Tracker or fit your own Ghost?

[ARA]

I didnt select the Tracker option (optional extra at £500) in the 'other' section. My logic is that I would rather have a Ghost immobiliser fitted for a cost of £449, a more preventative option than a recovery one.

I live in a fairly decent area where a lot of residents have expensive cars, especially keyless cars. It seems that local cars are stolen almost weekly in the surrounding areas (usually SUVs...range rovers, BMW X5s...not so much the sport cars). Most owners that I have spoken to near me are not taking precautions with the keyless cars that they could , eg using faraday pouches or steerng wheel locks, so it does not surpise me that cars are so easy to take.

As I am new to Lotus, I dont know what the Lotus buyers usually look for in terms of security, in the sense of should I be concerned about resale impact if I dont pick the tracker. I suspect it is not an issue as (a) a buyer could retro fit and (b) telling them it has a ghost fitted may be a better sell

So my question is.. Are Lotus cars generally a target for car thieves in your experience?

 

[Tonyshepp]

I didnt select the Tracker option (optional extra at £500) in the 'other' section. My logic is that I would rather have a Ghost immobiliser fitted for a cost of £449, a more preventative option than a recovery one.

I live in a fairly decent area where a lot of residents have expensive cars, especially keyless cars. It seems that local cars are stolen almost weekly in the surrounding areas (usually SUVs...range rovers, BMW X5s...not so much the sport cars). Most owners that I have spoken to near me are not taking precautions with the keyless cars that they could , eg using faraday pouches or steerng wheel locks, so it does not surpise me that cars are so easy to take.

As I am new to Lotus, I dont know what the Lotus buyers usually look for in terms of security, in the sense of should I be concerned about resale impact if I dont pick the tracker. I suspect it is not an issue as (a) a buyer could retro fit and (b) telling them it has a ghost fitted may be a better sell

So my question is.. Are Lotus cars generally a target for car thieves in your experience?

Im going to buy one of those vodaphone tracking button things. The remote access on the Lotus isn’t comfort access, ie you still have to blip the key to open the car so no need for faraday pouch.

 

[richbrown]

I didnt select the Tracker option (optional extra at £500) in the 'other' section. My logic is that I would rather have a Ghost immobiliser fitted for a cost of £449, a more preventative option than a recovery one.

I live in a fairly decent area where a lot of residents have expensive cars, especially keyless cars. It seems that local cars are stolen almost weekly in the surrounding areas (usually SUVs...range rovers, BMW X5s...not so much the sport cars). Most owners that I have spoken to near me are not taking precautions with the keyless cars that they could , eg using faraday pouches or steerng wheel locks, so it does not surpise me that cars are so easy to take.

As I am new to Lotus, I dont know what the Lotus buyers usually look for in terms of security, in the sense of should I be concerned about resale impact if I dont pick the tracker. I suspect it is not an issue as (a) a buyer could retro fit and (b) telling them it has a ghost fitted may be a better sell

So my question is.. Are Lotus cars generally a target for car thieves in your experience?

Good question. I have picked tracker but currently have a ghost on my wife’s car. I’d opt for either but get a visible steering wheel lock, I’ve got the Stoplock pro elite which has done the job on my RS5. Ghost systems are great although it’s messed up some of the sensitive JLR electronics

 

[FrenchBred]

I selected the tracker option because i'd kick myself forever if anything ever happened.

Its probably an unfair opinion based on a small sample but I have seen more than 1 issue in GR Yaris forum with ghost causing battery drain issues.

 

[TomE]

I don't know any official stats but from many years on various Lotus forums I can't recall seeing more than 1 or 2 posts about stolen Lotus cars of the Elise/Evora era. That may change with the Emira, being new and having a long waiting list.

There was this Lotus Carlton one time...

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[digilotus]

I went with the factory tracker. Don’t want any third party tracker or installer screwing up the electricals and potentially giving warranty issues.

 

[Davebeats]

I'll throw a $25 apple air tag in the boot

 

[Den]

I don't know any official stats but from many years on various Lotus forums I can't recall seeing more than 1 or 2 posts about stolen Lotus cars of the Elise/Evora era. That may change with the Emira, being new and having a long waiting list.

There was this Lotus Carlton one time...

The British Bandit: Vauxhall Lotus Carlton

Unleash the power of the Vauxhall Lotus Carlton with our in-depth exploration of this iconic British muscle car. Our blog covers the history, specs, and design of this legendary vehicle, nicknamed the "British Bandit" for its impressive performance and daring style. From the racetrack to the...

www.newcarsonline.co.uk

The police should have got a 6R4

 

[digilotus]

I'll throw a $25 apple air tag in the boot

That sounds nice until your passenger gets a stalking warning message on their phones.

 

[Tonyshepp]

The police should have got a 6R4

That’s a blast from the past, but what a great rally car.

 

[PhilCP]

I opted for the tracker. First time on any of my cars.
My rational was its wasn't too much money and I believe it comes with the first years subscription. Sods law say if I hadn't the insurance would insist on one and I really don't want some 3rd party pulling off trim and cutting into wires on my brand new car.

 

[digilotus]

I opted for the tracker. First time on any of my cars.
My rational was its wasn't too much money and I believe it comes with the first years subscription. Sods law say if I hadn't the insurance would insist on one and I really don't want some 3rd party pulling off trim and cutting into wires on my brand new car.

Exactly my thoughts too. Rather a factory installation with factory warranty and no hack jobs.

With a third party tracker you may need to state that your car is modified which may involve an extra insurance premium.

 

[Eagle7]

Is there any insurance discount for having the tracker?

 

[Golfer1971]

I'll throw a $25 apple air tag in the boot

I‘m going to do that as well!
But I‘ll use 2 or 3 Airtags, in case they will find one there still will be 1 or two!

 

[TomE]

Is there any insurance discount for having the tracker?

Sometimes but often not. Some insurers in the UK require one to be fitted for higher value cars.

 

[EMI2AGE]

I’m likely to go for the Smartrak D-iD tracker, as instead of a traditional card/tag that you have to carry in your wallet, it uses your mobile phone. I often leave home without carrying a wallet, but never my phone. When I’ve had previous trackers that used a ID Tag, it became such a pain in the backside that I ended up leaving the Tag in my car, which defeated the purpose of the tag systems.

 

[richbrown]

Sometimes but often not. Some insurers in the UK require one to be fitted for higher value cars.

A big contributory factor is also
Postcode

 

[Mh59]

I‘m going to do that as well!
But I‘ll use 2 or 3 Airtags, in case they will find one there still will be 1 or two!

I've spent £400 on the Lotus tracker and after 2 weeks of limited joy with it (see my other posts - it might as well be stuck on the dashboard with velcro as its not going to take anyone who knows what they are looking for more than 30 seconds to pull it out) I am likely to resort to AirTag(s) too. Put in one or two difficult to reach places. It's not perfect but then I expected more from what I assumed was a top end / reputable tracking system.

I had a self-install £100 job that worked perfectly in another car - I can't see what the difference is (apart from the £100 one actually sent me messages on my mobile) other than to satisfy insurance, who would probably realise the limited value if they could see the installation approach / app functionality problems.

 

[Jon_N]

Surely it has an alarm/immobiliser as standard?
Tracker is different, not sure what Thatcham Category the Lotus tracker is? Can’t see it being compulsory for insurance purposes on this sort of value vehicle anyway

 

[TomE]

Lotus fit the Scorpion S5 tracker, which is Thatcham category S5

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Some insurers require a tracker, based on value of the car or postcode or other factors. One insurer I used to use required a tracker for cars over £70k (current value rather than list price).