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Fri Nov 05, 2010 3:24 pm

tencentlife wrote: Just get a big dog and let him live in your van. A better security system has never been devised. Ask the cops, they'll tell you the same: if you don't want your car stolen, you need active security, i.e. something that will rip a thieve's friggin arm off if he's stupid enough to stick it in the car.
We used to have a 120 pound lab/ridgeback mix that would curl up on the floor in front of the drivers seat whenever we left him in the van. My favorite was to leave the keys in the ignition and my wallet on the dashboard. He would not have taken kindly to an arm coming through the window.. RIP Gus!

Tue Feb 08, 2011 5:11 am

climberjohn wrote:

-CJ

climber john-
lovely idea i think! im looking to do something like this too. is there a plastic vent cover you mention that goes over the hole in the pillar here and hides the switch? i certainly dont have one on my 84, but would certainly make this mod better...

good stuff
john.

Tue Feb 08, 2011 10:23 am

There is a vent/louver cover - it is black and has some felt to seal with the door. I took a few minutes to look at the GW and VC websites to see if I could find the part and photo. No luck.

It's got to be out there somewhere....

Sun Jan 27, 2013 2:25 pm

Seems like an easier solution would be to just install a battery kill switch. There are some that have a key that is removable.

This won't prevent a break in, but will keep someone from driving away in your van...

Flash

Sun Jan 27, 2013 2:53 pm

Where you propose to mount that monster battery kill switch?

Bosch makes one too, which may be easier to mount.

0 341 001 001 or 006 maybe other Bosch numbers.

Sun Jan 27, 2013 3:16 pm

Flash Kaleo wrote: Seems like an easier solution would be to just install a battery kill switch. There are some that have a key that is removable.

Problem being that the clock, radio presets, radio settings and radio clock will always be wrong.
If you have a learning type of conversion the ECU will always be reset to the factory map and anything learned will be lost- altitude correction, driving style etc.
If someone really wants to steal a car nothing will stop them only slow them down. Bypass a battery kill switch? Easy, jump the 2 legs or unbolt one leg and rebolt it to the other leg or bypass the entire thing.
A tow bar or trailer makes quick work of it as well.

Sun Jan 27, 2013 4:04 pm

climberjohn wrote: My approach: Rather than mess with the fuel pump power supply, I added a switch to the fuel pump ground.

That's not exactly the most secure of kill-switch solutions. If the bleep thief is just a wander-by, then it'll probably deter them - yes. But the damage to your van will already be done. You're still walking for assistance.

If, otoh, the thief has a bit of time and inclination on his side, that set up is just about the easiest to actually get round. He hotwires the ignition lock. All the dash lights come on - but... no buzz of fuel pump, and no start. A quick look at where the pump sits - and, oho, what's going on here at the earth terminal? Two seconds to swap the earth lead back and... bingo. Security bypassed. Start. Drive off. Even if you remove the old lead, it still only needs the new wire cutting and shorting off manually. Easy to bodge.

Sun Jan 27, 2013 4:12 pm

AdrianC wrote: climberjohn wrote: My approach: Rather than mess with the fuel pump power supply, I added a switch to the fuel pump ground.

That's not exactly the most secure of kill-switch solutions.

I don't agree. I can hear the thief yelling at the bus, "Dang Vanagons NEVER work right! Why do people still drive these things???" :lol: :lol:

Sun Jan 27, 2013 4:26 pm

As stated elsewhere, you are keeping honest people honest.

What you are doing is slowing a thief down.

If they really, really want something, they WILL get it.

I have even seen cars that were chained to the shop floor vanish.....

Wed Sep 04, 2013 3:18 pm

Say I want to install a kill switch for the fuel pump but want to hide it in plain sight. I sat in the driver's seat and looked around. How about the dash light dimmer switch right under the headlight on/off switch? Since I installed LED dash lights, it doesn't seem to do much. Would it be possible to convert it into a kill switch? If so, how? (I'm not a master electrician but I can follow directions.)

Wed Sep 04, 2013 4:55 pm

This is a cool setup. It uses a read switch that get activated with a magnet and a double pole double throw relay. Its extra cool if you have the steel dash like my 84 has. Because you can have a magnet or two on the dash, but the van won’t start unless the magnet is in the right position. Very cheap too. All this stuff can be found at your local radio shack.

Wed Sep 04, 2013 7:22 pm

Like I said above just have a switch (like the defrost or fog light) hooked to the fuel pump ground. Realistically the only way the thief will be able to steal (can't drive away) the bus is to haul it onto a flatbed, and then you can use your GPS locator to find it. Yes, you can never totally stop a thief but you can make it harder and undriveable and then help the cops catch up to the perp. :P

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=568723

Wed Sep 04, 2013 7:30 pm

Trunk Monkey

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WFqr3_frh3Q&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DWFqr3_frh3Q

Thu Sep 05, 2013 9:35 am

rockfish wrote: There is a vent/louver cover - it is black and has some felt to seal with the door. I took a few minutes to look at the GW and VC websites to see if I could find the part and photo. No luck.

It's got to be out there somewhere....
You mean this....

Thu Sep 05, 2013 10:01 am

Syncro Pilot wrote: Trunk Monkey

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WFqr3_frh3Q&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DWFqr3_frh3Q

I want one! :)

Thu Sep 05, 2013 1:07 pm

I have been using the built-in anti-theft prevention designed by VW's engineers... the ignition switch that fails.

Thu Sep 05, 2013 1:32 pm

On my side, i also have a switch on the ground of the fuel pump and i always put a bar in the steering wheel.

As some says, a crazy thieft could always take it, but he will have a some trouble.

Thu Sep 05, 2013 1:33 pm

wouldn't a switch to ground the Tach signal suffice to create a non-start scenario? that pulls off the Pulse side of the coil?
I'm asking because I don't know but for the 85+ vans the wire is right in the instrument cluster already.

then again with a switch on the dash, it's really no different than just adding another switch inline on the Ign key circuit.

on mom's van when we got it there was a kill switch that interupted the fuel pump power feed. it spliced in at the firewall and was located under the back seat in a hidden location. presumably for trailhead or longer term security than a grocery store concern.

Thu Sep 05, 2013 1:46 pm

danfromsyr wrote: it's really no different than just adding another switch inline on the Ign key circuit.

The 2nd owners of my van did just that: Kill switch wired into the ignition switch. When I took the switch out to diagnose a near no-start problem, I couldn't help but notice that they had used some wimpy wires in order to connect to the tiny switch terminals (instead of finding tiny connectors to accommodate the larger wires needed)... surprising the van didn't have a dash fire earlier in its life (the switch got fried at Home Depot a couple years ago, hence the near no-start). :shock:

One of these days I'll get around to adding a kill switch to the fuel pump circuit, with the switch hidden instead of being right there on the dash.

Thu Sep 05, 2013 2:03 pm

I think that it would be great to wire up a hidden/secret kill switch, but take it one step further and wire in a relay that is connected to a hidden horn so that if the starter solenoid is powered up without the kill switch being tripped, the horn blows. In other words, the kill switch would have to be in it's deactivated position to both start the car and stop the horn from going off while turning over the starter. That way the hidden horn blows each time the thief tries to turn over the engine.