AndrewTO

I mean, having a club on the steering wheel does add some extra time the thief has to take into consideration before deciding to steal your vehicle so it is a visual deterrent.

That said, clubs don't exactly deter some thieves: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toron...heft-1.5394747. Thieves who want your car will do whatever it takes. If I lived in Ottawa, I would not be driving an RX because apparently many are stolen from that city due to its proximity to Montreal where they're shipped off in containers to other countries.

There's still quite a few thefts of RXs (and LXs, Highlanders, 4Runners, etc...) in the GTA area, but because there's so many RXs out there... I like to think, what are the chances...

blayze1983

Yeah, the Lexus/Toyota thefts in particular are getting a lot of attention in the Toronto media these days. You'd think the manufacturers would deal with this FOB security weakness given how long it's been prevalent but I guess they just can't be bothered to give two ****s as long as people keep buying.

CL1000

One has to keep in mind that there are numerous different risks, and each one has different safeguards that will help deter and prevent the risk from occurring. This is not a definitive list but should give you a general sense of the risks and the safeguards that you can apply to keep your vehicle safe.

There is no such thing as 100% security but you can significantly reduce the risks by implementing a "defense in depth" approach to securing your vehicle. Use at least 3-4 safeguards together to help frustrate and thwart the thieves. Try and use a combination of "Prevention, Detection and Response" safeguards, with most emphasis placed on Prevention.

The Lexus has several built-in security safeguards, for preventing, detecting, and responding to vehicle theft, however, it also has some serious Achilles heels or vulnerabilities that you should address.

Risk 1: Theft of Objects from Vehicle (Smash and Grab)
- Keep your vehicle clean and tidy, with no valuable objects visible. Hide the rest in the trunk area (best hidden in the spare tire area), covered up, if you must have them in the vehicle.
- Remove valuable ownership and insurance papers and keep them in your wallet instead. Keep no personal information in the vehicle.
- Either keep your glove box locked, or open your glove box (and center console) showing that they are empty.
- Have a laminated sign made up that you can put in the window which states "No valuables Inside"

Risk 2: Running Vehicle or Keys Left Inside (Vehicle Theft)
- The attack involves a thief taking your vehicle if you are dumb enough to leave it running as you dash into a store, or leave the key FOB in the car, or leave the car unlocked.
- Don't leave your vehicle unlocked for any amount of time, or leave the key FOB left in the vehicle or leave the vehicle running. Simple.

Risk 3: Key FOB Relay Attack (Vehicle Theft)
- The attack involves easy to obtain technology and two thieves. One thief stands near the front door holding up a wire antenna, and the other stands near the car. The antenna/technology pings the key FOB and picks up the proximity signal then relays it to the second thief standing near the vehicle. The vehicle thinks that the key FOB is nearby, and allows thief #2 to open the door, start the engine and driveway. Less than 30 seconds required. This usually occurs at 3-4 AM.
- The key FOBs work in two ways - wireless/proximity (vulnerable) and push-button lock/unlock (not particularly vulnerable).
- Turn off the proximity functionality via vehicle settings and using the key FOB itself (hold Lock while pressing Unlock twice).
- Farraday pouches and even tin boxes are definitely RF "leaky" (I have tested) and should NOT be solely relied on.
- After turning proximity functionality off, wrap the spare key FOB, that you almost never use, in two pieces of tin foil and store in a tin box (e.g. Tea tin).
- For your primary key FOB, turn proximity off and wrap in tin foil, keep in tin box, especially at night.
- Keep both key FOBs in a central area of the house or near the back of the house, away from the front door.
- Consider CCTV camera(s) on the front of your house, if you can. And a CCTV warning sign. If aimed at the street, you might pick up the malicious actor's vehicle license plate, as they drive around casing your place. It won't catch them on video carrying out the attack as they usually completely cover-up.
- Always park your vehicle in your garage if you can. This will greatly reduce the risk. If you must park on the driveway, park another vehicle just behind it if you can.
- You can add a double prong steering wheel club (e.g. The Club 3000), for a bit of deterrence but keep in mind serious thieves come prepared for this will just saw the steering wheel if needed, which will take less than 3 minutes. The double prong ones require at least two cuts. They are also fairly easy to drill and compromise the lock.

