Ouch!

[Craig]

People steal the wheels too.

Also now using portable battery angle grinders to remove parts or cut into vans.

I had the battery stolen out of my regular petrol car in 1988. The driver's door lock was worn... Why didn't they steal the whole car? It was an elderly Fiat 127!

At about that same time, we had a nearly new mini. It was yellow. I walked into the dark and unlit car park at work, and picked out a yellow mini. Put my key in the lock; it was a little stiff to turn, but I got in and started the car - only to find it was not mine! Turned it off and relocked it with my keys. Found my own car and drove home.

Security features? What security features in the mid/late 80's?

In the late 90's I had a beaten up Mini Metro that I paid £200 for that I just used mainly to drive to the station car park and back. Apart from once I put the front wheel into a pothole and the steering lock suffered damage. Graunching noise on lock. Not worth fixing, and I'd committed to having to pay for having it scrapped. But returning to the station car park at around 9 at night - the car was gone! It had been stolen. Phoned wife "Someone has stolen it - woohoo!"

I saw it abandoned in a layby on the A34 - a distance of about 5 miles from the theft - the thieves must have wondered why they had nicked such a damaged car! I studiously ignored it. Eventually the insurance company got in touch to say the police had found it. "They made a real mess of the steering - it is totally shot"; "Oh dear" I said "We'd like to offer you £600 - it was the Sport model" I was so shocked I did not even negotiate. I pretty much bit his hand off. So instead of having to pay to have it scrapped, I got a bunch of money instead.