Club 80-90 Forums

I'm thinking of De-locking (covering or removing) the locks on mine, and was wondering if anyone has had success in doing so. I have central locking on the front 3 doors and will be fitting it to the tailgate soon.

I know a determined thief will just smash a window to gain access, but this is a step further than trying to mangle my locks and the shock sensor on the alarm should detect a window break. I'll be putting preparations in place for 'emergency access' should the battery run dead for example, so that's not an issue.

I'd be interested to hear the method used to cover the locks or if you simply remove them.

Thanks, Dave.

I'm not sure if you'd pass an MOT without an easy way to open a door from the outside in an emergency. Worth reading the MOT rules on doors and locks. I looked at doing this but couldn't see a way of doing it without the doors looking naff.

as covkid said probably woundnt be legal incase of an accident,but are you thinking of removing the locks from the door handles but leaving them in place.

fazzer wrote:as covkid said probably woundnt be legal incase of an accident,but are you thinking of removing the locks from the door handles but leaving them in place.

Hi Fazzer,

Yes I was just wanting to remove the locks from the door handles, so that they can't be screwdrivered open, but leave the handles in place for normal use obviously.

Simply put, I don't want to be able to lock/unlock the vehicle with the key, since the old locks are pretty unsecure.

Dave.

I'd think leave the lock and change the mechanism inside for a remote control solenoid, a thief will waste valuable time trying the lock, cover them and the thief instantly knows the window needs smashing.

It's a deterrent taking locks outs,smashing Windows is quite noisy a lot of thieves probably wouldn't bother.

Ok so take lock out, fill hole with filler, sand paint refit
the hard bit is getting the locks to work with a remote control solenoid.

itchyfeet wrote:Ok so take lock out, fill hole with filler, sand paint refit
the hard bit is getting the locks to work with a remote control solenoid.

when I bought my camper it has this set up,it lasted a week then I had to remove it,it was crap .i just made the van secure inside i fabricated a contraption that fits around brake and clutch pedal with a padlock my bro reckons i should sell them on internet.also made a bar that slips into window channels on the front doors so cant be opened.

Won't pass an Mot?
May invalidate your insurance?

Lol anyone mentioned that to the number of Tvr owners who bough a car with no door handles lol

In addition to minor manufacturers folks have been shaving cars for years with no ill effects

Cheers
Si

you are right but he only wants to remove the locks not handles.

You'll find it a lot of work to fit solenoids or self-locking units easily that will work reliably. The vast majority are cheaply made with the exception perhaps of a garage door opener which I experimented with very recently but they involve a great deal of cutting. Theres also the added risk that if your battery went flat, you can't get in unless you leave another lock free. In the end I bought new door locks that at least fight off lollypop sticks but it takes a second to break a window.

I've fitted several alarms but bizzarely the best two anti-theft devices I bought cost under £3 combined. Unfortunately I can't share the specifics but disabling power to engine is the easiest.

Not that I'm considering this, but the point raised about access when the battery is flat must occur with All modern cars with remote locking.

I am soon to fit a front door lock that is digital and has it's own batteries (on the inside of the house), if they happen to go flat, the lock can be re-energised by holding a 9v battery (the ones that tingle your tongue) against a metallic pad which then enable you to enter your pin to unlock the door. Is it not possible that in the case of the vehicle battery going flat, an externally accessible point could be fitted to the van so that jump leads could be used to re-energise the remote locking? Just a thought...