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I work from home, so I don't get out and about all that much - probably why my Jetta only has 13,000 miles after 27 months.
Anyway, I had to run a few errands late yesterday afternoon - dropped off a bag of donations at Goodwill, get the car washed, then I decided to stop and get some dinner.
When I came out of the restaurant, I noticed something seemed off with my car - the rear license plate was missing. Hmm, that's not good. OK, I thought that maybe something happened at the car wash that caused the plate to come off, so I went back. Nope, not there. I figured I should get the car home, lest I get pulled over by the local constabulary.
On the way home, I called the local PD; they said an officer would call me back to discuss the situation. I wasn't sure if the local PD or the county Sheriff should handle this, since the theft occurred in town limits, but my home address is in an unincorporated part of the county.
An officer called me, and I explained the situation. He said he would check at the Goodwill to see if it was there, and if not, they would open a case for me. Nope, not there, either.
He explained to me that thieves often steal a car, then grab a plate off a similar model - in my case, a grey Jetta, which is pretty common. He further said that I could move the front plate to the rear, and keep the case number handy in case I do get pulled over; the rear plate has stickers to indicate the month and year the registration expires. Also, I'll need to take the case number with me to the DMV, when I get new plates.
Naturally, I have to go to Denver today, so fingers crossed that I don't have any issues.
What's really odd is that the thieves replaced the screws into the plate frame after taking the plate - gee, how nice of them!
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2015 Subaru Outback 3.6R / 2014 MINI Countryman S ALL4
In my old neighborhood here in Seattle, the favorite thing for the neighborhood high school kids to do during the work day was walk up and down the street bending license plates that didn't have the bottom set of screws in.
When I started working from home, I saw them walking up to give the GTI an attempt (wouldn't have worked). I set off panic mode and watched the group of them scream, fall backwards, and take off. So worth it.
So you have to get new plates, registration and update your insurance with the new numbers?
What a hassle!
2023 Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic / 2022 Ram 1500 Bighorn, Built to Serve
Anyway, they not only unscrewed and took all of the bolts, they very neatly unplugged the wiring harness rather than just cut the wires. They also took the left front quarter panel (basically the headlight, turn signals etc). A lot of wiring connectors, not easy to undo in the middle of the night, in the dark. But there were no cut wires, and no screws or bolts were left behind. Very neat job.
My conclusion was professional body men, who had an order for exactly what they took, right down to the color.
I expect the police, if they had the time and the inclination, could have found the truck that needed my exact parts. 2015 was the first year for the aluminum body panels on the F150, so there couldn't have been that many 2015 F150's in the same color hit in the left front. And local to me, I doubt they traveled very far to do their shopping.
An 89-year old Cambridge, MA woman was dropped by Zipcar because she scratched the car she was driving and dented a parked SUV. She claims others have caused worse damage and were not dropped.
According to reports, her mental acuity is sharp and she is a spritely and athletic woman. Is that age discrimination? Not according to Zipcar. It says (in an obscure paragraph in the contract) that those involved in accidents with less than one year of membership experience with Zipcar is subject to be dropped.
She is pissed off because for $55 a month she had grown fond of the car sharing service.
What do you guys think?
Not sure about the insurance - it's tied to the VIN, not the plate, but I will let my insurance company know, just to be safe.
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2015 Subaru Outback 3.6R / 2014 MINI Countryman S ALL4
https://youtu.be/N0kRPXTBRqE
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
I don’t like drilling into my front grill or bumper. So, I haven’t had a front plate for over a decade. Guess I’d be screwed if someone stole my rear plate. I’d have NO PLATES, then.
@oldfarmer50 ......I’m thinking it’s time to retire the PT. From as much as I can recall, she’s been a good steed for the most part. Buy a Sentra. I know of a few links that have been posted here over the last several months that would help your quest.
When I came out of the restaurant, I noticed something seemed off with my car - the rear license plate was missing. Hmm, that's not good.
WOW....sorry to hear about that one. What a pain.
It will even be more painful if they think you are involved in a bank robbery or something.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
@oldfarmer50 ......I’m thinking it’s time to retire the PT. From as much as I can recall, she’s been a good steed for the most part. Buy a Sentra. I know of a few links that have been posted here over the last several months that would help your quest.
Not to be negative but sometimes things happen for a reason and is better to fold them than to hold them. I am thinking you had a pretty good run with the PT, it might be a good time to bail. It may be hard to get $2500 for it privately, and a dealer may not want it as a trade.
If it needs a major repair after you get it fixed up, you will be sorry you didn't trade it in when you could have just taken the money and ran.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
https://youtu.be/66ql1ouyvAc
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
The folks who who stole my plate can’t say the same thing.
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2015 Subaru Outback 3.6R / 2014 MINI Countryman S ALL4
I figure now that I see salt I’ll have to put the Mustang to bed. Went to Walmart to buy Stabil. At the self check out all sorts of bells started ringing. A manager came over and punched in a code to clear a message “is customer over 18?”. Evidently young folks are drinking the stuff. What a world.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
The concept of taking license plates from another vehicle when a person in the mysteries I read has a stolen car is common. They're not usually so careful as to pick a similar model though. They just grab plates that aren't on the stolen vehicle list.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
They carry rebuilt title forever, and they have no factory warranty, which on newer luxury cars with complicated electronics can cause serious problems down the road.
