Stolen 356

[Skid Hall]

Don't think I have seen this reported here but it was covered in our local news and by the San Francisco Chronicle. At the Goodguys' Hot Rod Autumn Get Together held last weekend in Pleasanton CA (Nov. 9 & 10), Chris Nishamura who attended the event had his 1960 356B Roadster stolen from the parking area just outside the event fencing. Two other American classic cars were also stolen from inside the event. From the pictures it appears his roadster is very nice, black/black, with a smooth front bumper (uprights removed) and with black/yellow California license plate UXT593. I also noticed as an unusual distinction, that it has C type chrome wheels/hubcaps on the front (indicating disc brakes) and normal B type chrome wheels/hubcaps on the rear. I don't have any further information as I only have what was reported in the paper. Perhaps others can provide more details or they would be available from the Chronicle or perhaps the Pleasanton, CA police department.. However the article does state, as one would assume, that Chris (who I don't know) a longtime owner is devastated. Like any of us I'm sure he would appreciate all 356 people keeping an eye out for any sign of his car.

[Geoff Fleming]

Terrible. I always tell 356 owners to never leave the cars in a driveable state when they are out of sight...if even for a brief period.
Turn off the fuel with the under-dash lever, pull the handbrake on and put a padlock through the hole at the upper clamp. Install a kill switch in a discreet location, ( never inside the door post or under the dash...these are the first places a thief looks.). You might even pull the rotor from the distributor. Do anything that will prevent the car from being started and driven off. If you have a later model with the transmission lock use it...lock the transmission in reverse gear.
I know it takes a few extra seconds to do these things but what is the consequence of not doing them?
Even when my car is garaged, the battery is disconnected, trans lock utilized, fuel cock turned to the off position. I know...a determined thief can tow it away, however, we are talking about deterring the one who hops in the car with the intent of driving off with it, not the sophisticated types who act in rings.

[John Brooks]

Found this photo on the Internet

Stolen 356

image.jpg (90.33 KiB) Viewed 1598 times

[Glen Getchell]

I read this story on a Hagerty E-mail news letter. Very sad. The reality is that the Roadster is probably already wearing different numbers (from a long dead Roadster) and paint and has been sold to some one in Europe where it will live a life with a stolen identity. The Impala and Mustang are sadly probably already in pieces on E-Bay.

These cars were not stolen by amatures. The Impala was (as I understand it) stolen right out of the show and had a club on the steering wheel. Tons of people watching but never saw anything. I agree with Geof that you can not make your cars theft proof, you can only deter. Time is a huge element in a car theft. So much so, they made two movies called "Gone in 60 Seconds". So do what you can to make taking your car take longer. Time increases the thief's risk; therefore, deters. But you can see that even with the club on the steering wheel, the Impala was stolen in plain sight. It's amazing, but if you look like you belong than nobody pays attention. My father used to say that "you can go anywhere if you are carrying a clip board". Ask your self if you were at a car show and some one was cutting a steering wheel right in front of people and made a comment about loosing the %$#&* key for the club, would you have assumed a theft? Or would you have thought "what a Dumb A___"?

Of course our 356's come stock with one of the best theft deterrent systems available in this day and age. The system is called a stick shift. This clever device all but eliminates a whole sub group of thieves known as the "Joy Riders". Of course this means that when a 356 is stolen it was targeted and will likely never be seen by the owner again.

Glen
64Cx2

[George Hussey]

the shift lock is certainly a good option available back then. Wonder if Eric's dad left the key in the roadster? Happens a lot at the concours events as no one would ever think that someone would steal a car from the parade field, especially an old one like this

[Glen Getchell]

Based on the Hagerty article is sounds like the Roadster was in the parking lot and not part of the show.

Lets hope he just left the keys in it. If so then it was a theft of opportunity and there is a small chance it may show up in some back alley some where.
Glen
64Cx2

[Bil Brown]

Locks are for honest people!

[Geoff Fleming]

Actually, with the advent of the T-6, transmission locks were standard equipment, not an option.

[Bob Kittel]

If recovery is a chance then what about a tracking device. A few on the market but I do not know which are good and which are not. Then makes me wonder when these thieves will resort to car jacking or worse.

[John Brooks]

I have a small GPS tracker, runs on a small 12V battery in the trunk outboard of the hood hinge. Uses a cell phone sim and phone number, works well enough mounted the transmitter behind the rear carpet. It used a pair 30 gauge wire to power it. Works about 6 months between charges. Never needed it, but dial the number and google maps pops up and here is the parking space.

[Mike Wilson]

There is LoJack classic. It is hidden on the car along with the self-contained battery. It comes with a remote that alerts you if the car moves. I have a friend that has them on both his 356's. You don't see where the tech hides them.

Mike

[Tom Scott]

Why don't you publicize the VIN, engine number and transmission number? Also, be sure to enter the VIN on the National Stolen Vehicles registry.
Tom Scott

[Dan Macdonald]

I have a friend who was showing his '59 El Camino at the Good Guys show.
He said the 356 was in a dirt parking lot.
He also mentioned that stealing cars at this event is not that unusual.

[Peter Silten]

Sadly, if car the stealing of cars is not that unusual the event should be renamed the Bad Guys show.

[Matthew Devereux]

Hopefully the car is recovered. I'm looking into some of the cheap gps tracking devices that can be bought now. I'll buy something this winter and see how it works. I want it to alert me if the car is moved as well as track its GPS position. Some sort of anti theft switch would add to the protection. If the thief is able to block the cell signal and is using a flatdeck I will be out of luck.