Someone took a flashlight and wrote down my VIN # last night to my RS 3.0

How difficult is it for them to get a key made for my car?

What should I do to protect myself from theft?

Is there anyway to cover up the VIN #?

Thanks,
John

 

if they have the vin they can go to a dealership and get a key cut by a vis sheet which most times has the key code on it. vis sheet tells what recalls are open and all info for the car, but the sheet is not given to a customer its jst for us to use for info in the dealership. we have customers lose keys or gotten them locked and cut some keys this way

as far as keeping it sfe new key locks or an alarm i would guess

 

i personally won't worry about it unless the dealership folks are complete idiots and are willing to cut a new key out without any probable reason.

the information for your vin# and key (really? i dunno..) are stored at the dealership, but for a person to obtain that key, they need not only to pay (which obviously is worth it if they plan to steal your car)

but need to provide proof that they own it as well.

if it was that simple.. then you would've been hearing cars on the news getting stolen left and right...

i would've gone outside to question the person with that flashlight though..... what the hell....?

 

did you see the guy with the light & writing the VIN number down, or did someone tell ya 2nd hand? unless you saw it, i wouldn't worry

 

I did this for a Masda 626 a few years ago on a bet that I could steal her car,All I did was tell the dealer that I bought the car from a auction and paid the $8.

It aint that hard.

Scott

 

Yes, cut out a small piece of black posterboard and slide it between the vin tag and glass.
I hope it don't get stolen. And if it does. I hope you can track down what dealer made the key without someone showing proper proof of ownership. Then hold them responsible or liable.

 

Thanks for the replies.

Are there any simple add ons a dealership can do to the RS 3.0 alarm system like a kill switch.

I should just crazy glue all my door locks, I always use the key fob anyway.

- John

 

I curious why you didn't get some info on this person writing down your vin#? Or just ask them what the F' they think they were doing? Can you park it inside a garage?

 

Iono about the xB but the tC has the VIN number right on the sides of the hood that can be easily copied. Buddy of mines used electric tape to cover that part. And I have my old parking ticket for Scion Night 3 coverin the one on the windshield.

 

Or just alert your local dealers to not make any keys for your car without your permission. I wonder if Toyota would put a special alert on your vin# just incase someone tried to have a key made?

 

With a bit of ingenuity, it wouldn't be hard to install a hidden kill switch behind the dash, particularly since the wiring diagrams are available from this site... I'd probably put another switch in series with the clutch pedal switch, or in the start circuit in the steering column...

Now that it's been mentioned, covering the vin# is probably a good idea. I doubt it'd take much in the way of social engineering to wheedle a key out of most dealerships...

 

i would do the same exact thing...

hope it doesn't come to that though

 

Oops

 

All it takes is an inside guy at the dealership to lookup the key info and have a key made for someone on the outside and poof your baby is gone. I got an email last month about this happening all over the country. Covering up your vin number is the first step - not having the dealer that you bought it from on the vehicle i.e. sticker or plate frame etc is the second step.

 

Good info! I forgot about the second step you mentioned.
I guess the only real thing he could do would be to have his locks and ignition switch re-keyed. Too bad insurance won't pay for it BEFORE it gets stole.

 

Your vin number can be pulled up nation wide thanks to the free oil changes,every dealer has a record of your car.


Scott

 

Do all the dealers have access to the key codes or just the dealer you bought it from?

John

 

Yes, they should just incase you loose your keys while on vacation or something.

 

While this is possible, the email you mentioned is nothing more than SPAM. Check out Urban Legends (www.snopes.com). There have been no reports of this happening nationwide as most car thieves are luckily out for the easy score (broken window, hotwire, etc.).

 

Seems that some reporters tried getting keys and were sucessful.

http://urbanlegends.about.com/librar...hieves_vin.htm

"Comments: While there has been at least one well-publicized case (in 2002) of an auto theft ring using a ploy similar to the above to steal vehicles from used car lots, it is a complicated and time-consuming modus operandi and not the most likely way a thief might try to steal your car.

Still, the method can work, as proven in an experiment conducted by WTAE-TV News in Pittsburgh:

After getting permission from the owners, we jotted down VIN numbers from four different vehicles. Then, we went to four diffrerent car dealerships with a hidden camera. We told the same kind of story that a thief might tell: we locked the key in the car and needed a new one.
First, we went to a dealership and tried to get a key made for a 2003 Blazer. It couldn't have been any easier.

Next, we walked into another dealership with a phony story. Half an hour later, we had a key that got us into -- and away with -- the car. The key cost $2 and we paid cash. No one asked for identification.
Three out of the four car dealers struck duplicate keys with no questions asked, the reporters found, even though most dealerships have a policy of demanding identification before doing so. A different investigation conducted by the Sacramento Bee in 2003 found that car dealers were not only aware of the scam but in some cases believed they had actually foiled attempts to illegally obtain keys by insisting on proper documentation from the perpetrators.
Covering the dashboard VIN # is an option for vehicle owners concerned that they may be victimized in this manner, but, since some states prohibit it, checking local laws is advisable first. "