Epic2112 said, "Don't forget the tractors" I never would have thought of that, not in a million years!

Yes, we'd all like to know how the thieves got away with it.

Also, what do you mean John D.s 951 was burned!?

John, would you choose to indulge us?

- Julie

 

Thats just sad people like that are out there.

 

By the way devia I have ur speedo in a box ready to go out tomorrow afternoon.

 

How on earth is a car like that stolen from a dealership??? I'm really curious. I mean, we've all seen gone in 60 seconds, but really -- it takes more then a "tool" to steal a Porsche, no?

-Matt

 

I have two questions -

1) Hows the search coming, any luck?

2) As a reward would we be allowed to drive it back to you if we found it? :P

 

I have that movie! I found in it in a used video bin for like $1.99

 

Brett, now driving the car back would be such a wonderful reward! I'd take that.

RobbyK, thank you so much for that speedo!

- Julie

 

I heard noises below my apartment 12:30 one night and thought someone was unloading from their car. My car is directly below my bedroom. After awile I got suspicious got out of bed and got my clothes on. By the time I got down there the guy was just turning to run down the sidewalk. I thought he was after my car and I looked for marks everywhere but nothing there. Looked at the Civic next to mine and sure enough he was after the Civic. Told my neighbor and she was surprised.

Anyway, Civics are more desirable than an 87 944S thank goodness, because they are plentiful and the parts are easily sold. A GT3 however is not plentiful. I can't see parts showing up on ebay, " only driven 350 miles, I decided to make it a parts car" uh, no not going to happen even on ebay!!!

 

Exactly. The Audis and BMWs stolen in Europe, for instance, are generally common models that are "made over" changing color, etc., not older cars like ours with low market value, or exotics like a GT3 which sounds like more trouble than it's worth. You seldom hear about exotics being stolen because they're harder to make over and easier to track.

I'm just trying to give Alfie some hope here, you catastrophists!

As for John D.'s 951, now I wish I hadn't mentioned it. He had a ton of hours into that car and I doubt he wants to reminisce about it...

 

There was a ferrari f50 stolen from a dealership back in September.

http://www.philly.com/mld/dailynews/...6864656.htm?1c

 

Philly.com registration page?

 

The car will end up being some mobsters new toy. More than likely the local cops will NEVER ask them for their license and registration.

 

My first job out of college was at a Toyota/Jaguar dealership. One day, I nicely dressed man and woman come in to Jaguar showroom. They look around and end up test driving one of the Vanden Plas Jags (the fully loaded ones with the tray tables built into the seat backs.

They guy gave let the saleman photocopy his drivers license and gave him a cashiers check for like $20K to hold while he and the woman took the car, without the salesman. Well guess what, the car never came back. The check and license were fakes, but these guys were pros because the license had been issued by the DMV and the fake check even had a watermark on it.

 

sorry about that .here is the article.


He dropped off salesman - and took off in Ferrari
By JIM NOLAN
nolanj@phillynews.com

You think YOU'VE had a bad day.

How'd you like to be the trusting Main Line Ferrari salesman who got out of the passenger seat to switch places with a prospective customer last week, only to be left at the curb?

In case you're wondering, that was a $729,000 f-50 Ferrari. Red, of course.

The salesman, not to mention Lower Merion police, are still looking for the car, which detectives believe may have been driven into a trailer shortly after it was stolen for shipment overseas or a black market transaction.

Even harder to believe is that the silver-tongued con man was able to get behind the wheel of the Italian roadster without even showing a driver's license, according to police.

It all happened Sept. 16 at Algar Ferrari, on Lancaster Avenue, in Rosemont, one of only 32 Ferrari and Maserati dealerships in North America.

Lower Merion police said a man called the dealership saying he was flying up from Atlanta and was interested in a red, 1995, f-50 in stock.

He arrived wearing a shirt and tie and a Rolex watch, acting affluent and telling the salesmen that his limo was parked next door in the Acme parking lot.

Salesmen always accompany prospective customers on test drives. But police said that after the first test drive with the salesman behind the wheel, the con man asked to take another spin driving himself, saying he was concerned about the brakes.

Police said he told the dealership that he left his wallet and license at the airport. Nevertheless, a manager agreed to let him drive with the salesman.

Around 5 p.m. on Spring Mill Road, the man asked if the salesman would drive the rest of the way back to the dealership.

"When the salesman gets out, he just takes off," said Det. Charles J. Craig, who is handling the case.

Despite rush hour and rapid police deployment to the area, there was no trace of the car, leading cops to suspect the con man had accomplices.

"This took a lot of planning," said Craig.

Police released a description of the Ferrari thief - White, around 6-foot, slender, with short, clean-cut, reddish-brown hair and glasses. The Ferrari is pretty hard to miss.

Detectives are also looking into whether the theft is related to similar thefts of Ferraris in North Carolina and Long Island. Anyone with information can call 610-645-6228.

 

So my question is: If the theft of this car involved pretty hefty bribes to a pretty hefty number of people, how much is the end recipient of this car actually saving when compared to just buying one legally?

This whole illegal infrastructure of people on the inside at the dealer, corrupt customs officials, corrupt port authority people at either end of the shipping chain, a shipper willing to traffic illegal cargo, and various guards and law enforcement people, all require bribes large enough to convince them to risk getting fired and/or prosecuted and doing some time.

So by the time all these people have been paid off and the car has been successfully procured, it's gotta cost close to what a new one goes for, wouldn't you think? Plus, excluding the legality risk which may or may not be important to the guy (or woman - can't be gender biased these days) receiving the car, there's financial risk. If the thieves got busted, I'm sure there's no refund to the person who ordered the car. And I doubt the theft would go down without the theives having cash in hand.

Bryan