[ryan_wheelz]

Noopster thanks for sharing !!

i have been a victim to a different kind of scam the one where they say there are sparks appearing from your bonnet,

Had lost a few valuables in this mugging, but i caught the guy a few months later,

I know its wrong but i could not resist, i thrashed the hell out of him and handed him over to the cops.


Cheers!

[drmohitg]

Originally Posted by bluevolt

Thanks for sharing this Noopster.

In Delhi/NCR we have one similar kind of scam especially for cars. Some police like guys stop cars and ask if it has registration number stamped on the door windows. If not they ask you anything from 100 rupee per glass to get it stamped.

And they do this on some empty/deserted stretch of inter city roads. But I am sure this happens with the help of local police only. I hope Delhi/NCR BHPians are aware of this.

Can you elaborate on this a little more? Whats police like guys? They are in uniform or casuals? And do we need registration numbers on the windows anyways? I have never noticed any. On which roads did these incidents happen exactly?

[bluevolt]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Can you elaborate on this a little more? Whats police like guys? They are in uniform or casuals?

Police like guys means they wear brown pant and shirt (khakhee color) but they are not actual police.

Originally Posted by drmohitg

And do we need registration numbers on the windows anyways? I have never noticed any.

I don't think it's compulsory but when I bought my WagonR (April, 2007), the showroom guys stamped number on all four windows. When I asked them they told me that it's compulsory. But nothing was done when we bought Honda City & i10.

Originally Posted by drmohitg

On which roads did these incidents happen exactly?

In Delhi I have seen this in intercity streches like Rithala-Bawana Road(crossing Rohini sectors). Again note that these are intercity stretches and not main roads like ring road.

[suhaas307]

Thanks for sharing Noop.

I've heard of this scam. Bangalore is full of such imbeciles who seize every opportunity they get to scam, vandalize, hoodwink, etc. They aim to hit you when you'd least expect it. And that's why we must condition ourselves to be more attentive and keep our eyes and ears open. One slip, and we could be muttering words of regret.

If you drive a Honda Jazz, and a guy in Khaki comes up and demands that the hatch be opened, I hope he doesn't figure out that it can be opened like any other door.

[noopster]

^^ Really? Damn that's scary!

My Vento has this thing about the fuel lid opening directly whenever the central locking is off. But it's usually not a problem because who's going to run around trying to steal fuel ? On the other hand, it's quite easy to pop the hatch of a Jazz when it's stuck in traffic, grab what you can and run off!Is it possible to install a supplementary lock or change the setting so that it stays locked? (should be possible through ECU)

Intrigued to here you say you've heard of this and not surprised that it originated in Bangalore, which has smarter criminals than it has cops or administrators.

[suhaas307]

Originally Posted by noopster

^^ Really? Damn that's scary!

My Vento has this thing about the fuel lid opening directly whenever the central locking is off. But it's usually not a problem because who's going to run around trying to steal fuel? On the other hand, it's quite easy to pop the hatch of a Jazz when it's stuck in traffic, grab what you can and run off!Is it possible to install a supplementary lock or change the setting so that it stays locked? (should be possible through ECU)

Yeah that is quite scary. But it has never really occurred to us. Hope we don't learn it the hard way. Our Jazz doesn't have a parcel-tray either. So it's like a window and everything is on display!

The Jazz doesn't auto-lock as you engage gear and move ahead either, which takes the scariness to a whole new level. But if you lock it from the inside as you move on, the boot should be locked too (naturally)

Originally Posted by noopster

Intrigued to here you say you've heard of this and not surprised that it originated in Bangalore, which has smarter criminals than it has cops or administrators.

Oh Noop noop. The things I have seen in the 5 years that I've been driving is something that even cops would be shocked about. I've seen people on two-wheelers circling a particular location waiting for their prey. And when they latch onto them, they don't let go. They're literally vultures, these guys.

I've seen people trying to steal fuel from cars and bikes that are generally parked right outside my house. I've heard of eggs being thrown onto the windscreen, and the eggs make such a mess when they break, that even the wash/wipe wouldn't work, and it would just froth the windscreen up completely, giving you no other option but to get out of your vehicle. And that's when these miscreants attack.

They know that your biggest weapon is your vehicle, and if they get you out of your vehicle, their job is 80% done!

One day, while returning home from a friends place, I noticed a few people by the side of the road (near the graveyard, behind the Bypanahalli station) and as soon as I'd passed them, I felt my car wobble and swerve to one side.

In a matter of seconds, two guys on a bike tried to alert me that my tyre was flat. I rolled my window up and just went on. I knew something was fishy. Something didn't feel right. And then, I was greeted by a gang of people at the end of the road who tried to stop me, but I just accelerated. They were forced to jump out of the way.

I reached home 10 minutes later and noticed the flat tyre. I knew that they had done it.

