Car Audio Security

[4Runner1371]

Ok...upon realizing how visible inside of my car is even with 15% tint and that I'm planning to get a dvd nav unit and how car theft are very common this days, is there anyplaces that sells fake faceplate that goes over the unit to conceal it? Or know of a good method to prevent car audio theft?
Even with car alarm they will least break my window before they realize that I have an alarm. Which is an expensive fix.
I'm trying to buy kenwood dnx7100 that just says "steal me!" and I don't feel like sleeping right by it with a gun.

 

[alaskanboi]

I don't know of a way to prevent theft... just ways to deter it. Alarms are one way to go.. most people realize there is an alarm due to the light that shows an alarm is activated. My alarm actually pages me when it goes off, so I can get to my car before someone has time to take off the dash. This is just one of the risks of getting something nice for a car.

Another, just accept the fact that people steal, and get insurance that covers it.

 

[atomic punk]

Get THIS , if you can find it.

Or buy a HU with a detachable face.

Don't pay attention to the Eclipse bullshit where you need a certain CD to put in the HU in order for it to work after cutting power to it (do they still do that?? I mean, who cares if the theif can't use it after he takes it from your vehicle, you don't have it anymore, that's the bottom line).

 

[Uneek]

I've seen someone cut the face off the stock radio and glued all the buttons back, so the face of the stock radio goes over the aftermarket HU and looks stocks from the outside. This was done on a 1996-2000 Civic.

 

[TimelessR1]

I've seen someone cut the face off the stock radio and glued all the buttons back, so the face of the stock radio goes over the aftermarket HU and looks stocks from the outside. This was done on a 1996-2000 Civic.

I second this idea, or even easier, get some ABS plastic, cut it to fit your screen, then with some nice 3M velcro you can velcro the ABS up , and when some one looks through the tint, it looks like there is nothing there

 

[tarheeltp17]

From an installers point of view, I can tell you that 4runners aren't the most popular vehicle to steal a radio from. Theifs are looking for radios they can slide 2 keys down the side and slide the radio out, not where they have to rip the dash off and take out 4 bolts. Sure that still only takes a couple of minutes, but sliding keys down the side takes seconds.

Not saying don't protect your car, but I do think some people worry too much about it.

The thing about cutting the face off the factory radio works very well with flip out tvs. You glue or velcro or whatever the old face to the closed face of the flip out, that way when its shut you see nothing but factory. Doing this on a double din would be pretty difficult unless you went the ABS plastic way.