Posted on 04/29/2012 11:23:21 AM PDT by nickcarraway
Albuquerque police are trying to make life harder for car thieves.
Police etched Vehicle Identification Numbers (VIN) into car windshields and windows on Saturday free of charge.
Brenda Baca said she isn't taking any chances as she had her VIN etched into all her windows.
"Got a new car and I just thought this would be a good idea," said Baca.
Virginia Garcia thinks it's good idea too, especially lately.
"There's so many thieves out there. I mean they're just taking our stuff at liberty," said Baca.
Police said they're cracking down on vehicle thieves hard and this is just one more way to detour them from stealing cars.
"This is a permanently etched number in the glass of your vehicle that the auto theft unit police departments can go to," said APD Auto Theft Detective Joel Block.
You might be thinking the thieves will just replace the glass in a chop shop.
Not so according to detectives who work car theft cases everyday.
"Glass is one of the most expensive components to replace in a vehicle, it's very time consuming and labor intensive to get that replaced and auto thieves do not like to do that," said Block.
Police say thieves will most likely target other cars that don't have the VIN etching.
For Baca, getting it done and out of the way is just a matter of common sense.
"They're helping us out so why not take advantage of something they're giving us so we can help them also," said Baca.
Albuquerque police say a few years ago the Duke City was number seven in the nation for car thefts.
That number has improved to about 20 this year.
I remember a fad in the 70s where people engraved a number on all their stuff. I think it was called Operation ID.
I remember my dad doing that.
Same here but it was their SS# they were engraving.
Um, won’t the thieves just break/remove the glass? Not sure how this is a deterrent.
First this will be voluntary, and people will think it’s a great idea. Then it will be mandatory. Then there will be enforcement checkpoints. Then some poor schlub will get arrested because he failed to get his windows etched, or because the dyslexic doing the etching mis-transposed a couple digits in the VIN.
Toyota did that as an anti-theft package for my new RAV4 back in 1996. As a matter of fact, the VIN is engraved on every piece of glass and all large components.
Same on my car which is not a Toyota.
Car thefts are way down in my part of the nation due factory installed anti-theft devices, like the key fobs. Car jackings seem a little up, but theft of scrap metal is through the roof. So, sometimes that older car that gets stolen goes to the car crusher for scrap metal and a couple hundred bucks into the thieves pocket. Leave an old car on the side of the highway and it may get towed by an unscrupulous scrapper.
Here’s a little tip for any DIY’s or homebuilders. Spray paint any copper piping that you put in your houses because scrap yards will not accept it and copper thieves know this.
Here’s a little tip for any DIY’s or homebuilders. Spray paint any copper piping that you put in your houses because scrap yards will not accept it and copper thieves know this.And that, folks, is a great example of why FR is so darn addictive. Thanks for that informative tidbit.
Car thieves can’t replace auto windows?
Most mechanics could do that in their own garage.
This poster - hardly a grease monkey - removed a car window once to replace a convertible top, having nearly *zero* mechanical aptitude.
This is just more nannie state cr@p.
Glass ain't permanent though.
Yeah, SS#. We weren’t too smart back then.
The VIN is already clearly visible on the dash through the windshield.
I still have an old Black & Decker drill from that era with my Dad’s SSN engraved on it.
The glass is a relatively high-value used part. Used parts dealers (junkyards) won’t sell a piece of glass with the VIN of a stolen car on it.
Could you expand on that a little? Why won't scrap yards take it? Is it because it's an identifier or because it degrades it for the recycling process? Or something else?
I hated that trend, it’s destroyed the collector value of a huge number of guns. Nothing like turning over a minty Smith or Colt and seeing 123-45-6789 electro-penciled in the trigger guard.
Sometimes it ticks me off so much I feel like using the number to get a credit card and use that to buy the gun.
You hit it right on the head, it is an identifier and apparently it is a contaminant during the recycling process.
So I got it on both counts? I do get lucky sometimes. I was wondering about it being an identifier because sometime in the future it might be legitimately scrapped. I suppose the scrapper could then produce some document showing a legitimate source though such as a contract to demolish an old building.
Don’t get yourself in trouble. Just pass that SS# out at Home Depot.
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