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Old 6th September 2009, 02:13   #1
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RD brand Gear Shift Lock - Flawed Design or Product?

I accompanied a friend of mine who was taking his new WagonR for service. He had decided to get a gear shift lock installed from the dealer workshop. The dealer recommended installing lock made by a company named RD. After installation, the SA gave a demo of how it works and the benefits (it is a U-shaped shackle type lock and comes with 2 spare keys). During the demo, I noticed that one of the keys provided had different dimples and groove pattern from the other two. I showed this to the SA and he said it is not a problem and that key would also work fine with the lock that has been installed! We were shocked to hear this.And it did work. The SA made a hasty retreat into the accessories shop and returned with a mechanic. The mechanic said this could be a manufacturing defect and agreed to replace it with a new one. But the new one he brought was also "defective". Keys from the old lock worked on this new one! All of us were dumbfound at this. My friend then called the GM of the work shop. He arrived at the spot, talked to us, checked the locks himself, scratched his head and after a few minutes of fiddling with his mobile phone asked - "This brand is endorsed by Maruti themselves.What's the problem?" After a lengthy debate and failing to convince the GM that the locks were defective or flawed my friend asked him for a full refund. The GM looked at us like he was giving birth to broken glass and said "These locks are designed like this. But you need not worry since thiefs do not carry keys for this brand of locks!". What?.

After some "high decibel" conversation my friend decided to leave the car with them (since they had already installed the base plate and it didn't make sense to accept the product) and we returned in a taxi. We'll try and talk to the manufacturer (RD) on Monday.

Has anyone experienced this before? Do the gearshift locks in your car open using keys from lock of same brand in another car?
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Old 6th September 2009, 06:26   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by foosa View Post
The dealer recommended installing lock made by a company named RD.
Never heard of it. The popular ones are Xenos, Minda, and Blackcat, in order of popularity.

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SA and he said it is not a problem and that key would also work fine with the lock that has been installed! We were shocked to hear this.And it did work.
These 'equipments' are for security and peace of mind. I see both missing here.

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The GM looked at us like he was giving birth to broken glass

Quote:
"These locks are designed like this. But you need not worry since thiefs do not carry keys for this brand of locks!". What?.
I'm sorry you forgot your shotgun. I feel for you.

Quote:
Has anyone experienced this before? Do the gearshift locks in your car open using keys from lock of same brand in another car?
No way. I don't see any reason for shelling money for something that can be compromised by a thief.
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Old 6th September 2009, 08:25   #3
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I can't comment about whether keys were swappable between different gear locks, but I did have occasion to use RD gear lock and remote central locking in a Zen I had some years ago. The quality of the stuff was quite below par; the locking motors inside the doors would fail or become loose ever so often, the gear lock had sharp edges that one was prone to get hurt on, and in the end the central locking system started draining the battery at a very high rate.

RD is West Delhi-based. Their own technicians installed the locks on the car, and a couple of times they did come to attend to complaints. But when the same problems kept on recurring without resolution, they stopped coming despite complaints.

Why fit RD when there are better products available? Their prices are not any cheaper either.
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Old 6th September 2009, 14:46   #4
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Which Maruti ASC is this? The RD gearlock manufacturer must be giving heavy commission to this ASC for stocking their below par products. MUL doesn't authorise or reccommend any accessory. It is the ASC that install the optionals and scare the unknowing customer with void warranties if installed from somewhere outside at less than half the price..
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Old 6th September 2009, 15:59   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by foosa View Post
The GM looked at us like he was giving birth to broken glass and said "These locks are designed like this. But you need not worry since thiefs do not carry keys for this brand of locks!". What?.
Whoa!!! That statement is like WTH!
How could he possibly know that!?? is he one of em?

As for me, I only trust aftermarket stuff manufactured by dedicated companies.
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Old 6th September 2009, 16:21   #6
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The ASC is Competent Automobiles in Delhi. The GM asked my friend to take the car back today and offered to get a technician from the lock manufacturer to visit his residence to rectify it! He refused the offer. He did try calling the two RD helpline numbers given by the dealer.One number was out-of-service and the other (a mobile no.) was switched off! We lodged a complaint with Maruti. According to them, no ASC is allowed to sell or install non-MGA products in any Maruti cars.
They'll investigate and get back to us.
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Old 6th September 2009, 18:57   #7
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^ OMG! So was this a 'unofficial' tie up of the ASC with car thieves?

Anyways, your friend did the right thing by refusing(shady technician of a shady company!)
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Old 6th September 2009, 19:11   #8
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I think this is the brand you are talking about- Automobile Accessories, Car Accessories India, RD, RD brand car accessories, Nano Car, Maruti Car, Mahindra Car, Honda Car, GM Car, Alto Car, Skoda Car, Tata Car, Hyundai Car, Toyota, Reverse Parking Sensors, Power Windows, Auto Window Closers, Car C
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Old 11th September 2009, 12:42   #9
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My friend got the car back with the same gearshift lock in it. The dealer did not refund or fix the gearshift lock. He did get a couple of calls from some landline number, who used some harsh words for lodging complaint with Maruti about this incident. We are going to see if we can get a better brand installed without needing to drill more holes in the chasis.

I did notice another flaw in the installation. Even if the gear shift is locked in reverse position using the U type shackle, there is enough room to sneak in a L shaped screwdriver (or a screwdriver bit + pliers) which can be used to remove the two screws which fasten the gearlock to the baseplate on the chassis. Once these screws are removed, the lock can be lifted off easily by unscrewing the gearshift knob. Such a poor design!

I advise readers to check for these issues before opting for this brand of gearshift lock.
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Old 11th September 2009, 18:21   #10
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I have the same brand albeit bot the U shakle type but a PIN type. No issues till date and the lock doesnot open with any other key/s. However one thing I noted was that even thought he installer had said that this will work only in reverse gear I ahve noticed that I can immobilize the gear shifter stick in any of the 6 gears.
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Old 12th September 2009, 10:17   #11
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The RD brand is such a farce! What's even worse is the dealers justification for the lock opening with other keys. Just goes to show why one must stick with a reputable brand when it comes to something as important as security.
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Old 1st March 2013, 13:28   #12
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Re: RD brand Gear Shift Lock - Flawed Design or Product?

My dealer was supposed to fit an Autocop gear lock before delivery, but he said he will get it done in another week after delivery. Since I park my car outside, I wanted the gear lock ASAP. Autocop did not have the equipment as it was in short supply. MSIL told me to get an RD gear lock, a pin-type one. I wanted to ask you guys whether RD is a good brand?
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