Stolen R

[992.1]

Hey guys, my type R was stolen last night and recovered within 24hrs. Likely taken for a fun spin as the officer who recovered the car mentioned. Damage to driver side door, interior panel behind the screen (wiring) and the car currently doesn’t start, having it towed to nearest dealership for assessment and repair.

I have full insurance (the car is financed) but can someone advice what to watch out for while dealing with insurance and repairs? Assuming this will be theft recovery title now? Anyone familiar with this situation or how to proceed?

thanks!

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[SonicRSC]

So first make sure you get the police report, call your insurance company. The theft will show up on your VIN history, (it will increase your insurance rate) and if you opted for rental car coverage you should be allowed to get a rental. The dealer may not offer one since it is not a service related repair. I wish you good luck and hope that never happens again. I thought these cars had an immobilizer that prevents theft?

 

[cryptolime]

i hope they cover the cost of a replacement clutch as yours was probably thoroughly abused

 

[SonicRSC]

The 3 things Insurance companies look for when searching a VIN number are Theft, Salvage/re-built title, major accidents. The Vin will always rate higher after the theft and may frustrate you. Did they find the thieves who did it? If this car is going to remain outdoors and not in a secure garage I would invest in a good front/rear camera system to deter future events.

 

[ThunderPigeon]

So first make sure you get the police report, call your insurance company. The theft will show up on your VIN history, (it will increase your insurance rate) and if you opted for rental car coverage you should be allowed to get a rental. The dealer may not offer one since it is not a service related repair. I wish you good luck and hope that never happens again. I thought these cars had an immobilizer that prevents theft?

These cars are just slightly harder to steal than the Kia boys cars and are stolen all the time.

 

[Clark_Kent]

So first make sure you get the police report, call your insurance company. The theft will show up on your VIN history, (it will increase your insurance rate) and if you opted for rental car coverage you should be allowed to get a rental. The dealer may not offer one since it is not a service related repair. I wish you good luck and hope that never happens again. I thought these cars had an immobilizer that prevents theft?

One thing worth clarifying in all of these theft discussions is that the FL5 does, in fact, have a factory immobilizer. The problem is what that immobilizer was designed to protect against. At a high-level, the immobilizer asks a relatively simple question: “Is an authorized key present?” If the answer is no, the car won't start. That's very effective against traditional hot-wiring. The vulnerability with modern vehicle theft is that thieves increasingly don't defeat the immobilizer in the traditional sense. They attack the systems the car relies upon to establish that authorization, whether through key-related attacks, unauthorized key enrollment, or manipulation of vehicle communications.

Once the car has been made to believe that a valid authorization exists, the factory immobilizer is essentially doing exactly what it was designed to do. It allows the car to start. That's why I think we need to move beyond the idea that having a factory immobilizer means an FL5 is adequately protected. The better approach is defense in depth. Add an independent authorization layer that isn't satisfied simply because the Honda thinks a valid key is present, protect the obvious attack surfaces, add detection/notification, and consider tracking as the final layer.

The goal isn't to build an “unstealable” FL5. That probably doesn't exist. The goal is to make defeating one security mechanism insufficient to take the car. As these cars become more desirable and thieves become more familiar with them, I think that distinction is only going to become more important. If your car is currently sitting unprotected, you've long been put on notice.

 

[992.1]

The immobilizer did nothing with the exception of me needing to tow the vehicle because the factory key didn’t work once the car was recovered by PD.

Any suggestions in terms of dealing with insurance? I’m pretty much hosed, right? My car / carfax will get theft recovery treatment, the $ value tanks, insurance premium goes up, and the insurance co. will not care about loss of value of my car at all. So no compensation for that at all. Is this the outcome?

 

[SonicRSC]

You are correct. The situation goes from bad to worse as far a value and the rate will go up because of the theft. Depending on how bad the damage and repair cost is, you will have to decide if you want to keep the vehicle or cut you loss and sell. You will be out your insurance deductible, and still be responsible for the loan until paid off. Maybe consider your equity after the car is back, and see what Carvana or Carmax will offer you if you want to purchase another vehicle. There is NO POSITIVE to the situation. Your car has been violated and you will be out $$$!

 

[ThunderPigeon]

The immobilizer did nothing with the exception of me needing to tow the vehicle because the factory key didn’t work once the car was recovered by PD.

Any suggestions in terms of dealing with insurance? I’m pretty much hosed, right? My car / carfax will get theft recovery treatment, the $ value tanks, insurance premium goes up, and the insurance co. will not care about loss of value of my car at all. So no compensation for that at all. Is this the outcome?

They either use a device to relay the signal from your fob in your house to open and start the car or they break into the car from the lock in the door handle and use an ODB tool to program a new key. They likely programmed a new key which is why your existing keys don't work.

 

[Clark_Kent]

It's not a foregone conclusion you're looking at a branded title. Each insurance company treats these slightly different.

I suggest taking a look at getting out of the car if the idea of driving around in and owning a once stolen vehicle causes you consternation. The values on these cars have held incredibly strong adjusted for inflation. I was looking at data recently and the FL5 has experienced virtually zero nominal depreciation since launch in 2022. This is a massive market anomaly compared to typical vehicle depreciation trends when considering multiple strata. @992.1 Anyhow, you have options.

 

[cryptolime]

One thing worth clarifying in all of these theft discussions is that the FL5 does, in fact, have a factory immobilizer. The problem is what that immobilizer was designed to protect against. At a high-level, the immobilizer asks a relatively simple question: “Is an authorized key present?” If the answer is no, the car won't start. That's very effective against traditional hot-wiring. The vulnerability with modern vehicle theft is that thieves increasingly don't defeat the immobilizer in the traditional sense. They attack the systems the car relies upon to establish that authorization, whether through key-related attacks, unauthorized key enrollment, or manipulation of vehicle communications.

Once the car has been made to believe that a valid authorization exists, the factory immobilizer is essentially doing exactly what it was designed to do. It allows the car to start. That's why I think we need to move beyond the idea that having a factory immobilizer means an FL5 is adequately protected. The better approach is defense in depth. Add an independent authorization layer that isn't satisfied simply because the Honda thinks a valid key is present, protect the obvious attack surfaces, add detection/notification, and consider tracking as the final layer.

The goal isn't to build an “unstealable” FL5. That probably doesn't exist. The goal is to make defeating one security mechanism insufficient to take the car. As these cars become more desirable and thieves become more familiar with them, I think that distinction is only going to become more important. If your car is currently sitting unprotected, you've long been put on notice.

the best thing to do is to install a hidden kill switch. but even that can be bypassed if the thieves have enough time and knowledge.

they can also just drag it away or put it on a trailer.

 

[992.1]

Thanks for the above replies, all helpful. They broke through using the car’s door handle and programmed their own key. I owe about 25k on it, it’s a 2025 and it was pretty much pristine before the theft.

It will likely not get totaled, there’s physical damage around the door handle and inside where they removed the plastic bit behind the screen to program their key. I will have dealer check mechanical parts like clutch etc as well but unlikely this will get written off by insurance. Don’t want to jump into conclusions yet but will likely sell to carvana and get out of it once fixed.

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