How Thieves Are Bypassing Modern Vehicle Security – And How to Stop Them…

Car Thief

Technology is rapidly changing to prevent vehicle break-ins – but what techniques are thieves evolving in response? And what can car owners do to guard against these high-tech crimes?

Life is not like Grand Theft Auto. Criminals cannot simply walk up to a car and drive it off. Equally the days of smashing a window and hot wiring cars are well and truly over. According to crime figures the amount of cars stolen reached a 50 year all time low in 2015, with 69,547 vehicles being taken in an unauthorised manner.

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Things People Leave on a Parcel Shelf

ParcelshelfWe’ve all seen them. You’ve been trapped behind a car in a traffic jam and you’ve starred aimlessly at someone’s parcel shelf and wondered where on earth they have gathered all the stuff perched upon it. There is no doubt in many cases it’s just a simple attempt to characterise a car beyond the mundane styles of the showroom.

Over the years there have been many fashions for extra parcel shelf passengers. We thought we’d take a look at some of the most popular, including a few that are still going strong.

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What Your Wheel Rims Say About You…

Alloy wheelsOnce upon a time customising your car used to be solely the province of boy racers. Not these days as standing out from the crowd is becoming something for everyone. And one easy way to upgrade part of your vehicle is the rims. You don’t have to be in tune with engine mechanics or mess around with bodywork to change these simple wheel rims.

With so many people now changing their rims, we thought we’d form some broad generalisations about what kind of people opt for the various rims on offer in today’s market. This article takes a wry look at some of the possibilities… Continue reading →

How Social Media Networks Could End Crash for Cash Fraud

Driver suffering after traffic collisionWe’ve all heard the stories about so-called Crash for Cash scams. One of the most common is when cars brake suddenly in heavy traffic in order to deliberately get rear-ended. The occupants of the damaged vehicle then claim for hard-to-prove muscle injuries like whiplash.

Not only is this practice a little distasteful ethically, it’s downright dangerous. And apparently it’s having a real impact on the auto insurance industry. On average your premium is £50 per year higher due to highly organised criminal gangs who’re working these cons to acquire huge amounts of cash in false claims. Continue reading →

Replacing a Car Fuel Tank

Fuel tank filler

A fuel tank is used for one of the most obvious purposes in your vehicle – for holding the fuel. With some forms of modern fuel, such as diesel, a hole or fracture in your tank is dangerous. However if your car runs on petrol the problem could be explosive.

The first sign that you have issues with your fuel tank will be puddles of fuel around your car after it has been parked. Alternatively you may notice that the fuel consumption on your car is higher than normal. An actual inspection of the tank should visually confirm that there is a leak or drip occurring somewhere from the part. Fortunately replacing your vehicle’s fuel tank should be a relatively easy process with very little need to perform any complex mechanical work. However as fuel is involved in this replacement you should take extra care to be as methodical as possible, working in a well ventilated area with the appropriate fire extinguisher, which would need to be a Class B extinguisher.

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Fixing a Glove Box Latch

opening a glove box latch

The glove box is one of those essential items in a car. It’s where you keep your best of Queen CD case, even though the CD has been lost a long time ago, together with random knick-knacks, tools and perhaps even your owner’s manual or log book.

Alternatively you might be the tidy type who keeps almost nothing in the compartment other than a tin of travel sweets in case one of your passengers is feeling a little peaky. However you use your glove compartment, there’s one thing that you’ll want to avoid, which is having the latch break on you leaving the compartment door flapping around as you negotiate corners. This is a fairly easy task that does not require any previous mechanical knowledge and as you won’t be working under the bonnet, you won’t need to know any of the major working parts in the engine.

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Installing a New Steering Rack

steering rack

As with all moving parts in your car, the steering rack is likely to wear down over time and experience fatigue. This will take a few years, but the tell-tale signs are in the responsiveness of the car’s steering. If turning the wheel seems to take more effort than it used to, or if the whole system seems strangely sluggish, then you know you have a problem with the steering rack.

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