Bummer

[piyeguyo]

I'm speechless, looking at that photo makes me very sad.

I hope the police catch those motherf*****.

Regards from Calgary,

Fabio

[quadzilla]

Holy crap - that blows and I am sorry this happened to you. It brings up a question - how will ICBC assess the vehicle for insurance? Should we have our vans appraised? I can't imagine ICBC has a blue book value - do they?

[mararmeisto]

Dagnabit! That picture (the burned-out one) almost made me cry! Me and my lovely wife love our Delica to pieces and would be very upset if it was stolen.

I've had a car stolen before so I know how attached one can become to a vehicle, and although it was in excellent shape when returned to us, my ex-wife (ya, been down that dirt road too) was never comfortable driving that car again.

[JMK]

This reminds me, I think I mentioned it in a post a long time ago. As an alternative to the 'club', on gas engines we use to run the 12V coil wire through the firewall via an unobtrusive switch, on my old Volvo is was just an existing but unused rocker switch I salvaged that said "sunroof" or something on it and mounted on the dashboard. The Volvo was great because it had a few extra spots for rocker switches on the dash. When the switch was open, you could crank the car as much as you wanted but with no spark it was no start. We did this to the Volvo before going to the Baja and it gave us peace of mind.

Now being the diesel hasn't got the same ignition system, there must be a good alternative to this. Is there some way you could do something similar with the diesel that would allow it to crank over but not start by having a secret switch that left a circuit open that needs to be closed in order to enable it to start? Something that maybe would disable the injectors perhaps? Obviously it would best if it were something that is simple to get at and reroute the wiring on.

[sahdot]

Diesels don't need electrics to run. You stop a running diesel or prevent starting by shutting off the fuel supply. My old backhoe has a cable to a cam on the i.p. that does this. Forgetting to push in the knob when restarting just lets it crank but not start.

Since the fuel shutoff on Delicas seems to be electric probably through the ignition switch, it should be relatively easy to put in a switch to prevent this circuit operating unless it is closed. Hide the switch and Bob's your uncle.

I have been told by a reliable source that the fuel will just bypass the injectors and return to the tank in this case, not damaging anything.

That's my plan - don't tell anyone

-jim

[JMK]

Thanks Jim,

I was working under the assumption that most of the guys that are lifting the cars aren't big on hanging out in the Forums. Let's hope I'm right. Your suggestion sounds good to me. I wish I could find a better diagram of the circuits in the Deli, the one I have that is posted doesn't seem to match and is real hard to read. Maybe someone that knows where to find it will jump in and let us know.

Anyway I had been thinking of and that shocking picture is probably more than enough to get us moved into action. Last year we had a Lincoln Navigator torched the same way on the SUnshine Village access road.

[Mystery Machine]

Only just noticed this thread, and for anyone as passionate about these motors as I am, then it is a heartbreaking thing to see that image and read the story!

Jim, I am really sorry about you losing the motor in such a way and genuinely wish there was something I could do to help you out? It flat out sucks that people should do such a thing (steal it in the first place then torch it like that!) and makes you question the morals & mentality some people taking that sort of risk for a quick fix?

I hope the insurance sorts you out soon? I don't know how that side of things works over there, but fight for a decent settlement and I'm sure that Glen will come good with another vehicle for you?

Once again, sorry to hear the upsetting news and I hope it doesn't put you off owning another one of these amazing motors??

[jaggedfish]

I too am sorry for your loss. In some ways I wish vigilante justice was legal in these cases... might make these idiots think twice before stealing peoples' stuff. I lost a jet ski a while back now - before you could get insurance on them - and I had it under lock and key in a secure garage to boot.... didn't stop them and never was recovered. This just gives me that sick feeling.

As far as the "little switch" goes... definitely a good way to immobilize the vehicle. You just need to interrupt the ignition switch power to the starter solenoid that allows the starter to turn the motor over. Even being a diesel, the engine can't run unless it can be turned over. Couple that with a "club" (the 4 pronged version - not the 2) for a visual deterrent. I have this on another vehicle and it works well. Even if a thief attempts to steal the vehicle, they usually won't hang around long if they have to spend time trying to figure out how to start the engine. It's on my list of things to do....

I hope you have a better experience with your new replacement!

[JMK]

Just pondering that ignition switch idea. If the vehicle won't crank, wouldn't the more experienced thief just be able to quickly apply power direct to the starter without too much trouble? However as you say most won't hang around long enough to diagnose and fix the problem by hooking up some spare wiring so it would still deter most thieves I'm sure. If the vehicle wouldn't crank the odd thief may also think to look for a switch, but again probably most would not be smart enough or too coked up to think much at all. I think if I knew where to interrupt the fuel supply I'd prefer that method however because it is less obvious to a thief that the vehicle has been immobilized by a switch in the first place. Perhaps if they're thinking the vehicle just doesn't want to start maybe they would be less inclined to show their displeasure through revenge.

I'm hoping to avoid a 'club' because I probably won't use it all the time.

Now if I could figure out where to find the best spot to open that circuit....

[Profister]

Bruce, insurance (ICBC) is not an option in this kind of situations. The victim in on his own. If the b&*(#rds were caught in a less 'civilized' country, Russia for example, that would add a different flavor to the 'happy end'. And I would help the victim to get satisfaction.