Here’s a nice article on Trove from September 1951 that I think sets a fair level of expectation about how car thieves and car theft worked at that time in Adelaide. Enjoy! 🙂
C.I.B. WINNING BATTLE WITH JOYRIDERS
Motorists can cut car thefts
Detectives are slowly, but surely winning the battle of wits with Adelaide’s joyriders. Since January 1 this year, 232 motor cars have disappeared from Adelaide streets. CIB investigators have recovered all but six. In the same period, 550 motor cyclists reported the loss of their machines. Only 19 have not been recovered. Bicycles are not so easy to find. Of the 1,180 stolen or used illegally, 620 are still on the missing list.
Police case histories here reveal that drivers are to blame in nine stolen car cases out of 10.They rarely disappear when the owners have taken normal precautions against theft or interference. A potential joyrider or thief has to make it a rush job. It has to be quick and easy, or he won’t attempt it. Any impediment — a locked door— may deter him.
Keys in car
Make a survey of any 20 cars parked in the street. You’ll probably find the ignition key has been left in two or three of them, one or more windows will be open on others, and, in most cases, the doors will be unlocked. These cars are sitting shots for the joyrider. Open tourers are easier. An ignition system that can’t be ‘wired round’ in a few minutes is yet to be invented. Thief proof devices have been invented. Some are cumbersome, none entirely effective.They have ranged from chains and clamps on the gear lever, clutch, and brake pedal, down to the secret switch. Secret switches mean nothing to the experienced thief. He doesn’t bother to look for them, simply uses a lead and wires round the switch.
A RAA spokesman told of the driver who chained a wheel of his car to a post when he parked for any length of time. It worked well — until the day a daring thief jacked up the wheel, removed it, put on the spare, and drove away. There was a device on the market some years ago which was wired into the electrical circuit so that a siren sounded when a door was opened or the ignition system operated. This embarrassed owners who had forgotten to turn off the secret switch before using the car.
Steering lock
The most effective device of all, according to the RAA, is the combination steering and ignition lock. These are good until the key is lost or mislaid. Then it is necessary to lift-tow the car or force the lock.
The experienced car thief is a resourceful type who makes it his business to learn the peculiarities of each car. One caught recently had a pocket full of different types of distributor rotor brushes. In some countries motorists who leave cars unlocked are liable to heavy penalties. The result is that few vehicles are stolen.
Six ‘dont’s’
Here are six ways to make the task of the car thief easier: —
- Leave body and boot doors unlocked.
- Leave the ignition key in the lock.
- Leave valuables on the seat.
- Leave the number on your ignition lock uncovered — a piece of adhesive tape will do the trick. An uncovered number can be read through the window and a duplicate key made. In many cases the key will also fit the door lock.
- Forget to have your mechanic show you how to remove and replace the distributor rotor brush.
- Leave the car out of gear with the brake off. Cars have been pushed to a secluded spot for ‘further attention.’
…and one on Backyard Deals (1950).
This second article was from the 14 Jan 1950 Adelaide Mail.
Interstate car thieves ‘often sell in S.A.’
C.I.B. WARNS ON BACKYARD DEALS
Many cars stolen in other States were disposed of in South Australia through unlicensed ‘backyard’ dealers, Chief of the CIS (Superintendent Sheridan) said today.
Mr. Sheridan warned buyers of secondhand cars to beware of unlicensed dealers, and to trade only with reputable licensed firms whose businesses were under police supervision.
‘Interstate car thieves seek out back-yard dealers, because they know their businesses are not regularly inspected by police,’ he said.
‘Some Adelaide people, who have unwittingly bought stolen vehicles from illegal dealers, have later had the cars confiscated and thus lost their money.
No car gangs here
‘The number of stolen interstate cars recovered in SA outnumbers cars taken from SA and disposed of in other States,’ said Mr. Sheridan.
‘There are no organised gangs of car thieves here, but there are isolated cases of SA cars being stolen and driven to other States.’
Mr. Sheridan warned prospective buyers of secondhand cars to be suspicious of cars that had come from another State, unless they were completely satisfied about the car dealer’s bona fides.
Car thieves often went to great lengths to convince a prospective buyer a car was ‘genuine.’
‘Easily registered’
‘The fact that a seller can produce car registration papers doesn’t always mean the vehicle he is selling hasn’t been stolen,’ he said.
‘Thieves often register cars, after erasing the correct engine and chassis numbers, and substituting fake numbers.’
Mr. Sheridan said one interstate car thief, who reputedly made enough money through his illegal transactions to finance three trips to England, travelled all over Australia stealing cars and selling them.
‘He would steal a vehicle in one part of Western Australia, sell it in another, then fly to Queensland. There he would steal a car, drive it down to Sydney, sell it, and immediately fly to some other State and repeat the procedure,’ Mr. Sheridan said.
Many motorists made the car thief’s job easy by leaving their vehicles parked unattended in streets with the doors unlocked, and the ignition key in the dashboard, Mr. Sheridan said.
To foil prospective car thieves motorists should—
- Always lock the vehicle and remove the ignition key when parking it in a street. Because stolen cars are often used in crimes, some US States have strict laws against leaving cars unlocked and unattended
- Have some private, secret mark on their vehicle, which would aid in identification if the car were stolen.
- Note any stains, dents, or parts damaged in accidents. Such features were invaluable aids to identification.
Finally, The Case Of the Baby Austin (1953)…
If that’s not enough for you, here’s a final link to a police officer’s notes on a particular interstate car crime that was detected on the streets of Glenelg (of all places), as reported in the Port Lincoln Times, 05 Mar 1953.