[drmohitg]

Similar thing happened to us in Delhi way back in the 90s. We had gone for dinner at a restaurant and we used to have a Maruti Van that time. After coming out, we started the car and started back. We did notice some lads around the car. Right after 500 meters or so the car stopped and refused to start. And no kidding but right there and then 2 guys on a bike came and offered to help. Luckily for us a police patrol came there just then. And my dad kind of knows a lot about a car and he figured out the whole scene and declined there offer politely. Looked down and the some pipe which gets the fuel to the engine was hanging out I believe ( don't know the technicalities). Fixed it. The cop on seeing a full family in the car offered his help luckily and we got some fuel filled and returned home. Scary incident though nevertheless.

[blackasta]

Thanks noopster . have alerted my folks back in India.
Con-men are always innovating!

[AVR]

There's a further extension to this in Ahmedabad. There are people dressed up in Khakhi uniforms and trying to extort money from people on the highways around Ahmedabad. If you are traveling through this part of the world, please ensure you ask for the cop's id. Do not entertain just about anyone in a Khakhi dress. There have been several cases of people being cheated, fake cops being busted and the like. Just a heads up for you guys!

Cheers,
Adi

[mobius 1]

Hear about such an incident in Bangalore from a colleague some time back. Usually a lone driver with any valuable stuff like iPod , laptop etc in the read or front seat is targeted .

Once you get down and go tho the back to get the boot checked by the guy , his accomplice will slowly sneak his hand in from any open doors/windows , pick up what he can and make a run.

When you come back and realize something is missing , the guy who checked your boot is gone too. Looks like that might the plan of the guy you encountered too.

We need to be extra careful , not no get out for a person if he doesn't appear to be a cop !

[RajaTaurus]

Well, well, I have been in Kuwait and Saudi for n-teen number of years and here is how it works there for police checking.
Stop the car - switch off the engine - come out of the car - open the boot - sometimes open the bonnet too - stand about 6 feet from the car. The cop goes around the car, peeps in and asks you to come near and move things if required. When clear, you close the bonnet and boot, get into the car and drive off.
Because of this practice, it has become a habit to me, whenever I have to open the boot for checking, I stop the car, step out and open the boot with the key and show to them, close and get back into the car. Be it in a hotel or check post. I do the same even for gas filling. The moment you get out of the car and go near these guys, they get warned and don't try anything funny.

[Enzo23]

This stretch of the road is common for such activities. About a year ago on the same road, more towards mankhurd station, i am driving my swift and a couple of bikers overtake me pointing at my engine. I was surprised. I stop at the next signal and another biker knocks on my window. Suspicious i roll it down by an inch and he tell me that there is smoke coming out from under the car. This is a third person altogether. Instinctively i looked at the temperature gauge and it was normal, besides i do not see any rising smoke. I drive on and a fourth guy tries to stop me, i simply ignore and drive on. After reaching my destination, 5 km ahead, i get out and inspect the car, not a thing. Everything is normal. Later i hear, that its a common thing. A colleague of mine went through the same thing, while he bend down to check the issue, somebody ran away with his laptop and mobile which was kept on the front passenger seat. Advise all Bhpians to be alert. These days you just cant trust anyone.

[itspb]

Thanks a lot for the information. I guess all such trends are picking up in Chennai. We usually never hear of such thefts in chennai because it has amazing an police and few bad people, but things are changing. People here aren't as careful as other cities and thieves have started to take advantage of it.

[scopriobharath]

Originally Posted by Enzo23

issue, somebody ran away with his laptop and mobile which was kept on the front passenger seat. Advise all Bhpians to be alert. These days you just cant trust anyone.

I generally keep the laptop in the fron seat, but the laptop bag is zipped and secured using seat belt. I do this to prevent the laptop from falling down and getting damaged. Thank God but my laptop has not got damaged, the 3-4 times that it fell down from the seat, post which i have always made it a point to secure the laptop bag using seat belt. It would make it very difficult for someone to steal this.

Originally Posted by itspb

Thanks a lot for the information. I guess all such trends are picking up in Chennai. We usually never hear of such thefts in chennai because it has amazing an police and few bad people, but things are changing. People here aren't as careful as other cities and thieves have started to take advantage of it.

We need to take precaution in all cities be it chennai or not. We must make sure that any action that happens, happens in front of our eyes only. For a head start, i never hand over the key to a valet parking agent, be it a starless hotel or a 5 star hotel.

[highway_star]

Originally Posted by noopster

^^ Really? Damn that's scary!

My Vento has this thing about the fuel lid opening directly whenever the central locking is off. But it's usually not a problem because who's going to run around trying to steal fuel ? On the other hand, it's quite easy to pop the hatch of a Jazz when it's stuck in traffic, grab what you can and run off!Is it possible to install a supplementary lock or change the setting so that it stays locked? (should be possible through ECU)

The doors on my Santro auto unlock when the engine is switched off. Is this true for all cars?

Many times we carry stuff on the rear seat. It is easy for someone to open the door and grab things at a signal. If I am carrying very valuable things I prefer to keep the engine running all the time to be safe. I think manufacturers should give us the option to disable the auto unlock feature when required.