2018, a summary of classic Ford thefts

[escortmad79]

Sad to say that when I gave a quote to Classic Car Weekly back in March stating that this year the amount of thefts looked set to be worse than in 2016 (when 52 classic Ford's were reported stolen), just how right that statement would be!

This year has been the worst for reported classic Ford thefts since I started the Stolen Oldskool Ford Facebook page back in 2008.
At least 75 classic Ford's have been reported stolen this year (including 14 stolen in other countries), an increase of 13 from the previous worst year, 2016.
There were also at least a further 4 attempted thefts where luckily thieves were thwarted.
This year the amount of thefts have been more than was reported & shared during the first 4 years of my groups creation put together!
19 classic Ford's were stolen during September & October alone!

On the plus side, more cars have been recovered than in previous years with 29 found, sadly not all in good condition, 4 were either burnt out or partially burnt.

Of the cars stolen this year, 11 of them were mk3 or mk4 Escorts, 10 Sierra's, 10 Cortina's, 8 mk1 or mk2 Escorts, 5 Capri's, 5 older Mustangs, 4 Granadas, 4 105Es, 3 mk1/2 Fiesta's & the rest various other models including a Model A Ford which was thankfully recovered hidden away.

Hoping 2019 will be much quieter for thefts,but I said the same last New Years Eve!

Be vigilant, stay safe & protect your valuables! (Alarms, Diskloks & Trackers are a must these days!)

[skkylinedave]

Thanks you for your work spreading the word .

[silver63]

Funnily enough I was thinking about this.Does seem to be happening a lot more now.As said above thanks to people like you we do seem to be more informed.Fortunately I got mine back this year after 18 months being missing.

[bmcnut]

Great work in spreading the word. Although there is a significant problem with Fords being stolen, my own Granada was taken afew years back, the problem isn't just confined to Fords, other makes are also being taken, but i can imagine its easier to find a market to shift on ford parts.

[skkylinedave]

Yeah perhaps Ford owners should be asking more where there parts are coming from . I do think there seems to be a larger than average amount of rotton people unfortunately who are into fords but think nothing of pinching them !

Bit like the people that show there love for a particular marque by smashing them into each other and reducing the pool of cars left ? Never did get my head around that one .............

[Mercdan68]

Thanks for the work on posting up escortmad
Worrying trend lately
Just got to keep them locked up and secure

[pauly22]

Shame, as it spoils the enjoyment for me, can’t even pop out for lunch or something without worrying if the car will still be there when you get back.

Keep them locked up, and out of sight if you can.

[accord83]

Keep up the good work. I've got a bit paranoid, I hate having my garage door open now, even in summer. My old garage had an up and over door which I had partial open one day when a scrap tout lifted it to see what the "old car" was. He was surprised to see me working quietly at the bench, I'm 6'5" and 17 stone, he left,
Very quickly.
I upped my locks but barely slept for a fortnight.

[escortmad79]

Jan 1, 2019 18:10:32 GMT skkylinedave said:

Yeah perhaps Ford owners should be asking more where there parts are coming from . I do think there seems to be a larger than average amount of rotton people unfortunately who are into fords but think nothing of pinching them !

Bit like the people that show there love for a particular marque by smashing them into each other and reducing the pool of cars left ? Never did get my head around that one .............

It's not exclusive to Ford's, been an increase in thefts of other classics, Land Rovers, classic Mini's, Mgs, VW campers. A rise in thefts of E type jags & classic 911s, even Morris Minors have become a target.

[bmcnut]

It seems to be cars that are either at the higher end of the value tree, or have larger surviving numbers, hence a larger market for spares. There are of course other reasons like export and such but i cant help but think that a stripped car is easier to make vanish.

[ChasR]

Jan 1, 2019 19:41:55 GMT pauly22 said:

Shame, as it spoils the enjoyment for me, can’t even pop out for lunch or something without worrying if the car will still be there when you get back.

Keep them locked up, and out of sight if you can.

This is why I sold my Series 1 RS Turbo.

Sure, the unreliability didn't help, but I did used to think twice about where I took it out to and where I parked it.

I know people out there will say "well, you know this can happen, so why have nice things"? But it's a shame that we can't just have the things we earned.