Does anyone know what would be a good way to try and protect the HID's from being stolen? I have been hearing everyday how somebody's maxima got hit and there were thousands of dollars of damage...I feel it's a matter of time before it hits me..please help, any info on preventing theft would be appreciated. Thanks

 

Gday,

I just bought a 2002 Maxima SE and found this I hop it helps,

I found this at www.nhtsa.com if you go to Service Bulletins for 2002-2003 Nissan Maxima's it gives a fix for the HID lights,

·Replace Headlamp mounting bolts with new tamper resistant Torx bolts.
·Install Self adhesive Protective Pads on Hood Lock Cable.
·Install Hood lock and Hood Lock Cable Protector.
·Install Door Key Cylinder Protector In driver’s door.

***Please don't think I am sticking up for Nissan (as I am not)***

The big reason I got a maxima was the HID Xenon headlights but after reading all the posts and horror stories, I am thinking I might not have got one with them, though I realy do like them.

I would be more than happy to E-mail or PM the file to anyone that would like it it is PDF fotmate so you will need something like adobe to read it.

Take care...

 

My Best advice is becareful where you park and dont live your car too far into an area you dont know make sure you also get a good aftermarket alarm with some sensors install in the HIDs..also if you are in the NY and NJ area park at your own risk or just pay for secure parking! also that stuff that nissan sell,that dont work for ****, hood lock? they found a way not to even open the hood! all they need is a crow bar and there you go your HIDs and your expensive nissan stuff is gone.

 

There's really nothing you can do that'll prevent a thief from getting your lights.. If they just want the ballast and bulbs all they have to do is pry out the headlights. That takes like 15secs /side.. If they want the whole assembly then they'll just pop your hood. And if you have the front hood theft kit there are other ways to pop your hood without even having to get into your car.. Just keep this in mind.. The only safe place to park is in a garage..

 

my protection

 

so the way they do it is pop open ur ood through the latch in ur grill ?

 

There are a few things you can poke to make it open, im not going to go into detail but I personally thinkg we should really keep this whole HID theft thing on the dl so people wont read the site and get ideas

 

I AGREE

 

How about those grills they put over headlights for the rally cars?

 

 

because I sort of came up with an idea

 

Dude, your pic's sticking out the sides of my monitor.

Anyway, that'll only encourage the ******* to pry the hood with a crow bar or just pop the headlights out by snapping the plastic straps. Man, there's got to be a way...

 

Not bad atleast some people are trying. No offense but how much longer will it take to overcome that little obstical though? A good yank and its all over. If a thief want something, they will get it period. Its a start but we need something that covers more area...

 

How about metal frames that surround the headlamps and bolt to the chassis with metal straps with tamper resistant fasteners.... you know, sort of like a cage but without the [jail] bars, just the perimeter of the lights would be encased.

 

Its hard to say whats gonna work, something can obvioulsy be fabbed up, but when to stop is gonna be the next question. Watch it take 30min to take each side out It would be nice to have something to bolt it to the frame, but then its would take 4ever to remove. Its the bottom half the the headlight assemble that needs to be held in better too, killers idea is pretty good, BUT it needs that to be used with something else, if not 2 somethings...

 

Why not modify them to explode if someone pries them out.

 

If you try it out 1st then sure why not, hell Ill even come down there and help you install a 4"x6" brick of C4 under each headlight

 

qaaaaaaaaaaaahahhahahahhah

 

it's a fuking epidemic. Just today i saw three maximas with no eyes within a 5 mile radius... All in Queens, NY.

 

That means the ******** are in the area! Grab a tek9 and get to hunting, those peices of **** are close
I cant belive this ****, wtf do they do with the headlights anyway. Who the hell is going to buy a jacked up headlight. Im guessing they are just taking the ballast and the D2R bulbs and selling them in a custom made kit at a local rice shop...

 

The ones they steal by prying with a crow bar, they just use the bulbs and the ballasts. If they pop the hood, they can remove the complete assemblies without damaging them.

 

That takes too much time. Basically a smash and grab job and they have obviously become quite effiecient at it. I hate theifs and would personally not call the cops if I caught on near my ride. Id just beat them for like 30min straight and leave them there. I had to pay to get the 2k2 headlights on my 01 (not cheap), I shouldnt have to worry about them. These guys are so damn fast that people dont see them doing it, and if they do, buy the time they get to a phone they are gone.

 

If the ignition can only be turned on with the computer coded key, why can't Nissan make HIDs that can only work with specific coded keys. I don't mind paying more for the key-coded HIDs, but I hate to see them stolen and would have to spend thousands replacing them and fixing the damage to the car. This technology should not be too expensive, as replacing a coded key costs about a hundred bucks or so. When you own HIDs burn out, replace them with factory-made and key-coded HIDs. This way, Nissan can make money on replacement HIDs and protect them from being stolen to be used on other cars. It makes Nissan and their customers happy.

 

smear the headlights with vaseline.. let them try to get a grip on those HID's now! LOL!

 

@ KID . where in Queens did you see this. i live in the ridgewood area. which is close to brooklyn. "crookland" .