At my previous lot we sold a low km clean title Mercedes GLK that had a previous minor accident that was acting up. The customer said that sometimes when driving all the dash lights would go off, and check engine light would come on for no reason. Basically phantom electrical issues.
We took it to a speciality shop and it took them days to figure out that some of the wiring that was damaged in the previous accident wasn't reconnected or rewired, causing electrical issues and shorts which caused the computers to communicate incorrectly resulting in problems. They finally fixed it (our lot paid for the repairs), but it took them a while and this was due to a minor accident. I can't imagine what problems can crop up from major accidents that some of these cars sustained if not fixed properly.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
Showing up in court with a lawyer is perhaps not a good strategy. It says I'm guilty and i'm going to buy my way out of this predicament. Instead he should appear to be contrite and throw himself on the mercy of the court. If he is tearful and sincere in his plea he just might walk Scott free.
Not sure about that strategy OF. I think those judges and attorneys are all friends, and they like to see each other making a good living !
I’ve watched this guy’s YouTube channel. He just finished up with getting an Audi R8 with a cracked frame bracket on the road, again. He likes doing it, and obviously enjoys flipping the cars after they’re done.
Would I ever buy an R8 that had frame damage? No! Then again, I’d probably never buy any car that has had frame damage.
But, if you want something like an R8 or an Mercedes AMG Wagon, etc but can’t afford one, this is a way to get into it with little money down. Keeping it running is another matter, though.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
We always appraise rebuilds at about half the value of a clean title car especially if it's a newer model vehicle. I did own a older rebuilt 93 Civic years ago that was actually quite reliable BUT it was a simple 93 Civic so even if something was to go wrong it would be a simple repair.
The Mercedes wagon in the video looks cool but I doubt he can get mid to high teens for it after its been repaired. Most people that have that much cash to pay for an older "collector" type car probably have a bit more to spend on one that's near mint with clean title.
I also agree that it would be tough to get this wagon one fixed for less than $8k. Things can add up fast.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
2018 430i Gran Coupe
2017 Cadillac ATS Performance Premium 3.6
I can see someone with an existing shop being able to fix those cars up but the average Joe would get eaten alive.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
Should be 'The IRS'.
Worst case maybe we can share cells.
and if you see a non-wreck one of those for $4,500, snap it up for me. I will even give you an extra $200 for your trouble.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Showing up in court with a lawyer is perhaps not a good strategy. It says I'm guilty and i'm going to buy my way out of this predicament. Instead he should appear to be contrite and throw himself on the mercy of the court. If he is tearful and sincere in his plea he just might walk Scott free.
Not sure about that strategy OF. I think those judges and attorneys are all friends, and they like to see each other making a good living !
That was Bwia’s strategy not mine. I disagreed with him on that.
I agree with you about the judges, attorneys and various counseling agencies all making a good living off this.
Usually the condition of reducing charges on DUIs is to get an addiction assessment. Surprise, surprise, everyone is diagnosed as needing treatment which the court always orders.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
It would have to be pretty immaculate, with no history, to be worth 20K. It's in the fun zone of being too old to be new, too new to be old.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
Trust me on this, I have made a living off computers and computer skills for 45 years. This site is screwy louie.
A lot of those auctions are ruined by Snipers with auto bid software that swoop in with a topping bid at the last micro second.
I bet I could have had that banged up A5 I saw in the parking lot today for cheap. The owner probably is despondent.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
I know the radiator bracket is bent, but is it leaking anything?
Could be a lot of not a big deal going on.
If I get the wrong sign in, I just redo the url carefully and slowly making sure I put in just what I said above.
If anything else is added at the end of the url, I sometimes get the login box in the middle of the page--this is NOT the log in box on edmunds.com|research|autos and advice|car forums. Other times I get a log in box on the left.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
One thing, jmonroe2 and houdini2 are much funnier than the original.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
I did did the usual workaround of going to Edmunds main page and logging in there and this time it worked. Progress I suppose not having spinning wheels and having to try 3 or 4 times.
2017 Cadillac ATS Performance Premium 3.6
No one could beat me. Thought there were faster cars there, I just happened to never get lined up next to any of them.
Next time I'll take the All Track to give people a chance.
This next weekend is an HDPE track weekend.
Although, unless equipped with a very good driver, your quattro and DSG on an 1/8-mile is still likely the winner against even those.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '08 Charger R/T Daytona; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '08 Maser QP; '11 Mini Cooper S
And yes I used to know someone who bought a broken down BMW just so he could social climb and impress people by saying he had a BMW.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
https://autoweek.com/article/diy/we-wish-guy-whos-rebuilding-totaled-audi-r8-best-luck-because-hes-going-need-it
I had a guy in my Entrepreneurs Course who's plan was to buy 10 year old Jaguars, people couldn't tell one year from the next and he could pick them up really cheap.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250