Posted on 05/19/2024 9:28:06 AM PDT by lowbridge
An Oakland man has been left heartbroken after his rare vintage Corvette was stolen from his garage just before his 80th birthday.
Dave Lechthaler, 80, described how a mob of thieves broke into his home on April 15 before riding off with his $200,000 1959 Corvette, which has been his pride and joy for the past 18 years.
Surveillance footage captured the brazen act, showing two suspects breaking into the garage, before running off in the Corvette within a matter of minutes.
'It's like a stab in the heart,' he told the Fox affiliate KTVU.
He is now pointing fingers at the city's leadership for what he perceives as a lack of accountability for criminals.
'There are no consequences in this city. People can steal and rob,' Lechthaler told KTVU.
Lechthaler has a strong passion for automobiles, with his home now adorned with photos from his racing days.
'It hurts because my life, my whole life, has been hot rod cars since I was 14 years old,' he explained.
Lechthaler said he poured his heart and soul into the convertible, dedicating countless hours to its maintenance and upkeep.
He also carefully rebuilt the engine, gave the car a fresh coat of paint, and reupholstered it.
Lechthaler believes he may have been followed from a car show in Pleasanton, where his prized possession caught the eye of the thieves.
While the Corvette is insured, the loss is irreplaceable for Lechthaler.
His message to the perpetrators is simple: 'I want my car back.'
Figures from January show a shocking one in thirty Oakland residents had their car stolen last year - a total of 15,000 vehicles.
This is a 45 percent increase in just 12 months, and the highest number in 15 years
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
I was wondering about something like that too. If he drove it every day that would be pretty inconvenient. But if it was a show car, and he only drove it occasionally, it would have been well worth it to pull the distributor cap.
“You’re missing the point”
You are missing the point. Most 59’s in good to excellent condition are worth around $100k.
A top of the line 290 hp fuelie with full professional restoration is listed (not sold) for $140k.
No way his is worth $200k.
” but alas,
it’s not worth the
argument.”
Because you don’t have the facts.
Ship it overseas.
Can’t sell it in the states, for anything near its value. Car buyers are aware.
Parting it out is chickenfeed return.
“I was wondering about something like that too. If he drove it every day that would be pretty inconvenient. But if it was a show car, and he only drove it occasionally, it would have been well worth it to pull the distributor cap.”
Just guessing:
Not a daily driver
Kept in a garage
(still looking for the video)
It was 7 AM and they jimmied open the garage door. One entered and closed the door behind him leaving the second outside as a lookout.
The highest price paid for
any ‘59 vetted was $895k
Just found this one. Just $5k
short of $200k.
https://www.hagerty.com/valuation-tools/chevrolet/corvette/1959/1959-chevrolet-corvette
I’m siding with the owner on
his declared value of the car. As with any car,
it’s worth what someone
is willing to pay.
I would assume being a 1959 Corvette, that it was a manual transmission. So how did an Oakland thug drive it away.
The rat 🐀 party would be my guess.
It’s those white supremacists again isn’t it?
And I’d bet big money he DOESN’T vote for democrats, seeing how he’s a car guy he’s probably one of us... There are plenty of us here who don’t. I’ve faithfully voted since 1980, and I’ve NEVER voted for even one democrat.
If true, he’s among the last Republicans in Oakland, like a frog in a pot of warming water.
You’d be surprised. There’s a hell of a lot of republicans in this state. The democrat powers that be, using dirty work, have made it impossible for us to win any statewide elections these days. This is coming to every state if they’re not stopped. That’s their plan for all of America.
There were quite a few in Hayward, just a bit south of Oakland, where I lived when I worked in the Bay Area for just over a year 2016-2017.
And I’ll always have the fond memory of that wonderful early November evening in 2016 as I watched election returns at my apartment there. Everyone had their windows open because the weather so nice (A/C is not much of a thing there) and I could hear a neighbor whoop for joy every time Fox News called a state for Trump.
My like-minded boss was driving back from an all-day meeting in Humboldt County and I was updating him regularly via phone. We were the first two in the office the next morning and we high-fived the minute I walked in the door.
It was fun being in enemy territory when that happened.
I was thinking the same thing.
Other than the year, usually nothing special about the ‘59.
“Just found this one. Just $5k
short of $200k.”
Your link shows $56k.
“The highest price paid for
any ‘59 vetted was $895k”
Obvious you are totally ignorant on this subject. That “vette” is a fully custom restmod with everything modern except the body! One of a kind.
The dude also made another that sold for $440k.
“I would assume being a 1959 Corvette, that it was a manual transmission. So how did an Oakland thug drive it away.”
When an order for a stick-shift car goes out they recruit a properly skilled driver.
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