It looks like my Ford didn't break down after all.

[KrazyHorse]

Yeah. Older cars are much more valuable in pieces than whole...

[Dinner]

OK, I guess I had that one term mixed up.

[KrazyHorse]

You had me wondering myself. It took forever to find that reference.

[Kontiki]

That seems like a needlessly complex way to steal a car.

Still sucks, though.

[MrFun]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
Another instance showing the worth of illegals.

So since there are some white people who are legal American citizens who steal from others, this must mean that all white American citizens are worthless.

[Garth Vader]

I had always thought of late model as an old late 70's early 80's crap car too.

[pchang]

Originally posted by MrFun
this must mean that all white American citizens are worthless.

I've long suspected this.

[Dinner]

BTW I got a call from the police last evening. They found my car abandoned about 20 miles away. The driver's side door lock is broken (likely with a screw driver), the ignition is the same, my MP3 player is gone, and the battery is dead (lights left on and windows left rolled down for about a week so the inside is some what dusty and some rain got on the interior).

I had it towed to a shop and Ford doesn't just sell ignition locks instead they only sell whole steering wheel stocks which cost $500 installed (and I'm even at an independent shop); that's highway robbery. The clutch master cyclinder is toast and will have to be replaced at a cost of $204 installed. **** me.

[KrazyHorse]

Sorry, man.

[Berzerker]

Ford doesn't sell ignitions? Its an old car... Try Napa or some other parts store. If you find out the ignition can be bought I'd question the mechanic's competence or honesty. Hell, most mechanics should be able to get an ignition somewhere, even a junkyard. If Ford made the steering column so the ignition cant be installed without removing the column

[KrazyHorse]

How could they have driven it without breaking the steering lock as well?

[KrazyHorse]

or do you just want to accept a broken steering lock if it means a cheaper repair job?

[Dinner]

Originally posted by KrazyHorse
How could they have driven it without breaking the steering lock as well?

You hammer a flat head screw driver into the ingnition lock, use a wrench to turn it thus breaking the lock and allowing them to turn the car on with any flat piece of metal.

[Dinner]

BTW I'm going to call around and see if a lock smith can rekey a lock for me if I get one out of a junk yard.

[Dinner]

So my car got stolen last week and the cops finally found it about 20 miles away a day or so ago. My 40 GB Creative Zentouch MP=3 player had been stolen, a brand new camera phone my employer gave me had been stolen, and my Cannon S400 digital camera (along with a 1GB memory card) had also been stolen. The car itself had the driver’s side door lock broken with a screw driver or something and the same had been done with the ignition lock. The clutch master cylinder for the car’s hydraulic clutch was broken so the clutch was on the floor without any pressure, the battery was dead (they abandoned the car with the lights on after they’d broken the clutch, and the windows were left rolled down so rain got on the interior.

Total repair costs are as follows:

-Tow to mechanic’s shop – Free since I am a AAA club member
- Fee for the mechanic to diagnose the problems - $98
- Cost for a new hydraulic clutch master cylinder (along with a hose and labor) - $345
- Cost to fix door lock and have the new lock rekeyed - $80
- Cost to fix ignition lock (Ford doesn’t sell just the ignition lock so you have to buy a whole new steering column) - $500

Total $1023 plus tax and that doesn’t include the cost of my stolen property. Since the car was so old I only had minimal insurance coverage so this is all out of pocket expenses. I’m thinking about not fixing the ignition lock simply because I don’t want to spend the extra $500 on a car this old. The problem would be then anyone can turn the car on with just a straight piece of metal. This sucks.