Reposted from the DAF Owners Club forum:

"Well just gone to work today in the DAF, loked it up as normal, came back from delivering and some theiving scumbag has nicked it! Reported it to plod, and they gave their usual un enthusiastic response, seeming almost annoyed that I have given them some more paperwork to do. Grrrr! Hoping to get a phone call that it will be found abandoned somewhere, relatively undamaged. Blue 33 SBW276L in Ashton-under-Lyne area if anyone is local, and can keep their eyes peeled. Annoyed because of the Practical Classics valuation guide price of £500 in conition B, after my excess, and the increase in premiums on my policies, it won't even be worth claiming for, so just got to wave goodbye to about£800 of time and investment, so some toerag can have a bit of a laugh. Aresholes. Sorry for this latest rant, but I am, to put it mildly, a bit miffed!"

And for those not familiar it looks like this:





Remember, don't have nightmares.

Absolutely disgusted by this. I know it's worth far more in any case but do you suspect scrap thieves who take a bet that the police will ignore it as it's not a new car, or joyriders after an easy steal (no immobiliser). Surely no one would try to sell it on as the risk of being caught (with it being an unusual car) would outweigh what they would get for it.

Out of interest for everyone else who's trying top stop this happening to them, did you have a steering lock/disc lock or immobilising device etc?

Hope it turns up ok. I know how it feels to have this done.

Been there myself with my 66 and had it totalled.

Now I have a Disklok for both my cars.

Ive just got Cardar.
Its lke Gaydar, but for cars.
Whenever someone comes within an inch of my car, my Spideysense tingles.

Went to the window for no reason at all the other night and saw Liam writing an obscenity in the snow on my rear screen with his finger.

I havnt seen him for months and he lives 25 mile away.
WTF.

Cardar 1 - 0 Hooligan.

This be why custom immobilisers are a good idea. At least then I know it has been hi-ab'd

MDK would be likely if I would found them bastards before they manage to find safety of officials...

Stealing a classic should be death penalty worth of crime, that is just one thing you don't do, ever, stealing modern crap for some reasonable use is not acceptable, but there I would understand jail time, but classic and another man's hobby, those are things not to touch. In some countries if you see someone trying to nick your car on your yard, he is free prey, too bad our nannying governments are not allowing us to defend what is our own and make also less load for court system at same time...

Hopefully car is found intact and not destroyed, or if it is destroyed, hopefully responsible person is pierced by steering column...

Oh no ... Really hope you get it back in one piece. Being such a rare car, I can't imagine someone taking the risk to sell it on, or even part it out.

Fingers crossed for you, mate ...

Tom

Hi mate.
I hope you get lucky and get it back in one piece.
I remember this time last year,some scumbag b**t**ds smashed up my louvre for a laugh.
I could have killed the f**k**s. Good luck.
Cheers Mark.

Know the feeling! Anyway I would guess, since the low value it was not 'lifted' but driven away, much better use of a lifting vehicle to take a more expensive car. I can only stress the importance of better security systems on these older cars. I know ours was targeted because they could take it easily.

For example you can get a RFID immobiliser for £25 with a couple of relays to control different voltages, very easy to fit. You can also get a cheap tracker device, for around £140 that will text you coordinates after you text it, or £250 for an integrated alarm system that you have to add a sim card to.

Ride_on wrote:You can also get a cheap tracker device, for around £140 that will text you coordinates after you text it, or £250 for an integrated alarm system that you have to add a sim card to.

That'd be really cool, turning up to a really remote location with a set of golf clubs and a group of friends who play rugby I'd pay to see the look on their face alone.

That text message tracker device sounds interesting, I wonder if it's easily interchangeable between cars so you don't have to buy more than one if you have a couple of cars.

Hell Driver wrote:That text message tracker device sounds interesting, I wonder if it's easily interchangeable between cars so you don't have to buy more than one if you have a couple of cars.

Depends if you reckon you are good enough to leave it in the one car the thief decides to steal that night

I hope your car will be found mate. Really can't understand why anyone would steel a DAF...

The £140 tracker is called a personal tracker in Maplin. It is a very simple Mobile phone + GPS with only 3 numbers you can call (no key pad), doesn't do anything else and doesn't integrate into the car. I would guess the only thing you need to worry about is powering it in the car (probably just charge with the ignition on). You can give it to your kids for example.

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=99114

From Facebook:
"The Police found it and called John, it looks like it was pinched for a ride home to a very dodgy part of Manchester, then parked up. We reckon someone else the smashed to window to see if there was anything inside worth taking, the broken glass all over the pavement must have alerted the foot patrol. If it had not been broken into once dumped it could have been missing for weeks as it was neatly parked in a quiet side road"
"Good news!!! The stolen Daf belonging to John Jenkinson has been found by police and we've now brough it safely home. Very little damage other than a smashed drivers 1/4light, broken glove box lid, broken fuel cap and the ignition barrel has been cut off. A quick emergency rewire and a gallon of fuel and it drove home ...as if nothing had happened. Thanks everyone for your kind thoughts, all's well that ends well "