It’s This Easy to Pick the Lock on a Ford Explorer

Keeping Your Car Safe

To paraphrase an old adage, “The security of your vehicle is only as strong as your vehicle’s weakest link,” is the message behind a recent video where the owner of a Ford Explorer ST shows viewers just how easy it is to pick the lock on his relatively recent model Ford Explorer.

The video is made by the Lock Picking Lawyer---a celebrity of sorts in the world of lock picking and covert entry how-to, who is a former business litigator and is now retired and devotes his time and energies toward no-nonsense videos that demonstrate the weaknesses and defects in many locking devices “…so that consumers can make better security decisions.” The video includes a link to a website that sells lock picking and sundry other devices.

According to the website, the Lockpicking Lawyer “…also works with lock manufacturers to improve their products, private companies to improve their security, tool-makers to improve their products, and government agencies.”

Among the myriad lock picking devices the website sells, is an automotive “Lishi tool” as is demonstrated in the video. A Lishi tool is a combination picking, tensioning, and decoding tool all in one slick small package about the size of a small pocket knife. It has graduated lines on the side of the tool to make pick tip placement easy and simple to manipulate. However, more importantly, the Lishi tool can be used to replicate the bitting values of a key. The bitting code is the translated blind code which a locksmith can use to cut a blank key and thereby manufacture an actual key.

For your own enjoyment and erudition, here is the YouTube video below:

Picking My Own Car — Ford Explorer ST

Final Thoughts on the Matter

The primary point of this automotive-related bit and one that the video alludes to, is that if you value your car then you should never rely on the most simple and easiest of measures to ward theft prevention---your car door lock.

Nearly anyone with enough motivation, some research, the proper tools (both analog and digital), and a bend to the criminal, can steal pretty much anything he or she wants regardless of whether it’s a collectible vehicle or one of the most advanced Electric Vehicles out there. That said, the most sensible advice offered is that multiple measures are required to avoid grand theft auto. Although each security measure has its fallacies, making it more difficult and requiring more time to steal a vehicle is your best protection.

Be sure to watch our site for future articles that will deal with automotive security such as why the Kia and Hyundai are so popular with car thieves and why the new Subaru Forester is susceptible to theft.

Timothy Boyer is Torque News Tesla and EV reporter based in Cincinnati. Experienced with early car restorations, he regularly restores older vehicles with engine modifications for improved performance. Follow Tim on Twitter at @TimBoyerWrites for daily Tesla and electric vehicle news.