Bizarre! Latest Craze Among Car Thieves

By Cathryn Conroy, Netscape News Editor

The latest craze among thieves is stealing those high-intensity xenon headlights from expensive luxury cars, especially Acuras. The worst hit areas are northern New Jersey, New York City, New York's Westchester County, and the Connecticut suburbs. Why? Dealers, body shops, and insurance companies say the thefts are driven by a lust for the moon-blue lights among urban youths, who steal them so they can transplant them to their own cars, reports The Associated Press. "They're retrofitting these into their Hondas and making them into low-riders," Richard Black, who owns a body shop in Newark, told AP.

Benjamin Benson of Newark, New Jersey was a victim of this bizarre theft. He explained to AP: "I start driving, and a police officer pulls me over and says, 'Put your lights on!' I said, 'Officer, they ARE on.' He tells me to pull over into a parking lot. He gets out of his car, I get out of mine, we look at where my lights used to be and both our mouths are gaping open. There's wires hanging out of these two big holes." And car dealers are just as vulnerable. In Denville, New Jersey, thieves stole 20 headlights from cars sitting in the parking lot of an Acura dealership. They're pricey to replace at between $2,000 to $5,000 depending on the associated body damage. "It's an epidemic, totally out of control," said Dominick Pardo, another Newark body shop owner. "I mean, it's just crazy how many of these are getting stolen."

posted by 24.52....

• A case for halogen over HID headlamps! . . ., JPW, Thu, 10 Oct 2002 21:01:20 <-- Viewing This Message
  • Check out back lot at Acura dealers!, Pete 9-5 Saab, Fri, 11 Oct 2002 12:34:34
  • You're all correct. . . . (Plus, LEDs), JPW, Thu, 10 Oct 2002 22:40:27
    • There was an interesting article..., bRAD, Fri, 11 Oct 2002 09:54:48
    • Re: You're all correct. . . . (Plus, LEDs), Ian Glenday , Thu, 10 Oct 2002 22:49:19
  • Acura's are a special case, keeton, Thu, 10 Oct 2002 22:06:08
    • Re: Acura's are a special case, MJP, Fri, 11 Oct 2002 00:22:54
  • Re: A case for halogen over HID headlamps! . . ., AJ, Thu, 10 Oct 2002 21:22:52
    • Cars that have HIDs are frequent targets anyway n/m, pogeybait, Thu, 10 Oct 2002 21:59:57

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