As a car nut on the side from my college studies and work for the federal govt, I got maybe one of the worst feelings in my young life when my car was stolen from the Shady Grove metro lot. I'm one of those guys who is very attached to their cars, and I am devastated that I have been violated by someone who cannot work to pay for their own car. FYI, a locked car with a security system does not stop someone from stealing a car as I have found out. I know this is not something to be argued, but I just felt the need to post this.

If anyone happens to be in the DC area and see a red Honda Civic with the license tag MD- BIGGINS, please let myself or the police know that the car is stolen. Unfortunately, I have begun the process of looking for something else since my car is probably already chopped and the parts on eBay.

Sorry Big. I'd try to cheer you up by saying maybe it was just taken for a joyride and will turn up parked somewhere, but I doubt that's the case if they picked you off a metro lot.

Man, I'm sorry to hear that biggins.

What time during the day was it stolen? And the metro lots are required to have cameras in them to prevent such a thing from happening, if I'm not mistaken.

Hope things get better.

Between the hours of 7:30am and 5:30pm. I reported to Metro Police, but the chances are slim to none of getting my car back in one piece. I'll be checking eBay for the easy profit items.

Biggins- I feel for ya. My car was stolen at the Crown station on 355 in Rockville
2 years ago. Stopped in to get some smokes and car was gone in less than 2 mins. The police told me 99% chance they would find my car in Baltimore in a week or 2. 9 days later I got a call from the Balt. city impound that they had my car. Went to go get it and it wasnt in too bad shape outside. Popped lock on passenger side and busted tail light. Inside was a different story. Found needles, crackpipe, & about 20 mini bottles of Vodka. Seat was burned and trash everywhere. I hated driving that car afterward and fortunately (not really fortunate) I totaled it 3 weeks later. Cops told me this is VERY common. Thugs from Baltimore come down here then when they can't get a ride home they just jack someones car. Closing thing to being physically assaulted I have ever had happen to me.

bummer

*&%^$! Montgomery County! $%^&&*! any city! The whole place is infested with low-life scum of the earth.

I work down that way and will keep an eye out, but I'll bet the first thing they do is steal somebody's license plate to replace yours, because it's too easy to notice.

For all of the commuting you do, this is a real tragedy. My heart goes out to you.

Sorry to hear that Biggins. Even if it was recovered you probably wouldn't want it back anyhow. Who knows how the scum would have driven it? Plus think of all that scum sweat all over the seats. Bad thing is, when the insurance company pays off on it, it won't be near enough to cover the real value of the car.

Was it a tricked out Civic or just a stock ride? If you put anything into it, guaranteed it'll be stripped.

Thats sucks Biggins sorry to hear that. I also take pride in my ride. I spend alot of time and money on my vehicles I guess thats one thing we can be thankful for in this area not many car jackings.

Biggins I know it's too late for your old car but install a hidden toggle switch to the fuel pump to stop these scum.That's WGWD...

My car was "tricked" out. They probably could sell the parts for more than the car's worth.

My car was not the only one bothered. Stereos were stolen from two other cars, but they got my entire car. I figure if they were jacking stereos too, they must have wanted it only for parts.

Insurance is giving a week and a half if it's not found until I can settle. We'll see what happens, but looks like I need to find a rental car for the time being. Thanks everyone.

I'll make sure i use 'The Club' from now on when i go down there...

I'm sorry to hear about your misfortune.

Your car is probably being driven around DC at midnight by some 12 year old from Anacostia.

Either that or "the handgun".

Greedy that's an EXCELLENT idea, especially for anyone who has invested a lot in modding their car.

Good luck getting anything remotely resembling a fair settlement from the insurance company, Biggins! This really SUCKS!

Unless "the handgun" is the name of some new anti-theft device that I'm not aware of, this is actually a really bad idea for two reasons:

1) Obviously Biggins wasn't there, so he couldn't defend his car, and the gun is rendered useless anyway; and

2) If the handgun was in the glove compartment, it would've been just another stolen handgun fallen into the wrong hands.

Another good thing is to disconnect the coil wire but I wounldn't want to that everyday.
also works well for drunk friends...

Call around and ask about having a Master Disconnect Switch installed it shuts off the power to the engine. I used to install them in emergency vehicles and boats there worth the cost.

we heard ja' the first time, greedy.

Greedy just has a stuttering problem, that's all.

cram it in your cram hole you two

Could you repeat that greedy?
again,
and again,
and again.

! Dodgeball.

volley ball

:whoops, wrong forum:

OK all you Gov. loafers back to work

Dang Biggins that really sucks! My vehicle was broken down for about 3 days last week & I was suffering without a ride for even that little bit of time. I hope you get this whole mess cleared up soon!

My car was found!!!! I also made it back to work today (boo).

The only problem is that my car is missing rims, tires, stereo, dash, e-brake, exhaust, some of the interior shifter panel, possible body damage and removal, and who knows what else. No word on the Oakleys, basketball, football, CDs, tools, spongebob air freshener that were inside the car though.

It was found last evening abandoned in an apartment complex parking lot outside of Silver Spring (30-35 minutes from Shady Grove). Mont. Co. PD found it to my surprise, but I think it is a little hard to miss a chopped car sitting in a parking lot.

The towing guy who was hard to understand on the phone said (I think) it could be fixed easily. My insurance begs to differ.