 

There have been hundreds of cases but most (90%) have all been in the NY/NJ area. Few 2K-2K1's have been broken into as well but that obvioulsy was a mistake.

kenny: Thats somewhat of a smart idea but by the time the theifs figure out they cant use them your lights are still gone.

 

It's cool to talk about possible solutions, but I don't think there is any need to go into detail about how the theives actually steal the lights. I can just see all the civic/integra ricers looking through this site and getting all the info they need to start stealing the lights themselves. Let's not help the problem.

 

a friend of mine just moved into his apartment in Forest Hills fri night and parked his 2K2 in front of his building. they took it the FIRST night he was there! he's having someone put in the non-HID's now, he doesn't want to deal with the headache and i don't blame him.

it's hard to believe people are so pathetic to resort to doing things like this. i hope these thieves are reading our threads, it'll let them know what losers in life they truly are.

 

HitManSE:

If Nissan quickly develops the technology and makes it available to current Max owners with HIDs, there is hardly any reason in trying to steal the HIDs once the word is out on the street that you can't use the HIDs because they are key specific. If there is a wish, there is a way. Didn't we put man on the moon 35 years ago? What can't a relatively simple technology be promtply developed and implemented?

 

You are correct, when there is a will (not wish ) there is a way. Now look at it in a different way, say Nissan does actually do this... say they actually developed this upgrade and issued a recall on all the 02-03's to have this problem fixed, and they even advertised that saying the HID problem is no longer going to be an issue, not put yourself in the shoes of the theif... you realize now whats going on so your going to go around hitting harder then ever be4 to get what you can is the 1st thing they will do. Then there is the time its going to take for every1 to come in and actually get this taken care of. Hopefully im wrong but look at the reality of it.

This is Nissan we are talking about...their customer service sucks period. Why are they going to spend millions to do something for their customers. The insuance company is taking the tabs and nissan is selling headlights at insane prices and making a load of cash. This is actually making profit for nissan why are they going to fix it?

I hope they fix it but to be honest it took less peoples effort to put some1 on the moon then it would to make nissan fix this

Say your making $100,000/yr profit and a bunch of people came up to you and said stop it and make only $50,000/yr...would you do it?

 

Your right on that one HIT. Do not waste your money on hood locks. They just made it worse. I had a nasty *** dent in my hood because of it.

Its real funny tho. I was messing around on the highway with a 01 max. After our encounter I noticed it was an 02 with 01 headlights. He said they got him twice. I swear if I would have known this before, my old lady would have copped a G3 or an 04.

Do the 02-03 infinity have similar problems?

 

Not with infinity, not that we are aware of anyway...

 

HitmanSE, you are probably right about your speculation that Nissan won't do anything to help its customers because why would it agree to make less money by improving its products. However, if Nissan is really thinking about long term, it will realize that customer loyalty (and satisfaction with its product) is more important short term profits. If the CEO and uppper management of Nissan are bent on getting their year-end bonuses and perks (based on short term profitability) and disregard long term goals, this will be the dead knell for Nissan. I hope that is not the case, since I own 3 Maximas and have been quite happy the cars, except for the stupid HID design, which has been putting me on the edge every time I park my car on the street.

 

My friend and co-worker now takes his HIDs out every night and reinstalls them every morning. A hassle, to say the least.

 

That's what my friend does too. He's got an 02 max. It's getting pathetic.

 

Maspeth: Grand Avenue off of 70th st.
tan color 03 max. I actually spoke with the owner. She said she was hit twice in a month.

Middle Village: Metropolitan Ave off of Fresh Pond Rd
black 03

Ridgewood: Greene Ave off of Forest Av.
silver 02

I decided to get a beater to use for work so I'll keep the max garaged. i guess I'll just use it on weekends and for long trips out of the city and vacation, etc...

 

One other thing you have to watch are people following you.
A guy I was talking to one day said that a 02-03 was following his car for a quick race. The 02-03 gave up and the guy I know said he followed him home and stole his HID's in less than 3min. That really ****ed me off hearing that, seing that one of my old ladie's HID was jacked.

Oh and this was in Brooklyn. Honestly the safest place to park other than indoors is in the Hood. Whenever I park the car on crowded blocks overnight no one bothers it. Go figure.

 

I think the bastards that do this are not occasional thieves. They'll hit a bunch of cars within a couple of days in a certain area and then disappear for a couple of month or so until they start over.

 

Your right. In a way I am glad I didnt catch who did it. I ran outside 30 sec to late and I was not about to chase anything in the rain with the Potenza's . I would have hurt someone or would have gotten hurt!!

 

So far only one member caught one of the theifs on NY, he actually sat on the guy til the cops showed up

Removing the headlights every night is a hassle, but hell its effective to say the least. That sucks though, Im still willing to bet that a local rice shop is behind all this ****, probably a chain with several locations. Look around, I bet you'll find a few shops selling HID kits for really cheap...I wonder how they could sell them so cheap

kenny: This is my second max and to be honest im quite fond of mosty all the details on the car. Mine didnt even come with the HIDs, I got the 2k2 headlights so to say im not worried the least bit would be a lie. It would be awesome if nissan corrected this problem but in their eyes, why? People are still gonna buy the cars regardless. Thats the one thing about nissans that suck, you have to go the a dealer to get one and by far nissans service is one of the worst.