Where are my wheels?

[Chuckud]

Recieved this call yesterday morning.  The customer parked near the entrance to the hotel, (75 feet from the front door), checked in & spent the night. This is what she found in the morning!  Placed go jacks under all 4 wheels, pushed out of parking place then installed the carrier dolly system loaded & delivered to the shop. The customer was heartbroken over what happened to her new Blazer.

[GRUMPS The Towman]

Beautiful work on the tow.

I feel terrible for the vehicle owner.. Doing That to someone is about as low as you can get..

Being that close to the door of the motel, I wouldnt be surprised if it was some sort of "inside job" type of deal...

[Chuckud]

Thanks Grumps,  we've been using this technique for stolen wheels for years.

Recently, we purchased 2 sets of Guni wheels (both sizes) as we had a spree (15+) of wheel thefts in parking garages, usually on the upper floors.

But, neither set of Guni wheels fit the 2021 Blazer so we had to go old school with the carrier dolly system.

[yoBdaBenO]

Wow, that was a very Professional Recovery, thanks for sharing.

 

I have a box of Crash Wrap that I use on windows so much easier than the tape. Also, a lot faster and the adjusters always mention how much cleaner it looks then the tape. I have to ask is that painters tape, didn't think of using it cause I didn't know how well it would hold. Crash Wrap doesn't need tape and it holds well going down the road.

[Chuckud]

The window was covered by the customer before we arrived,  we use crash wrap if we cover broken glass.

[TowZone]

If she did not have locks on the first set, bet she does on the next set.

 

While locks do not stop a thief, they do act as a deterrent.

 

I too wondered about the window covering, good to know the customer did that.

[GRUMPS The Towman]

I remember back in the 90's that Stereo system and wheel/tire theft was rampant down where I grew up ( and was living at the time ) in the Bronx and Queens. It was mostly the popularity of aftermarket wheels and what not. 

I am assuming it is the high price of scrap metals nowadays that is driving this type of theft. 

There has been a rash of cat-converter thefts around here at the dealerships in the past few months. I am told the cats off a v8 ford truck are fetching around $700-$1000 at the scrapper... Thats a pretty good fix for any dirt bag junkie...

[TowMan127]

Nice job! Definitely sucks for the customer. We deal with that situation with the Honda’s. 

[Ed Allegretti]

How do the thieves get the jack out after removing the wheels? I mean the car is literally sitting on the ground. 

[Chuckud]

Usually its 2 landscape stones or 2 litre bottle crates.  They center them under the car, which usually damages the rocker panels or the floor pan.  We had  stretch of 3 2020 Toyota Camrys in 1 day 2 weeks ago.  All of them were within a 5 mile circle of each other.

Edited March 8, 2021 by Chuckud

[GRUMPS The Towman]

9 hours ago, Ed Allegretti said:

How do the thieves get the jack out after removing the wheels? I mean the car is literally sitting on the ground. 

I have seen them use the 2 liter cases like Chuckud mentioned ( thats what looks to be sticking out from under this one) or milk crates, random bricks, large sticks or stones, you name it. The milk crates and bottle containers will hold it up just long enough to get their jack out. Then as they sit there, they get squished down. Those are easy to come by too. They just snag them from a nearby quick shop or grocery store.