Risk 4: OBD Port Attack (Vehicle Theft)
- The attack involves a thief pulling off the door handle, gaining access to the vehicle, then gaining access to the OBD port. Then, the ECU is accessed, a new "key" is generated, or "cloned" and used to start the vehicle. The steering wheel lock must also be compromised. The total time needed is about 20-30 minutes.
- One safeguard is using a "dummy" OBD port anti-theft system available on eBay. This involves replacing the OBD port with a fake one (the more convincing ones have multi-colored wiring attached like the OEM one) and moving the original OBD port to a hidden area (so that it can still be accessed) such as under the seat.
- There are also OBD port locks available, however, they can be easily defeated by thieves. But you can add one to your dummy OBD connector to make it much harder for the thief.
- You can add an "OBD Port Disabled" sticker to your driver's side window to act as a deterrence. These are available on eBay.
- You can add a double prong steering wheel club (e.g. The Club 3000) but keep in mind thieves will just saw the steering wheel if needed. The double prong ones require at least two cuts. They are also fairly easy to drill and compromise the lock.

Missing Fuse Safeguard
- One very simple, inexpensive, and highly effective safeguard, as a last layer of defense, is to simply pull a couple of fuses from the engine's fuse box. There are many which can essentially disable the vehicle such as the fuel injector and fuel pump fuses, as well as others. The thieves will not want to start troubleshooting the problem and looking at fuses, particularly in the dark at 4 am. Make sure you test your choice of fuse(s) removal to make sure the vehicle won't run. (you will have to be prepared to reset system errors).
- To improve this safeguard further, make a "dummy" fuse to replace the pulled one. Carefully drill out the center part of the fuse to break the link so that the fust won't work. You can then insert the dummy fuse into the original fuse slot to further confuse the thieves if they decide to start troubleshooting.
- Make sure to remove the spare fuses and fuse puller attached to the underside of the fuse cover. You can hide these in a ziplock back somewhere in the vehicle.
- The downside of this safeguard is that it takes a few minutes twice a day to put into effect. But it might be worth it to you to prevent vehicle theft if you can not keep your vehicle in a protected space (e.g. garage).

Vehicle Immobilizer Switch Safeguard
- Another highly effective safeguard is to install a vehicle immobilizer switch. This switch goes inline with a key ECU circuit and when turned in the off position, prevents the vehicle from running. You have to hide the switch in a very inconspicuous area where the thieves will not look as they hunt for it once they realize the vehicle likely has one.
- The main downsides are cost and likely need for a professional installation by an aftermarket vehicle security company. If you are handy, you could likely do it yourself.

Wheel Chock Safeguard
- This can add some deterrence because it will take some time for the thieves to defeat, but most can be defeated.
- The locks can be drilled out. A thief may not want to start drilling with a lot of noise at 4 am.

Aftermarket Security Systems Safeguards
- There are many aftermarket security systems which can add an additional layer of security over and above the Lexus security system. These include active, passive, and GPS recovery tracking devices.
- The main downsides are that they will not address some of the primary risks (e.g. Relay Attack and OBD Port Attack), they are expensive and often require professional installation.


I hope that this has provided some food for thought and will help you secure your precious Lexus!

blayze1983

Thanks so much for the comprehensive summary - as a new owner this was very helpful for me personally.

I'm mostly concerned with Risks 3 & 4. It sounds like beyond common sense measures (ie: parking in a garage, not leaving FOB exposed near car, disabling if necessary, etc), there isn't a whole lot more you can do. Good to know those pricey aftermarket alarms aren't effective when it comes to these two risks in particular.

