| Quote: |
ATHENS, Ohio - A college student who reported that his car was stolen got a surprise when he learned a woman had mistaken it for her daughter's car and taken it- using her key.
Kate Anderson of Athens became an accidental car thief when she went to pick up her daughter's car near an Ohio University building last week. Anderson spotted the nickel-gray Toyota Camry and used her daughter's key to unlock the car, start the engine and drive home- without realizing that the car wasn't her daughter's.
When Charlie Vansant left class a short time later, he found only an empty parking spot. He first assumed the car, made in the mid-1980s, had been towed, but when police couldn't find a record of it, they took a theft report.
"I thought it was very, very bizarre," he said.
Toyota spokesman Bill Kwong said key technology wasn't as sophisticated two decades ago, and there were only so many ways to cut a key, making it possible for such a mix-up to occur. He said the company now has a microchip embedded in the keys for 90 percent of its vehicles that allows them to start only with the correct key.
The morning after Anderson took the car, her daughter discovered the Camry in the driveway wasn't hers. Anderson said she was able to find Vansant's name on paperwork in the glove compartment and look up his phone number on the Web site for the university in this southeast Ohio city.
When Anderson told Vansant the car was in her driveway, "It sounded real fishy at first, like maybe she wanted to hold the thing for ransom," Vansant said.
He eventually went to the house with a police officer, where he was reunited with his car. According to a police report, the case was closed "because of mistaken car identity." Anderson wasn't charged.
Vansant seemed to blame the car company more than the "thief." "Her key fit not only my lock, but my ignition as well- so high-five for Toyota, I guess," he said. |
comcast.net strange news.
Now that is funny. Technically she didn't really steal the car. The Key that she had fit into the lock and the ignition. How secure is that?
I always thought that every lock was made differently but in this case it was not.
I hope that from now on Toyota know what they are doing when it comes to making locks for cars.It is a very common thing to open a car with similar keys. I have a key which can open many ford cars, actually I have tried it in more than ten cars and all of them were opened. The key is from a car I owned and has been very helpful with my friends who left the keys inside.
Gee, this is great! now I know - I don't have to buy a car after all, I can just drive other people's cars around. What a country!
pretty freaky
Even if someone doest use the key to take off with you car they still could steal some of the contents
"He [Toyota spokesman] said the company now has a microchip embedded in the keys for 90 percent of its vehicles that allows them to start only with the correct key. "
Hey! Sometimes I leave important things in the car, not visible of cause but in there none the less!Does this happen to other cars than Toyota too or is it Toyota specific?
I have an other car but maybe it would be wise not to leave so many things inside if 90 procent of all other Opel drivers can open my car!!!
I must say I'm a little shocked....
| jeanoradean wrote: |
Does this happen to other cars than Toyota too or is it Toyota specific?
I have an other car but maybe it would be wise not to leave so many things inside if 90 procent of all other Opel drivers can open my car!!!
I must say I'm a little shocked.... |
Someone mentioned a Ford earlier, so it's probably all makes. As the Toyota spokesman said in the report - technology wasn't so advanced a decade or more ago and when you have so many billions of cars on the road, there's only so much you can do to protect them.
I guess it's a reminder to all of us not to leave valuables in the car, and to use a wheel or gear lock for additional protection. Also, park in a secure, well-light area. All of this should help to prevent uneccessary incidents like this one. | Tiger wrote: |
...
I guess it's a reminder to all of us not to leave valuables in the car, and to use a wheel or gear lock for additional protection. Also, park in a secure, well-light area. All of this should help to prevent uneccessary incidents like this one. |
Well, parking in a secure, well lit area isn't going to help in accidental situations like this. It is just a case of mistaken identity and identical locks.
I remember hearing back in the 70s that most car manufacturers only used 50 different locks on their cars. That meant that, on average, if you tried your key in 50 cars of similar make, you could drive off in one. 
Makes me wonder how many different house keys can be made on one blank style....I guess its a good idea to change the locks on a car, otherwise, who knows how many keys can open your car.
Alright, so admittedly, this did make me smile. But it's a bit more serious than I first thought. I'm wondering what it would be like to be in that predicament.
I'm glad there were no charges made.
| jongoldsz wrote: |
| I guess its a good idea to change the locks on a car, otherwise, who knows how many keys can open your car. |
Or you could go the other route... I know a number of folks who routinely leave their car unlocked completely. The say that a thief is gonna get in if they want to and they figure by leaving it unlocked the thief won't have to break the windows. | HoboPelican wrote: |
| Or you could go the other route... I know a number of folks who routinely leave their car unlocked completely. The say that a thief is gonna get in if they want to and they figure by leaving it unlocked the thief won't have to break the windows. |
Yea, I had my car broken into a few months ago. The thief took the radio, and the service book - don't ask me why. At the time, the car was parked at my folks place and was behind a fence with an electric gate. There was a storm that night, and the police said criminals often use the cover of a storm because most people are indoors and the sound of breaking glass is covered better.
Anyway, since then I prefer not to lock the car when I park it at my folks place - at least that way I won't have to replace th window.
As you mentioned earlier HoboPelican, parking in a secure area won't help in the case of mistaken identity - it doesn't stop a determinded thief either, but it can reduce crime as most thieves are too lazy to jump fences or take chances - they'd rather find easier targets. | jongoldsz wrote: |
| I guess its a good idea to change the locks on a car, otherwise, who knows how many keys can open your car. |
What are you going to change you locks to?
As I understood it all car manufacturers use a finite number of key combinations that reapeat every so often. Not so often that this thing happens every day but often enough to prevent it ever happening. I believe Fords are bad for this, my brother-in-law could unlock my wife's car with his and vice versa. That said, Fords locks have a reputation to be so useless anyway they could probably be opened with a banana!
I also agree that leaving your car unlocked is one route but this can encourage the most inept thief to attempt to steal it - this may be offering too much temptation for someone who may otherwise have simply walked past you car.
Unless of course you car has no obvious sign that it is unlocked but many do.
