RASLOK Steering Wheel Lock Review

The RASLOK EL-6580 steering wheel lock is a product made by a Malaysian company, RASLOK, which is actually specialized in Air and Water purifiers.

This company also happens to make some Steering Wheel locks, which are quite expensive. We’ll see in this article if they are a good tool to add to your car.

Why the need of a steering wheel lock ?

Toyota CHR Graphic Premium Keyless design

Having a steering wheel lock might sound like old tech, especially in 2023. By now, you would think that if it’s hard to steal some iPhones or some AirPods, it would be even harder to steal a car. Well, this is far from true.

Cars can be stolen in seconds, and even if they have an integrated GPS chip, this can’t be used to retrieve the car. I think car manufacturers are not that interested in making their vehicles difficult to steal, maybe because not every country encounters this form of insecurity.

Actually, cars are getting easier and easier to start thanks to keyless systems to open doors and start the car. It’s designed for convenience but not for safety.

What are the different types of steering wheel locks ?

When it comes to steering wheel lock there are basically four main families :

Traditional side bar
Bar that goes in front
Whole-wheel locks
Wheel-to-pedal locks

What are the pros and cons of each systems ?

Traditional side bar

This is perhaps the most popular option. One of the advantages of this system is that it’s very simple and sometimes inexpensive. Some can be found for 30 euros, though we would recommend you take something more expensive.

Some models are foldable, and some aren’t. The models that are not foldable offer a better level of security, but they tend to be shorter, so they are less effective when it comes to preventing the thieves to turn the steering wheel.

The foldable design often comes with a design flaw, which is a pin that can be recessed with a tool to fold the lock and untie it from the steering wheel. This video explain the process which only takes a few seconds.

Bar that goes in front

Artago Steering Wheel Lock n°1 in Sales in Amazon

These types of systems are basically locked into the wheel, with the protruding part sitting on the dashboard, the steering won’t be able to move since it’s locked in at least three points.

These locks also have a system that will trigger a sound thanks to the honking horn or another system inside the lock. These locks are great because thieves want to stay inconspicuous while stealing a car. This will most likely discourage most of them.

Whole-wheel locks

Disklok is basically the best system there is to lock the steering wheel. I think absolutely no one would take the risk of spending the time to remove it, unless the car is in a deserted place where there is absolutely no risk of having witnesses.

But let’s be honest, they are not the most practical. I mean, just to store it properly in your car and put it on is so much more complex than all the other solutions.

Unless you have a very expensive car, I don’t think this solution is really convenient.

Wheel-to-pedal locks

Wheel-to-pedal locks are also a system that will lock the steering wheel to the pedal so thieves can’t move either of them.

One flaw you may encounter is that if your steering wheel can be adjusted, the device may be defeated just by making the length too long to hook on the wheel. This means you’ll have to reset your steering wheel every time you use this tool.

All systems have flaws and can be defeated

It’s simple: all these locks are made to deter thieves from spending too much energy stealing your car. I think it’s fair to say that brute force would get rid of all these systems outside of Disklok.

Some thieves are even willing to cut the wheel in two to get rid of the lock. So unless your steering wheel is made out of titanium, which wouldn’t be practical or realistic since there’s always another flaw in the system.

The RASLOK Steering Wheel Lock

The RASLOK Steering Wheel Lock is basically an elegant and quick solution that uses the honk of your car to deter thieves from moving the wheel too much.

Note that in most cars, the honk will still work while the car is connected to the battery. This can easily be defeated by breaking into the car, opening the hood, and disconnecting the battery.

Catalytic converter stolen in streets full of people in Paris.

But to be fair, this is not something thieves will do, especially in public spaces. Though everything is possible in France, people remove catalytic converter in streets full of people in Paris.

One thing that I like about this RASLOK Steering Wheel Lock compared to the Artago system is that it really locks the steering wheel in place. Whereas the Artago only hugs it. A bit of force will most likely remove it from its place; that’s why they combined it with the integrated alarm, which needs a dedicated battery.

One other neat feature is that the lock is covered with leather. This is good if you can’t avoid damaging your steering wheel or other parts of your car that are in contact with the lock.

Three original keys included in the package

The keys also have a special profile, and the location of the lock is on the side, making for a slightly awkward position for picking. It’s quite funny that we went keyless for convenience but now have to add extra security using a physical lock.

Verdict

8.0 out of 10.

When it comes to security, it’s always a good idea to add multiple tools to deter thieves from stealing your car.

When it comes to steering lock, you need something that will give extra time to the thieves and compromise their inconspicuousness.

This in unfortunately one of the many tools, you’ll need to secure your car. I would advise you to add some devices such as the Invoxia GPS Tracker and an extra Apple AirTag.

Obviously, you’ll need car insurance against theft as well, and if you are parking your car in front of your house, an extra camera such as the Xiaomi C200 would be a good extra peace of mind.