Went to the match at Villa Park. We won 3-0. Got back to me car. Some barsteward had smashed me drivers window, and ripped out the sat nav/radio/ CD player. I will end up paying the £100 excess and my premium will rise next time. ( I don't understand why)

The annoying thing is.... What will the thief get for it. Not a lot I imagine, and who would buy it anyway.

It will be on eBay for a couple of hundred quid.

Easy money for a few minutes work from the scrotes.

Make sure your insurance covers the unit as they sometimes have a limit and the cost of a new unit from skoda is very expensive

Thanks.... Who are the buyers?

Thanks.... Who are the buyers?

Anyone on eBay who wants an upgraded nav unit and isnt bothered where it comes from.

The unit pretty much slots in and has no real security so can be fitted easily.

Sadly thieves target the vag cars with the unit fitted as they can have it away in seconds and make a few hundred quid.

I have the Bolero in mine but am now scared that the scrotes will think its a Columbus and steal it anyway... 

I have the Bolero in mine but am now scared that the scrotes will think its a Columbus and steal it anyway...

The giveaway that the car has Columbus fitted is the shark fin roof aerial.

This is what they look for.

If the car has no factory nav it just has a normal aerial

The giveaway that the car has Columbus fitted is the shark fin roof aerial.

This is what they look for.

If the car has no factory nav it just has a normal aerial

 

No Aerial on mine, it's in the rear screen

Mine has a sort of black sharkfin on the roof but only I have a bolero installed.

 

Stubs

The giveaway that the car has Columbus fitted is the shark fin roof aerial.

This is what they look for.

If the car has no factory nav it just has a normal aerial

 

I have a shark fin aerial/Bolero combo too. 

Richard - sorry to hear that. Such a pain in the a*se. Happened to me, so feel your pain - just be thankful you've only got a £100 excess!

 

You might find this thread of interest http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/382772-theft-of-columbus/

my solution to this problem would to fill the screw heads with filler, bearing in mind should you want to remove the unit for repair etc, you would have to chip the filler out with a small screwdriver, or similar tool

Thanks.... Who are the buyers?

 

This is a Google translated text from German but you might understand the idea:

 

https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=y&prev=_t&hl=lv&ie=UTF-8&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.autobild.de%2Fartikel%2Fnavi-diebstahl-8882103.html&edit-text=&act=url

Thanks for the replies.

The knowledge that this is likely to happen again is enough to make me consider changing the car, which is a shame as I love it.

My friend has a toureg, the system is targeted in that so he's made a bracket that locks onto the gear stick / handbrake and goes up the front of the sat nav so you can't slide out the unit. A bit of a heath Robinson affair but effective

I read the link in jackhill's post 10.

Regarding the comment about replacing the screws with security ones I'm in two minds.

As someone pointed out, the window has already been smashed and the scum bags could then do more damage to the dash trying to get the unit out.

Assuming they are carrying the tool to remove the security screws, someone else said they had put filler in the slots to prevent the tool being inserted. But then how would you get the unit out for maintenance.

Another thought that came to mind.

Presumably the thief can retrieve my home address from the original unit and return to take the replacement.

So when I get the new unit, i will programme in a location a mile or so away as my home.

Or not bother setting a home location.

Thanks chim. I just need to put something in to get me home, but not identify it as such.

I read the link in jackhill's post 10.

Regarding the comment about replacing the screws with security ones I'm in two minds.

As someone pointed out, the window has already been smashed and the scum bags could then do more damage to the dash trying to get the unit out.

Assuming they are carrying the tool to remove the security screws, someone else said they had put filler in the slots to prevent the tool being inserted. But then how would you get the unit out for maintenance.

my solution to this problem would to fill the screw heads with filler, bearing in mind should you want to remove the unit for repair etc, you would have to chip the filler out with a small screwdriver, or similar tool

Absolutely pointless filling screws or changing them they will just ruin the dash to get it out.

I thought that might be the case Tommy.

Me was done over 2 years ago, and like you I was worried about repeats.

So far so good, statistically probaby won't happen again.

Feel your pain and it's a shame how easy they are to remove.

Thanks Wook.

I'd like to think the the perportrators of this sort of crime will end up is a rat infested ditch...... But they probably won't

It is an opportunity to get a more up to date satnav where the dealer doesn't charge £100+ for a map update that isn't even the most up to date map available for the unit though... There are a bunch of android units around that will fit and will work properly with the steering wheel controls, though you lose the maxidot info display. You may lose the ability of the car to use dead reckoning based on the car's speed and steering angle read from the CANbus when it loses satellite reception, but the only thing I've had that's slower to get satellite fixes than the Columbus was a pre-smartphone era phone I had. The only reason the slow acquisition of location isn't obvious is because usually the car doesn't move while it's been parked, but it took my car 10 minutes to work out where it was after getting off a ferry.

Another thought that came to mind.

Presumably the thief can retrieve my home address from the original unit and return to take the replacement.

So when I get the new unit, i will programme in a location a mile or so away as my home.

 

I read an article linked to on this forum about not setting the 'home' location to where you live. The article said the Police suggested using the local Police station as you know where you live.

 

I've set the home address to a petrol station about a mile from home!