If totaled or need fixed, I will get retail value (supposedly) for my car. My insurance will cover everything except the things inside the car (could be worth up to $500) because it was not considered clothing or luggage. I have been told to attempt to have Homeowner's Insurance try to cover that stuff. I have heard that this is what people do when items such as golf clubs are stolen from cars.

Is that ALL they took? Kidding. But in all seriousness, I'm glad they found your car, although it is still going to be a hassle. Plus your experience has probably made us all a little more aware of car theft.

Good news, Biggins -- I guess. What a sad situation. Wouldn't you just love to get those scum alone in a room for a few minutes? Hope you don't lose too much money in the deal. BTW -- if you have a nice ride the kill switch sounds good -- it is cheap and might fool half the scum.

Dude, where's my car?!

With all that you did to fix up the thing in the first place, how do they think they can even guess what the retail price OUGHT to be? Please don't tell me they're gonna use the blue book!

Insurance companies suck!

What's wrong with blue book value. I've found Kelley BB's retail values to be very fair. Now, their trade-in values are another story........

KBB lists my car's retail value in this ZIP code as $6,810. Trade in value is $5,450!

A simple look at local dealerships reveals that my exact car (same year and trim level) with 27000 more miles, without a CD player, without custom alloy wheels, without new brakes, and without all of the custom things put into my car... is selling for $7,995 at Antrim Way and between $8,995 and $10,995 at Hagerstown Honda.

I have receipts for EVERYTHING and all work on the vehicle was done legitimately at a Honda dealership for which I also have receipts.

It's pretty depressing, but I think I've made up my mind that if I'm given the option of totaling the car I will do so because Carfax will force my car to be resold in the future for NOTHING and I really don't have time to wait for parts to come in since I will be leaving for Europe in about a month. Also, who knows what the claims people could have missed, etc.

ARGGGGGH

The dealers justify tacking on thousands to the price of trade-ins by saying it costs money to recondition, repair, advertise, etc., blah, blah, blah. Car dealers, what a racket!

Insurance has determined my car to be totaled. I know this is unlikely to happen to any of you, but let this be a guide I guess (or at least let me vent anger). The biggest problem is that they plan to use NADA retail value of my car to start negotiations. I have not yet started negotiations for a dollar amount. I have started extensive research so I don't get screwed, but I better just get prepared.

My 1997 Civic 4 door was fully loaded with extra options, in mint condition, and had only 56k miles.

NADA retail: $6,525
Kelley Blue Book dealer retail: $8,345
Kelley Blue Book private party retail: $6,895
Edmunds dealer retail: $7,972
Edmunds private party retail: $6,556

The cheapest 1997 Honda Civic of the same trim level and 4 door within 50 miles of ZIP 21795 is in Fredneck and it retails for $7,990. This car does not even have a CD player, it has 98,572 miles (42k more than my car), and it is not a certified used car like mine would have been. If they are not nice, you can bet this will be the end of my relationship with my insurance company. I will keep everyone posted to let out my anger and frustration, and maybe someone will learn from my horrific ongoing experience.

If you haven't already, take a peek at:

http://www.edmunds.com/advice/insurance/ar...71/article.html
http://law.freeadvice.com/insurance_law/au..._stolen_car.htm

Check out nolo.com as well. Good luck. Have some Vaseline handy, though, just in case.

The news is in and I now have a new car after this fiasco.

Insurance initially offered NADA book value for my car. After flooding their fax machine with receipts, prices for similar cars at local dealerships/classifieds, providing photos proving the condition and mileage of the car, threatening use of an attorney and indie appraiser, using my "slick" talking from my countless hours of research of MD insurance laws and examples of similar incidents, I ended up getting over $2,200 more than NADA book value and the insurance company's initial offer probably due to my constant nagging, begging, and fake threatening (guided by research). This did take patience and over two weeks of negotiations, but I am very pleased with the end result.

I've also been searching for a replacement and came across a few options, but it turns out I bought a new car yesterday. After coming close to buying some things in this area, I went to VA to look. I bought a 1995 BMW 3-series in immaculate condition with very low mileage for the exact same price insurance gave me for my 1997 Honda Civic. I never would have even imagined I would be driving a BMW ever, but as it turns out the price was very right, the car was perfect, and insurance on a BMW is actually significantly less than a Civic. I'll save over $400 on insurance costs per year. Now I just have to deal with being branded as a preppy which is far from who I am. I pick it up on Friday in VA after the insurance check finally clears the bank and then I will be driving as much as possible!!!

tool

Good for you, Prep --- I...I mean Biggins!

Was the $2200 over book a fair price -- could you have replaced it for that?

Civics of mine's year and condition were retailing between $7495 and $8995 with 30-40k more miles than mine and within 50 miles of here. I faxed them so many classifieds and dealer listings it probably made their machine run out of paper.

I believe I could have replaced it with the same car (minus the modifications I had done).

Hey Biggins - I think I saw you on the Dual Hy. today in H-town. Your tag was a dead giveaway.

That was probably me if it was the new/old BMW. I finally made it downtown to get things sorted out with my absentee ballot and planned to go to Fredneck to visit a friend, but of course the cell phone rings and I had more stuff to do here.

I think I was probably too into my music to notice any of my surroundings.

Biggins - If you don't mind me asking, were did you get your BMW?

Biggins may not answer you mstubble.

He left for Paris last Friday and won't return until December sometime.

I saw that right after I posted my question