Although a thief can easily saw it off, it sounds like it's worthwhile to have a Club (double pronged) as a visual deterrence, at least when I'm parking in public spaces or sketchier neighbourhoods. Other than the minor inconvenience of locking/unlocking it, there isn't much downside. Surprisingly I don't see any RX's with the Club here in Toronto even though we're a hotspot for thefts.

Do you guys use the Club in your RX's?

CL1000

I do use the Club 3000, in Ottawa. It does provide some deterrence.

ellocovg

iTrader: (1)

Unfortunately no matter what you use if they want it bad enough they’ll take it. When I was a kid my first “Nice” car was a two year old Honda Accord Stick shift. I had a steering wheel club, a clutch pedal club, a alarm with backup battery. During a snowstorm they broke into my car and smashed my dash trying to pry out my radio. When that didn’t work they stole my screwdriver from the glovebox and took out the two screws that held it in place. Fortunately the weight of the snow didn’t let the trunk pop up so they didn’t steal my subs, amps, capacitors. At the end of the day no matter what safety deterrents you use they are just that you hope that they move on to an easier target.

On a side note I’m impressed they can steal the signal from outside of the house. I have a hard time using the autostart out of my window 10’ away.

CL1000

You shouldn't take the attitude that thieves will take your Lexus no matter what you do. That is basically a lazy person’s thinking. While there is no such thing as 100% security, it is absolutely possible to reduce the risks very significantly. The balance of risk will be covered by insurance. Your goal should be to make it as difficult and challenging as possible for the thieves to take your vehicle by implementing a defense in depth protection strategy (e.g. 4-5 safeguards) that addresses current known and predictable risks. Enough that the thieves will quit trying and go onto a weakly defended Lexus.

The main theft attacks these days are Relay Attack and OBD Attack. Both have low-cost methods to foil car thieves.

To protect your RX 350 (and most other Lexus' and vehicles):

1. Keep your vehicle clean and tidy (No cost).
2. Remove all valuables including personal information and leave the glove box and center console open if parked in a vulnerable area, to show that there are no valuables. Place a "No Valuables Inside" piece of paper on the driver's door area if parked in a vulnerable area (No cost).
3. If you must store valuables in the vehicle hide them out of plain sight such as in the spare wheel well area (No cost).
4. Never leave the vehicle unlocked or running if you are not around (No cost).
5. Park in a protected space (e.g. garage) if at all possible. Lock the vehicle (No cost).
6. Park another vehicle defensively behind it if possible so that the vehicle can not be driven away (No cost).
7. Turn on key FOB battery saver mode (press and hold Lock while pressing Unlock twice) to turn off "Smart Access" wireless functionality to help prevent a relay attack (No cost).
8. Place key FOBs in tin foil then place them in a tin. Keep near the center or rear of the house not near the front door to help prevent a relay attack (No cost).
9. Install a dummy OBD connector (and hidden real OBD connector) to help prevent an OBD attack (~$50). Place an “OBD Disabled” sticker on the driver door window (~$5). Install an OBD lock on the dummy OBD connector to make the thieves think it is real (~$50). Install a dummy (just drill the center of one out) 7.5 amp fuse in the OBD fuse location, located in the fuse area, underneath the left dash area. Keep the real OBD fuse well hidden somewhere in the vehicle for when you need it (~$1).
10. Install a hidden vehicle immobilizer such as the Ghost II or a hidden kill switch. This can be highly effective against relay, OBD, and other theft-related attacks, but is more expensive (~$500).
11. Install a battery disconnect (also called a battery isolator) and remove the handle when parked in a vulnerable area ($15).
12. Remove 1 or 2 primary fuses (e.g. fuel pump) to prevent the vehicle from running if parked in a vulnerable area. If possible replace the fuse(s) with non-functioning dummy fuses (e.g. purposefully drilled out ones) (No cost).
13. Use a double prong Club 3000 steering wheel lock as a partial deterrent if parked in a vulnerable area (~$50).
14. Sleep well at night knowing you have done all that you reasonably can do to help prevent your Lexus RX from being stolen. It is now highly unlikely that even the most experienced thieves could take your vehicle. Not without hours of unfettered access to troubleshooting all of the problems you created for them. And that is something they just don't want to do at 4 am on your driveway.

lexnewbi

Some of these clubs are not well designed and the lock can be bypassed easily. See at 3:00:

blayze1983

That's highly discouraging and disturbing. Not sure what the engineers were thinking positioning that access circle there...

