, and bodies like the RACV and Victoria Police recommend a visible lock alongside an immobiliser, not instead of one. But layered or not, three of these five only act once a car has already been chosen. That first stage — the decision a thief makes from the footpath — is the one almost everyone leaves open, and it’s the one the top pick covers.

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