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It was reported early this year, thieves would hacksaw catalytic converters to sell the platimum. Now they are drilling holes under the gas tank because it's easier than getting around locked gas caps.

Don't have an article yet, but it was reported on KRLD - Dallas.

WOW, they are getting craftier all the time. Time to put Kevlar under the tank :D

WOW, they are getting craftier all the time. Time to put Kevlar under the tank :DThis could bring back lowriders. :cool:

Even a teen probably needs a jack to get under my Insight....just hope they are looking for tanks bigger than ten gallons. ;)

using a hacksaw to cut a cat out? that would take a long time.. it took me about 3 min a side to cut a cat off my Camaro and I was using a reciprocating saw (don't worry I welded a new, working one in its place)

Lithium battery powered saws. ;)

I was thinking this week that I should learn to weld. Now I'm thinking that a diamond plate shield (aero mod?) would be a good first project!

Not that the idiots would get much out of mine. A big pickup or SUV should be a far more tempting target vs. the 9 or 10 gallons max that I can cram into the Prius' little tank.

Makes me glad I have complete smooth underbody paneling under my car. The thieves would have some difficulty in trying to locate the bottom of the gas tank, assuming they didn't think my car was an EV and didn't have one (since I am usually approaching a parking spot ICE-off). My fuel filler cover is gap sealed, so it looks like it is permanantly sealed shut as part of an EV conversion. A relative who once rode in my car thought my engine was in the back of the car in the boattail.

Hi Chuck:
Lithium battery powered saws. ;)
___You know A123Systems supplies the Li-Ion batteries in the DeWalt Cordless lineup and IIRC, they have a bevy of cordless Li-Ion powered saws to choose from!

___Tim, I hope you find a way to form plastic at home rather than cutting and welding diamond plate as I would hate to see your armored Prius tooling around while tipping the scales in excess of 4,000 pounds empty. Maybe it would be great for Iraq but I don’t think that sort of thing is needed around SC just yet ;)

___Good Luck

___Wayne

Not that the idiots would get much out of mine. A big pickup or SUV should be a far more tempting target vs. the 9 or 10 gallons max that I can cram into the Prius' little tank.

But since you drive a Prius, they will automatically think (correctly) that you get good mileage, and would probably actually have gas in your tank.

But since you drive a Prius, they will automatically think (correctly) that you get good mileage, and would probably actually have gas in your tank.

I was going to write up a logical argument that the Prius is still a lousy target, but I stopped. The fact is that for someone out drilling holes in gas tanks, logical arguments aren't worth much.

Just make sure there is 20-30 gallon tank vehicle conviently near yours. ;)

Just make sure there is 20-30 gallon tank vehicle conviently near yours. ;)

Preferably lifted for easy access.

A big pickup or SUV should be a far more tempting target vs. the 9 or 10 gallons max that I can cram into the Prius' little tank.

A big truck would be a much more tempting target because there is a lot more room to work under the car, so the thief can keep himself and his gas containers totally hidden under the truck while he works. Also the gas tank and its fuel lines can be very easily accessed by the thief hiding under the truck. He wouldn't even have to drill a hole in the tank, just cut or disconnect a fuel line leaving the tank and let it gravity feed into his containers. And with the potential of $80 to $100 worth of gas in the tank of a large truck, it would be a tempting target for someone who was looking to make an easy buck.

Hmmm, metal drill bit boring a hole through a metal gas tank. Between the sparking of the electric motor in the drill, the heat build up of drilling through the tank, and the possibility of a spark while drilling metal on metal this can't be the safest way to steal fuel. I can see the headline now, "Gas tank explodes while thieves try to steal gas."

Reminds me of time I saw an idiot syphoning gas while smoking a cigarette. What's that award called, The Darwin Awards? (http://www.darwinawards.com/)

It's been happening in the Bay Area recently, as well. Generally to delivery trucks and vans; possibly the thieves think that those are more likely to have full tanks? A couple of cases of cut fuel lines, and a couple of drilled fuel tanks. They seem to have spilled more gas than they got, but they obviously don't care...

A few years ago, someone pried open the gas filler flap on my CRX and tried to siphon it. The tank was just about empty at the time, so they didn't get anything. They were evidently interrupted, as well, because the hose was still hanging out of the tank when I got back to the car! The valve in the filler neck had caught on the hose and trapped it. (Awww, poor them!)

...On the up-side, sales of locking gas caps locally are way up...

-soD

There was a news story here in michigan not too long ago about thieves hitting construction sites and siphoning all the heavy equipment. Can you imagine black market fuel? Buying stolen gas for $2 a gal. Instead of a pair of tennis shoes hanging over the power lines to indicate a place to buy drugs, there will be a pair of gas cans.

A big truck would be a much more tempting target because there is a lot more room to work under the car, so the thief can keep himself and his gas containers totally hidden under the truck while he works. Also the gas tank and its fuel lines can be very easily accessed by the thief hiding under the truck. He wouldn't even have to drill a hole in the tank, just cut or disconnect a fuel line leaving the tank and let it gravity feed into his containers. And with the potential of $80 to $100 worth of gas in the tank of a large truck, it would be a tempting target for someone who was looking to make an easy buck.

What use will that be though if the big vehicle's gas tank is empty (or near empty)? That's what I'm getting at--if gas prices are so high that it's no longer economically feasible to pay for 30 gallons at a time at $5+ a gallon or whatever it goes to, so the big vehicle just gets ten dollars of gas here and there, and the gas light's always on.