I guess it literally is just a visual deterrent so they could care less how effective it is at actual protection lol

CL1000

The video shows somewhat of a lock pick expert defeating it. The average Lexus thief won’t be able to do that and will likely saw the steering wheel instead.

CL1000

I wanted to repeat here what I have been suggesting in another thread, to hopefully give you some ideas on how to protect your 4RX from theft. Hopefully, this will give you some insight into current theft attacks and the safeguards that you can put in place.

You should never take the attitude that thieves will take your Lexus no matter what you do. That is basically a lazy person’s thinking. While there is no such thing as 100% security, it is absolutely possible to reduce the risks very significantly. The small balance of risk will be covered by insurance. Your goal should be to make it as difficult and challenging as possible for the thieves to take your vehicle by implementing a defense in depth protection strategy (e.g. 4-5 safeguards) that addresses current known and predictable risks. Enough that the thieves will quit trying and go onto someone else's' weakly defended Lexus.

The main theft advanced attacks these days are the Relay Attack and the OBD Attack. Both have low-cost methods to foil car thieves.

To protect your RX (and most other Lexus' and vehicles):

1. Keep your vehicle clean and tidy (No cost).
2. Remove all valuables including personal information and leave the glove box and center console open if parked in a vulnerable area, to show that there are no valuables. Place a "No Valuables Inside" piece of paper on the driver's door area if parked in a vulnerable area (No cost).
3. If you must store valuables in the vehicle hide them out of plain sight such as in the spare wheel well area (No cost).
4. Never leave the vehicle unlocked or running if you are not around (No cost).
5. Park in a protected space (e.g. garage) if at all possible. Lock the vehicle (No cost).
6. Park another vehicle defensively behind it if possible so that the vehicle can not be driven away (No cost).
7. Turn on key FOB battery saver mode (press and hold Lock while pressing Unlock twice) to turn off "Smart Access" wireless functionality to help prevent a relay attack (No cost).
8. Place key FOBs in tin foil then place them in a tin. Farraday pouches can be 'RF leaky'. Keep keys near the center or rear of the house not near the front door to help prevent a relay attack (No cost).
9. Install a dummy OBD connector (and hidden real OBD connector) to help prevent an OBD attack (~$50) then install an OBD lock on the dummy OBD connector to make the thieves think it is real (~$50). Or, change the OBD connector to a completely different type of female connector (computing ATX connectors work well), then create a 'patch' cable with the original OBD connector at one end, and the matching new matching male connector at the other end. Keep the patch cable away from the vehicle and only bring it out when you or the dealer need to do an OBD check. ($20). Place an “OBD Disabled” sticker on the driver door window, available on eBay (~$5). Install a dummy (just drill the center of one out) 7.5 amp fuse in the OBD fuse location, located in the fuse area, underneath the left dash area. Keep the real OBD fuse well hidden somewhere in the vehicle for when you need it (~$1).
10. Install a hidden vehicle immobilizer such as the Autowatch Ghost II or a hidden kill switch. This can be highly effective against relay, OBD, and other theft-related attacks, but is more expensive (~$500).
11. Install a battery disconnect (also called a battery isolator) and remove the turn handle when parked in a vulnerable area ($15).
12. Remove 1 or 2 primary fuses (e.g. fuel pump) to prevent the vehicle from running if parked in a vulnerable area. If possible replace the fuse(s) with non-functioning dummy fuses (e.g. purposefully drilled out ones) (No cost).
13. Use a double prong Club 3000 steering wheel lock as a partial deterrent if parked in a vulnerable area (~$50).
14. Sleep well at night knowing you have done all that you reasonably can do to help prevent your RX from being stolen. It is now highly unlikely that even the most experienced thieves could take your vehicle. Not without hours of unfettered access to troubleshooting all of the problems you created for them. And that is something they just don't want to do at 4 am in the dark on your driveway.

blayze1983

Do you guys leave your ownership information in the glove compartment or do you carry it in your wallet?

