[Mike02z]

Originally Posted by SwankPeRFection

^^^^ I remember having a removable faceplate on the CD player I installed in my first car. I would pop it off and take it with me. Lol

I had one of those on an Alpine stereo. I also used “The Club” even though at the time no one wanted to steal the junk I drove.

[RustD0ntSle3p]

Originally Posted by rtaschengeld

Totally agree. It just shows that if something isn't nailed down, it immediately becomes a target for theft.

Incidentally I looked at getting an M340i and would have specced the Driving Assistant Plus on that too, so in all likelihood it would have happened to me anyway. Not that this helps, of course.

Nowadays, at least round' here, being nailed down does not even seem to make a difference when it comes to things getting stolen...

BTW- that's an interesting username. Must take a lot of taschengeld to live in London, eh? Especially post-covid

I presume not, but does anyone know if BMW has at least put a VIN tag on these radar units? If they did, I would guess it is just a sticker or something that can easily be peeled off.

[davidmct-M3]

Originally Posted by RustD0ntSle3p

Nowadays, at least round' here, being nailed down does not even seem to make a difference when it comes to things getting stolen...

BTW- that's an interesting username. Must take a lot of taschengeld to live in London, eh? Especially post-covid

I presume not, but does anyone know if BMW has at least put a VIN tag on these radar units? If they did, I would guess it is just a sticker or something that can easily be peeled off.

London is a lot safer than many American cities. Never had an issue in many decades.

[charlie360]

Originally Posted by rtaschengeld

Hello all

Unfortunately the front radar on my M3 Touring (still running it in but enjoying it so far...) was stolen during the night while it was parked outside my home in London.

Obviously this is incredibly annoying and disappointing but I worry that if I even replace it, there's nothing to stop it happening again. It seems far too easy to remove this piece of equipment given how expensive it is to replace (I've been quoted £2,400 by BMW just for the two parts I require). The BMW dealer I corresponded with said as much but also said there was no way to make them more secure.

I've seen a few references to aftermarket solutions to making them harder to steal but wondered whether anyone had any experience of them.

I'm trying to look on the bright side. At least there was no damage to the car, unlike when the wheel was stolen on my X5 M50d and that required quite a bit of repair.

Many thanks in advance.

p.s. I'm calling it the 'radar' but it's the sensor which is used by the driving assistant plus, the semi-autonomous driving, active cruise control, etc. See photos...

Sadly I too had exactly the same thing happen in South West London (Tonsleys - Wandsworth) on my M3T last Tuesday evening (9th) though in my case they were slightly less thoughtful and cut the wiring loom too, so I need a new loom fitted, which is apparently a bumper off job. Currently being quoted just under £4K to resolve it, which feels a lot given that the tech pack as an option new is £1,835. I guess they were busy in SW London last week!

[5ilver-5amurai]

Originally Posted by Mike02z

I had one of those on an Alpine stereo. I also used “The Club” even though at the time no one wanted to steal the junk I drove.

Same here...never thought i'd need one again after last having one for our family car 30 years ago. The Club has come back in full swing in the Toronto area because of rampant car theft and the laws inability to actually punish criminals north of the border.

[JonD999]

Has anyone installed the anti theft kit?

[charlie360]

Originally Posted by JonD999

Has anyone installed the anti theft kit?

It's a good question, both BMW dealers I spoke to so far initially had never heard of the anti theft kit, until I searched up a part number (think it's 66315A336F7) and they now seem amenable to trying to fit it with a replacement radar.

The next problem will be though that when the theiving low-life try and nick the radar next time, they won't find it so easy and will presumably just pull harder and damage the bracket and grill etc - how does one prevent that?

[JonD999]

Originally Posted by charlie360

It's a good question, both BMW dealers I spoke to so far initially had never heard of the anti theft kit, until I searched up a part number (think it's 66315A336F7) and they now seem amenable to trying to fit it with a replacement radar.

The next problem will be though that when the theiving low-life try and nick the radar next time, they won't find it so easy and will presumably just pull harder and damage the bracket and grill etc - how does one prevent that?

Thanks, just curious as to what’s involved.

You can’t cover every eventuality, just make things a little more difficult to the point where hopefully they move on.

I did actually think about putting CT1 on the back of the cover or load of grease where they’d likely grip it

[charlie360]

Originally Posted by JonD999

Thanks, just curious as to what’s involved.

You can’t cover every eventuality, just make things a little more difficult to the point where hopefully they move on.

I did actually think about putting CT1 on the back of the cover or load of grease where they’d likely grip it

Looking closely at my grill, it seems as if they have used a flat object (large flat bladed screwdriver?) against the grill to lever the unit out, as they've left a small flat mark in the plastic, so I'm not sure if CT1 or grease would help, unless you were to fill the gap between the grill and the radar unit cover with CT1 to prevent them getting around the edges either by hand or with a screw driver, the only thing is that I guess they could push a screw driver through it - unless there's something more solid that could be fitted in around it?

[JonD999]

Originally Posted by charlie360

Looking closely at my grill, it seems as if they have used a flat object (large flat bladed screwdriver?) against the grill to lever the unit out, as they've left a small flat mark in the plastic, so I'm not sure if CT1 or grease would help, unless you were to fill the gap between the grill and the radar unit cover with CT1 to prevent them getting around the edges either by hand or with a screw driver, the only thing is that I guess they could push a screw driver through it - unless there's something more solid that could be fitted in around it?

Ahhh I see was certain on how the radar is actually attached.

[charlie360]

Originally Posted by JonD999

Ahhh I see was certain on how the radar is actually attached.

There's an aluminium mounting plate which is held on with two torqs screws below it, the actual sensor unit is held in place on the aluminium plate by three studs which locate into the back of the black plastic, slightly domed cover, you can see the plate with the torqs heads and the two lower studs in rtaschengeld's pictures - it is literally a very tight fit on those studs - they pulled mine off with enough force to bend the plate beneath too - so the concern is that if it is screwed onto the plate from behind, it'll look no different from the front, and increasing force will just bend the aluminium plate, but I suppose if they can't take the unit, it's cheaper to buy a new bracket and have it re-aligned/calibrated.

[charlie360]

Originally Posted by jro

Looks like you were also caught out by the mass theft of BMW radar sensors in SW London that happened on Monday night - welcome to a pretty unhappy club. As part of the £4k replacement for parts/labour I'm getting part 66315A336F7 fitted - "Retrofit Kit Theft Protect.front Radar" which seems to consist of a new mount, proper security bolts and some deterrent stickers. Not sure there's much more that can be done.

I too was caught out by it on Tuesday evening, in Wandsworth, how many others were taken in SW London and where else - surely if there were a lot and there is CCTV, the police/insurance companies might show a little more interest in pressuring BMW UK?

When I spoke to BMW UK customer service regarding the expense and ease with which they are being stolen - they couldn't care less.