Preventing Motorcycle Theft

The sad truth is that motorcycles are easy to steal. Even big cruiser bikes have been known to vanish into thin air—or probably into a panel truck, truth be told. The best defense is a good offense, so here are some ways to make your bike too hard to steal. For more info, hit up the team at Indian Motorcycle® of Orange County, your southern California motorcycle dealer. We serve LA and greater Orange County from our Westminster dealership. 

Don’t Be an Easy Target

Make your bike hard to steal. Thieves look for low-hanging fruit, so visible security measures are a helpful deterrent. Covering your bike when it is stored is also a deterrent, because thieves can’t assess the bike or the way it’s locked.

Park Smart

Make your home parking spot as secure as possible. Ideally you can park your bike in a secure indoor place such as your own garage. For greater security, install a ground or wall anchor that you can lock your motorcycle to. Consider installing a motion sensor light and/or an alarm. Unless your garage is incredibly secure, always perform full lock-up when you park your bike at home. 

When you park your bike out and about, be security conscious. Park in well-lit areas with high traffic if possible. Lock your bike to a secure object such as a signpost whenever possible. Use multiple locks. 

Locking

Your bike probably has an integrated ignition lock and a steering column lock. You should also have a chain and padlock, which you should run along the frame or swing-arm, not just a wheel. Lock it tight—excess loose chain on the ground or hanging is vulnerable to sledgehammers, freezing and bold cutters. Whenever possible, attach your locks higher on the bike rather than on the ground. When locks are low to the ground, thieves can use the ground as leverage to break them. 

Disc locks connect to your disc brakes and prevent your wheels from spinning at all. Saddlebag locks protect the cargo you keep on your bike, including your expensive riding gear. 

If your locking routine is a nuisance, that’s a good sign. The harder and more awkward it is to lock your bike, the harder it is to defeat those locks. Ask yourself if you’d rather spend five minutes locking your bike or a couple hours waiting to fill out a police report, half an hour on the phone with your insurance company, and so on. 

Electronic Security Options

In addition to physical security, add some electronic security. An alarm can be an effective deterrent. GPS tracking will improve the chance that your bike will be recovered if it’s stolen. Installing a kill switch, removing a fuse, or disconnecting a battery line are all ways to prevent your bike from being ridden away, although they won’t prevent it from being tossed in a van. 

Please take security seriously. No one wants to find a cut chain on the ground where they parked their motorcycle. For more suggestions on motorcycle security, talk to our team at Indian Motorcycle® of Orange County in Westminster, California, serving Los Angeles and Orange Counties.