I did a silly thing. I purchased my latest daily driver without first getting an insurance quote. I assumed, wrongly, that insuring an F80 M3 would be very similar to the premium I was paying on my C63 AMG. After I’d done the deal, I checked online and quotes were coming in at over £2k.

Not a great start, especially when I was paying £600 with Adrian Flux on the 6.2-litre AMG weapon packing 540bhp. A quick call to Flux had the insurance premium down to £1,200, which is still fairly strong. You see, the F80 M3 is the second most stolen car in the UK. (What took the dubious number one spot? Every builder done-good’s favourite: the Range Rover Sport.)

Anyway, I was the new owner of a 2014 M3 living in London, so the underwriter quite sensibly suggested they would only offer theft cover if I fitted a CAT 6 or CAT 5 tracking system. This seemed fair enough. So I gave Car Audio Security a call. A quick chat with Parm Panesar had me up to speed with my tracking options. As the title of this feature suggests, I opted for the Clifford Connect 6. This is a Thatcham Category 6 system. This was perfect for what I needed and would keep my insurance underwriter happy.

I headed to Car Audio Security in Hayes. Over a period of time spanning two decades, Parm and his boss, Raj, have built an incredible reputation for only distributing, selling and installing the very best in-car entertainment and security products. Back in 1998 I had my first Clifford security system fitted to my car and I absolutely loved it. Back then it was all about the carbon-fibre remote controller. And of course, the noises your car made when you opened and closed it via that carbon Clifford fob.

Now things are a lot more discreet. Certainly for my BMW. Enough of my trip down memory lane. Why’s the system good? You ask. Here’s some fast facts:

The device is monitored 24 hours a day, seven days a week by the Global Telemetrics Secure Control Centre. So you’ll receive an alert if your vehicle is moved without the use of the ignition, or if the battery runs low or is disconnected.
• Secure online account to view the location of your vehicle.
• Low battery and battery disconnection alerts.
• Movement alerts (vehicle is moved with the ignition off).
• Fully transferable between vehicles, and can be subscribed with multiple options including monthly Direct Debit, which means you can pay a small monthly fee for the subscription.
• Three-year warranty (extendableto 12-years).
• Optional alarm activation alert.
• Optional remote immobilisation.
• Thatcham accredited, so it’s insurance approved.

How long does the tracker take to install? My F80 actually had a tracker installed already, but someone had done a shoddy job. So, Car Audio Security removed this, tidied up the wiring and installed the Clifford system. This was all done in a morning whilst I waited. Car Audio Security’s veteran technician made light work of the removal and installation work. Contact Car Audio Security or your local Clifford UK dealer for details on pricing for your application and installation time. Once fitted, you’ll never have to say, “Dude, where’s my car?”, again!

For more info see Car Audio Security

Words Ben Chandler