Toyota's SOS saved/found my stolen V-ATP!

[R2Pre2]

On Friday 11/6, I picked up my new Blizzard Pearl V-ATP from the dealer. In the middle of the night, someone STOLE it, and I didn't hear a thing!

I inadvertently/mistakenly/stupidly left the second fob in the cup holder of our minivan, which was parked in the driveway next to the new Prius. The thieves broke into the minivan, took the fob and silently drove off with my R2Pre2. 8:30 Sat morning, my husband yells "your new car is missing - call the 911!" My second call was to the dealership to activate the GPS tracking feature on the SOS system. The police report was done by 9:30, the car registered with SOS by 9:45.

At 10:15, SOS called saying my car was in their system and that they had activated the tracking beacon, then the operator said "...oh, we just located it. We're contacting the police right now and they will contact you with it's location." Fifteen minutes later, at 10:30, the police called saying the car would be towed.

Fearing the worst, I had dispatch patch me through to the on-site officer who said "why don't you just come down and drive it away?" We rushed to the car's location, in an unsavory part of town of course, and there was R2Pre2 parked nicely at the curb and not a scratch on it! Of course the fob was not there - bummer. The officer checked it out then had me sign the form clearing the car from "stolen" status. He never had a stolen car recovered that fast and *never* without damage.

So, in less than 24 hrs, I got the car, lost the car, got the car back. And I have SOS to thank for finding it for me! From registering to finding the car took less than 2 hrs. You gotta love that!
The car needs to be re-keyed and a new fob ordered, but I consider it a small price to pay for my stupid mistake. We are using the minivan to barricade the Prius in the driveway until the parts are in, cause it would be just too freaky for the thief to use the fob to steal the car again. My husband says I'm grounded and that only he can drive the car for a week.

Take away = guard your fobs + register your new car. Take advantage of the free 1st year!

[charansr]

Originally Posted by R2Pre2

On Friday 11/6, I picked up my new Blizzard Pearl V-ATP from the dealer. In the middle of the night, someone STOLE it, and I didn't hear a thing!

I inadvertently/mistakenly/stupidly left the second fob in the cup holder of our minivan, which was parked in the driveway next to the new Prius. The thieves broke into the minivan, took the fob and silently drove off with my R2Pre2. 8:30 Sat morning, my husband yells "your new car is missing - call the 911!" My second call was to the dealership to activate the GPS tracking feature on the SOS system. The police report was done by 9:30, the car registered with SOS by 9:45.

At 10:15, SOS called saying my car was in their system and that they had activated the tracking beacon, then the operator said "...oh, we just located it. We're contacting the police right now and they will contact you with it's location." Fifteen minutes later, at 10:30, the police called saying the car would be towed.

Fearing the worst, I had dispatch patch me through to the on-site officer who said "why don't you just come down and drive it away?" We rushed to the car's location, in an unsavory part of town of course, and there was R2Pre2 parked nicely at the curb and not a scratch on it! Of course the fob was not there - bummer. The officer checked it out then had me sign the form clearing the car from "stolen" status. He never had a stolen car recovered that fast and *never* without damage.

So, in less than 24 hrs, I got the car, lost the car, got the car back. And I have SOS to thank for finding it for me! From registering to finding the car took less than 2 hrs. You gotta love that!
The car needs to be re-keyed and a new fob ordered, but I consider it a small price to pay for my stupid mistake. We are using the minivan to barricade the Prius in the driveway until the parts are in, cause it would be just too freaky for the thief to use the fob to steal the car again. My husband says I'm grounded and that only he can drive the car for a week.

Take away = guard your fobs + register your new car. Take advantage of the free 1st year!

Very eventful..Glad it worked out for you in the end.. Just curious which part of the bay area are you from and where was the car recovered from?

[R2Pre2]

We live in the Richmond Hills by Tilden/Wildcat Park and the car was found off 23rd Ave on the outskirts of the Iron Triangle.

The officer told me that when he spoke with SOS, they said the car was "moving." He was really close, but by the time he arrived at the car's location, the car was parked and no one was around. Really had the feeling we were being watched.

Very lucky!

Originally Posted by charansr

Very eventful..Glad it worked out for you in the end.. Just curious which part of the bay area are you from and where was the car recovered from?

[Bob64]

Did they catch the bastards that stole it?

[bighouse]

I'm glad it worked out well enough for you. Think I'd take the car to a detailer and have it thoroughly cleaned inside and out- AFTER it's dusted for fingerprints!

[bighouse]

Sounds like an inside job- how would a common car thief know how to start and drive a 2010 Prius??? I hope they didn't ruin your mileage stats and drive the car like a hot rod.

[LakePrius]

Wow! Quite a day (and night).

[R2Pre2]

That would have been the ultimate way to conclude the adventure, wouldn't it? But unfortunately, no.

Originally Posted by Bob64

Did they catch the bastards that stole it?

[Star gazer]

Glad to hear it worked out as well as it did for you. Kind of creepy that they left the car parked, almost like they knew they were being tracked by the police. Leaving the second fob in the other car is a simple mistake any of us could have made. Thanks for sharing your experience.

[R2Pre2]

The cop did not want to fingerprint. Frankly, he seemed a bit nonplussed by everything and just said vamoose. I gotta tell you, the whole experience was surreal.

Originally Posted by bighouse

I'm glad it worked out well enough for you. Think I'd take the car to a detailer and have it thoroughly cleaned inside and out- AFTER it's dusted for fingerprints!