I just copied this from an email I got so - I didn't write it, but it sounds true to a degree. WHAT WILL THEY THINK OF NEXT? Seems that car thieves have found yet another way to steal your car or truck without any effort at all. The car thieves peer through the windshield of your car or truck, write down the VIN # from the label on the dash, go to the local car dealership and request a duplicate key based on the VIN #. My friend didn't believe this e-mail, so she called Honda Acura and pretended she had lost her keys. They told her to just bring in the VIN #, and they would cut her one on the spot, and she could order the keyless device if she wanted! The Car Dealer's Parts Department will make a duplicate key from the VIN #, and collect payment from the thief who will return to your car. He doesn't have to break in, do any damage to the vehicle, or draw attention to himself. All he has to do is walk up to your car, insert the key and off he goes to a local Chop Shop with your vehicle. You don't believe it? It IS that easy. To avoid this from happening to you, simply put some tape (electrical tape, duct tape or medical tape) across the VIN Metal Label located on the dash board. By law, you cannot remove the VIN, but you can cover it so it can't be viewed through the windshield by a car thief. I slipped a 3 x 5 card over the VIN NUMBER.
Yes, this is actually a fairly old Scam. The dealership is responsible for verifying the persons identity, but lets face it, that doesn't always happen. Alot of people on Naisoc talk about putting a sticker or piece of paper or something over the VIN on the Dash to hide the VIN. Honestly, if something like this were to happen to me, and it is later found that they got a key made by a dealership, I would sue the Dealership for not properly verifying my identity.
yea thats so stupid....i believe that all dealers should check ids, and i know some are getting better about it. Its rediculous. If the cartakes lazer engraved keys or the ones with chips in them, then they would have to pay a good amount of money for a replacement.
Yeah theres all kinds of tricks like you can do to steal a car. I only know this because for a while i was going to be a repo man. But being a programmer is much more safe.... Also the fact is if they really want to steal your car then they will. All you can do is try to make it hard for them to look up the vin. But their are ways to get around it. But here are a few examples Get a tennis ball, knife, and rubber malet. Cut a small x in the tennis ball with the knife. Then take it to certain car(im not going say witch) to cover the door lock and tap it with the malet till the lock pops. on a corvet just get a ice pick and new corvet battery. Trust me from their you can get where im going from here
Unfortunately it isn't legal to conceal your VIN plate either. You might not catch any flak for it, but if your car is in the wrong place at the wrong time, your car can be on a flatbed headed for the impound until the cops can break into it and read the VIN. Then if everything is found to be in order you can come pay to get your car out of impound. Quick story: A few months ago we had a couple of detectives who came out to an officer on a traffic stop and, at the scene, took apart a brand new Mercedes to find a hidden VIN because the VIN plate appeared altered and partially concealed, and there was supposedly a Lojack hit on the car. They found the hidden VIN, and the car ended up being stolen out of California.
When I got my 02 WRX, the dealership told me that the car was high on the list of wanted cars by thieves and that they have all the windows on the car etched with the VIN Number. Now that I think about it, that was a horrible thing to do. Nothing ever came of it luckily, but that would have made it real easy for a would be thief to get the info they need to get a key made.