Car theft in the UK has increased by 74% since 2015, and has even surpassed the previous nadir of the early 2000s. Even worse than that, the rate of recovery of stolen cars has never been worse. And this deterioration exists despite the increasing prevalence and sophistication of car security and location tracking systems.

The reasons for the increase in thefts and the low rates of recovery are myriad - car theft in the UK is mostly perpetrated by sophisticated organised criminals stealing to order, and cars are often broken to their difficult-to-trace component parts and sold for spares.

"Classic cars are disproportionately vulnerable to being stolen and never recovered..."

 What is clear by implication, though, is that classic cars - particularly modern classics - are disproportionately at risk of being stolen and never recovered. They have primitive or, in most cases, no serious theft prevention from the factory and certainly are not fitted with any form of decent tracking system.

What puts our classics at risk is also the likelihood that they are left unused for extended periods of time (e.g. during winter storage) and so are convenient targets for determined thieves - the worst kind of all.

There are many theft prevention mechanisms available for classics, most of them passive: steering wheel locks, wheel clamps, electrical isolators, alarms, and even aftermarket immobilisers. These are all necessary and worthy mechanisms. But once defeated, your car is gone, likely never to be seen again. What is needed to complement the passive security systems is an active tracker that alerts you of unauthorised movement of your car, as well as robust tracking data sent directly to police.

"Most aftermarket tracking systems available are not designed to serve the typical classic car use cases, but Classic Tracker is..."

Aftermarket tracking systems, however, are a minefield for modern cars, let alone classics, and they are definitely not all born equal. For classic cars, the challenge is even greater because most tracking systems are very much built for modern cars with modern electrical systems etc. What is needed, ideally, is a tracking system built specifically for the classic car use case: Classic Tracker.

Classic Tracker is built specifically for vehicles that are seldom used, likely sit for extended periods, and often have older electrical systems (e.g., 6 V or positive-earth setups). It is designed to consume very low amounts of current when the engine is off, and also tolerates the large drops in battery voltage that are typical when starting a classic car after long rest, avoiding false alarms. And, best of all, its installation is minimally intrusive: it is self-installed via just three wires (permanent live, ground, ignition).

Furthermore, the functional capabilities of Classic Tracker match or surpass those of most mainstream modern car trackers: 

• Real-time tracking via app/web interface means owners can see where their car is, location history, and receive alerts of unauthorised movement.

• “SafeZone” and “auto-geofence” features: owners can set up zones (e.g., one's garage) and get a notification if the car leaves that zone when it shouldn’t. 

• Remote immobilisation: In the event of theft, the owner (or via Classic Tracker service) can cut fuel/ignition via the tracker. 

• Internal backup battery: Even if the car battery is disconnected (a common tactic by thieves) the tracker continues to function and report location. 

• Anti-jamming & tamper alerts: The system recognises if someone tries to jam the GSM/GPS signal or tamper with the device and alerts the owner. 

 

 

"Classic Tracker offers benefits that only classic car owners really care about..."

Finally, Classic Tracker offers additional benefits that are specifically of interest to classic car owners, including:

• Recognised by most classic car insurers: while not guaranteed, fitting a specialised tracker may help when discussing insurance for high-value or seldom-used classics.

• Helps preserve the vehicle’s originality: minimal wiring, non-intrusive installation means less permanent modification of the vehicle.

• History/log of vehicle location and movement: If you take your car to shows, excursions or store it off-site, the tracking history gives you reassurance of what happened when you weren’t present.

• Recovery time is greatly improved: If the vehicle is stolen, the combination of live tracking, alerts and immobiliser means faster recovery (and less damage) compared to a non-tracked classic.

Vroom Classics is proud to count Classic Tracker is a partner, and we hope that you will consider using one of their amazing systems to protect your pride and joy from heartless thieves. 

View their most popular tracking system here.

 

For the love of classic cars.