When I was picking up my new RX the dealership recommended never using your actual home address in the navigation since a thief could steal your car, drive to your house and use the garage door opener to get into the house. Made me start thinking about vehicle ownership which also has the address.

ellocovg

iTrader: (1)

I’ll be the lazy man but at the end of the day mine sleeps in the garage at the end of a one car width driveway with my wife’s RDX and my work van in front of it so I guess it’s as safe as it’s gonna get.

Having grown up in a tough neighborhood you grow up with the common sense of don’t leave any valuables visible especially loose change. You learn there are three types of ppl you need to worry about.

1) In the city what we lovingly call “crack heads” These are the worst ones because they just want money and don’t care of consequences. If they see loose change in your cup holder, a radar or back then a face off radio that they assume you put the face under your car seat or a portable gps they don’t care if it’s 12 noon in front of a police station they are going to smash your window.

2) Young kids that just run into something so easy they can’t help themselves or are looking for something quick like again back then hids or your special edition wheels or sound system usually for themselves or to sell to one of there boys.

3) Professionals these are the guys that are stealing your car and before you know it’s in a shipping container or in a chop shop. Or they are on the lookout for a specific part that was “ordered”.

Your sign on the windows will be laughed at by all of these and #2 might smash your window just to be an *******. #3 will most of the time just plop car onto a flatbed and not even ever open the car in two minutes there in it with a slim Jim and a air wedge but they are knowledgeable enough to bypass almost any security measures.

I love my RX she’s called Lexxy and probably one of my favorite car ever but I won’t do anything more than common sense stuff.

1) If you leave your car running unattended you deserve to have it stolen.
2) If you leave it unlocked your inviting ppl to rummage through it.
3) If you leave your laptop case or baggage out in the open your inviting someone to see what’s in it.
4) If you park walk out with something of value pop your trunk put it in the trunk and walk away your inviting whoever is watching you to check what it was you didn’t want to leave out in the open.

As far as actually stealing it I still think whatever you do is just for your own piece of mind. There going to get into your car and trash it trying to bypass whatever security you put in. The car will never feel the same and you will be sad the insurance didn’t just total it out. My friend is a auto electrician and he does work for allot of independent dealers and I’ve seen him crank over every single kind of car you can think of without a key. Auction vehicles that are purchased without a key and the dealers want to know if the engine is good before they waste the money to do repairs and have a key made, if not they just cut there losses and relist it back at auction.

AndrewTO

I always keep my ownership and insurance in my wallet - they're thin pieces of paper anyways so it's not a big deal.

CL1000

"As far as actually stealing it I still think whatever you do is just for your own piece of mind. There going to get into your car and trash it trying to bypass whatever security you put in. The car will never feel the same and you will be sad the insurance didn’t just total it out. My friend is a auto electrician and he does work for allot of independent dealers and I’ve seen him crank over every single kind of car you can think of without a key. Auction vehicles that are purchased without a key and the dealers want to know if the engine is good before they waste the money to do repairs and have a key made, if not they just cut there losses and relist it back at auction." (spelling mistakes and poor grammar left in)

Like I said earlier, this is nothing more than a lazy person's thinking. It is possible to deter thieves by analyzing the specific risks and putting in place safeguards to prevent them. Your friend the auto electrician wasn't "cranking out a key" on your driveway at 4 am, with very limited time (minutes) to get the job done. So that is completely different than the actual real risk. Preventing the OBD attack from how I explained to do it earlier will prevent this actual risk. So your logic doesn't make any sense.