Great Video on Tacoma Theft and Protecting Yourself

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tQVov0Ra8g

 

Yeah been a thing for awhile. Do the same thing with credit cards. RFID blocking wallets and you can turn off your fob to stop sending out the signal. So that for your spare fob too.

 

I saw this video a while back, and while it is very interesting and somewhat convincing, I am a little confused. I know that if I step about 6ft away from my truck, the doors cannot be unlocked and opened. So I just don't understand how someone is able to steal my FOB code and use it?

 

Your fob is constantly pinging a signal. Just gotta ride the signal, it gets amplified, and saved to the device. It's actually super easy.

 

The short version:
Organized crime can steal your FoB signal from 300 feet away
Copy it onto a blank FoB
Steal your vehicle now or in the future with it

 

Another reason to buy a MT. No pushbutton start.

 

you can also turn off the key when not in use. hold the LOCK button and press the UNLOCK button twice. you should see the light blink 4 times. this means the fob has been turned off and will not be transmitting until it is turned back on (by pressing any one of the buttons).

 

Copy fob code, unlock truck, wire around ignition, drive off.

 

Man, I just tried that on my FOB, and it worked! Where did you learn that from? COOL!

 

i cant take any credit, i saw it from somebody else on here

 

There's a transponder in the key that's read by a sensor at the ignition lck cylinder. They'd have to physically have one of your keys to copy it, and at that point, it's moot. They could still get access to the cab though.

 

Anything can be wired around if they have the know how and the time.

 

Stealing a push button start vehicle requires specific equipment, I don't know how hard it is to get or build since I'm not in the car stealing business.
But, any moron can pop out the ignition cylinder with a home made dent puller. Not seeing any advantage here, except supporting your local thieves

 

The only fast way to do that would be to swap the ECU with one pre-programmed with a known transponder code. This is how the Evo X gets stolen because the ECU is easily accessed under the hood. In the Tacoma it's buried under the dash.

Any brute force attempt to get the code would take too long. Better to just bring a repo truck and drive away with it in 30 seconds.

 

I knew they could do this but didnt realize they had a 300ft range to scoop the transmitters signal. thats ridiculous. Im thinking its time to put in that hidden kill switch.

 

Valid points from both. I don't mean to say MT can't be stolen. It's just not the same process as what was detailed in the video.
I've heard that MT is a theft deterrent. I'm not sure if that's because people think thieves can't drive MT or if they'll have a harder time selling it but that's probably only for smash and grab. If the thieves are organized and equipped like the ones in the video it probably doesn't matter.

I think this is the better solution. Add in a battery kill switch that only you know about.

 

Now THAT is a good idea, a hidden kill switch! But in thinking about it, it reminded me of the security system that came on my 96 Tacoma when I bought it new back in November of 1995, when the 96's first came out. The dealer installed these "Prolock" on all of the vehicles in the lot, in an effort to stop thieves. It was basically a plug in switch that was mounted under the dash in front of and below the steering wheel, that required you to plug in a computer chip in order for the truck to start. It could not be started without the chip. Now of course, as others have said, anything can be wired around, but it would have taken a LONG time to do it, so in effect, this was a great security device. The chip would clip onto your key ring so you just plugged it in, started the vehicle, and you could then take the chip out or whatever. I had been pretty secure with the keyless entry until I first saw this video and in reading this discussion. Now I am not so sure. I do know that I do not want a pouch of nay kind to put my fob into, as that would really defeat the purpose of having keyless ignition, as it just remains in my pocket and I just walk up to the truck, get in and push the button without having to even touch my FOB. But if I have to get an RF concealing pouch, then I have to take out the FOB, to get into the vehicle and to start it, and then put it back. Completely defeats the purpose of keyless ignition. Now, that all being said, I have to admit that this potential for being able to steal a FOB code does seem to be a serious concern. At the very least, I should probably get out my steeringwheel/brake lock device and start using it again. Wow. I have been pretty happy with my keyless entry for the past almost two years now, despite having misgivings before I bought the truck. Thanks again, for this post...

 

I think this is the better solution. Add in a starter relay kill switch that only you know about

 

This is one thing that I love about my 21 Trail edition, NO PUSH BUTTON START. For this exact reason. You can order the shit out of China to steal the FOB codes. Cant do that with a key.

 

I agree. Seems like it would just be easier to disable the FOB when you get out of the truck, and then unlock the truck by enabling the FOB when you get back to it. The pouch seems like a lot of trouble. JMO