Owners of popular Toyota vehicles across Australia are being hit with hefty bills for extra security, after criminal gangs exploited a major design weakness that makes the cars easy targets for thieves.
Queensland theft ring exposes critical vulnerability
Police report that thieves have stolen 60 Toyotas in Queensland alone, using a method that allows them to access and drive away a vehicle in less than two minutes. The stolen cars are then believed to be smuggled overseas to feed a booming black market.
Automotive expert Paul Mariac from Car Expert confirmed the severity of the issue. "There’s issues with how easy it is to access these cars," he said, noting that "hundreds of thousands of Toyotas out on the road" remain vulnerable to the same theft technique.
Panicked owners rush for $1,600 'ghost' solution
In response, anxious Toyota owners are flooding auto shops to install aftermarket security systems known as ghost immobilisers. These devices, costing around $1,600, work by tapping into the vehicle's CAN bus network.
They require the driver to enter a unique, personalised sequence using the car's existing buttons—like the climate control or window switches—before the engine will start. This acts as a crucial foil to the loophole that lets thieves simply plug in and power up the vehicle.
Craig Dwyer, owner of Complete Car Sound, said demand has gone "absolutely hectic." "Our monthly sales probably equal our normal year sales at the moment," he revealed, explaining how customers set their unique start sequences.
Toyota's response leaves owners footing the bill
Toyota Australia, the nation's top-selling car brand, has acknowledged the problem. The company says it is developing its own additional immobiliser to combat the CAN bus theft method. However, it does not yet have a release date for the fix, and has confirmed that owners will have to pay extra to have it installed.
This has angered victims like Paul McConnell, who had his Toyota stolen using the flaw. "I was really angry. They took less than two minutes to steal the car," he said. He finds the prospect of an extra payment "disgusting," arguing, "It’s a flaw in their system. Why should people actually pay for the design flaw in their car?"
It is understood that Toyota has already made key design changes to newer Land Cruiser, Prado, and Hilux models to address the vulnerability. In the meantime, police advise owners to bolster security by parking in garages or boxing vehicles in behind other locked cars.
