I just recently bought a F4i. I live at an apartment complex and I have no choice to park it outside. I live in a pretty good area so I don't think theft is that big of a problem *knock on wood*. I went to a local Walmart and bought a motorcycle cover for it.

Is there anything I need to do or be wary about keeping the bike outside?

 

Put a loud alarm on it and lock it to something immovable - don't care how good a
neighborhood is - as most thieves - don't steal from bad neighborhoods !

 

Yeah, they have proximity alarms now, that if someone even gets within 3 feet of it, the alarm will sound. Park it as close to your apartment windows as possible, to hear the alarm as loud as possible.

 

Believe or not, thieves love to roam to good area to prey on. Only good area people don't lock their door....

You have to make it a habit to lock your bike + alarm...

Just make it tough to potential thieves...

Cover is good..so they don't know what they may uncover.

Cover with lock even better (I've seen cover with metal holes stamped on bottom, so you can thread a steel cable and padlock.)

Disk lock is good too but make sure you have a reminder link...don't start riding with a disk lock on.

Alarm is good but it does drain your battery.

If the parking lot has a pole or something, I'll chain bike to fixture...

There are plenty of bikes thieves can prey on, you just need to make it tough for them so they'll look for an easier target.

Just the thought of waking up, going outside, and te bike's GONE...that's a **** feeling.

 

Thanks for all the advice guys. Now I have it parked against the curb with the cover on and my car behind it so it's sorta boxed in.

As far as the elements and what not, do you think it will be fine outside all the time? I am kinda concerned about the tires or maybe some rust getting on some of the components. Would I have any of that to worry about?

 

Yuppers, chain it down. Disc lock is ok for on-the-go security, but over night?
You want it securely attached to an immovable object. If you've got a designated
space, or at the edge of the parking lot secure an eye-bolt/d-ring into the pavement.
Use drop-in anchors and peen the nuts onto a plate for the eye-bolt/d-ring to mount
through/on. Take it from some-one who, 'lost' one in an apartment parking lot.

Ern

 

Its all about *deterrents*. The more you have, the less likely the thieves will be to take the time & effort to overcome them. Simply, they'd rather move on to choose an easier & less time-consuming target to steal. If a thief really wants something tho, they'll get it but the more deterrents there are, the better chance you'll have.

 

question, can a proximity alarm work in conjunction with a cover?

 

Here is the skinny. NOTHING!!! will stop a good thieve. They will have that bike gone before you can blink. Even an alarm probably won't do much. Think about how many times you have heard an alarm go off and not get up to look to see what is going on. The best thing to do is have full coverage insurance. This way if it does get stolen you get paid. Nothing else will help. And lets face it, if they destroy the bike in the process of trying to steal it do you want it back anyway or just want the money for a new one.

 

Statistics say that most of the time it's 2 or 3 guys, in a van, 2 A.M. Guess how I lost my Hurricane. State police found it 6 months later at a salvage yard. Surprise, surprise, nothing happened to the salvage yard owner except a slap on the wrist. 2 "badasses" went to jail rather than pay back but the third kid paid me back $100 a month. You know where that money went.
(Not to a new bike)