Chop Shop - Difficulties Stealing Certain Cars

Difficulties Stealing Certain Cars

Late model cars often have sophisticated anti-theft devices, requiring sophisticated measures to defeat them. For the car thief, the difficulty in bypassing these security features may be nearly impossible or too time consuming. Most cars equipped with these systems are either stolen while the keys are still in the ignition – mostly from owner negligence at a gas station – or towed away by "sneaker" tow trucks. Advanced car theft "rings" have the knowledge and equipment needed to bypass this security. For instance, on cars equipped with RF transmitters inside of the key, the RF transmitter ID must match the security module and the engine computer. So, not only does the physical key cut have to match, the RF transmitter has to match as well. To get around this, some "rings" establish relationships with car dealers and get car keys cut by VIN directly from the dealer themselves. Other methods are to have multiple pre-cut keys to try and code scanners for RF based systems. There may be many hidden places on the car where the VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) is stamped. The chop shop will likely be more familiar with these devices.

In Australia, buying accident crashed cars in auction and selling the cars with new fitted parts is called car rebirthing.