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Tires Stolen Off Honda Fit: A Recurring Trend? – Updated

Wednesday, September 1, 2010
By Laura Pearson

Tires were stolen off this Honda Fit, which was parked in Northcenter. Photo by Chris Keller.

Last spring we reported on Honda tire bandit(s), and now the trend seems to have resurfaced in the neighborhood. Center Square Journal reader Chris Keller, who parks his Honda Fit on West Pensascola Avenue between Damen and Hoyne, was recently a victim of this crime.

“As I was trying to put the car up on some wooden blocks, someone driving by said the same thing has happened about three times in the past week in this area… He seemed to think little Hondas were the target,” Keller told CSJ.

We contacted the 19th District CAPS office, but the officer on hand could not confirm that this has become a trend. Keller placed a call to the office of Ald. Eugene Schulter (47th) and was told that this was the fourth related incident the office had heard of since the weekend.

Have any other CSJ readers who drive Hondas had their tires stolen? Let us know.

Updated 9/2/10 – 6:25p: Reader Chris Keller sent us another photo of another Honda Fit he found with its tires stripped. at 6:04 pm he wrote,?”4200 block of Leavitt just now… Lost three of four.” Below is a photo.

Honda Fit found on 4200 block of Levitt on September 2 with its tires stripped. Photo by Chris Keller.

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  • http://twitter.com/georgevtobin George Tobin

    Not a week ago, the same crime (and MO) occurred not half a block east of this car, and it looks like it happened again on Cullom between Damen and Winchester.

  • http://twitter.com/krisdresen kris dresen

    I was a bit relieved and sad to see this article. My Fit had two wheels stolen sometime in the wee hours of August 21. Not a pleasant situation to wake up to. When I called the police at 10AM to make a report, the officer told me that I was his third such call about wheel theft that morning.

    I didn’t even realize that I didn’t have or even needed wheel locks, I never had wheels that were wanted parts. I most certainly have them now.

    A quick internet search on the subject of stolen Fit wheels suggests that they are lucrative because they fit older Hondas. At the dealer, the tech guy pointed out a Fit in their lot that had all 4 wheels stolen only two weeks after the owner had purchased the car.

    I live near Damen and Wilson but my car was parked on Eastwood when the crime occurred. I’m keeping my car parked in well-lit and heavily trafficked streets for the time being. Oh, and maybe consider finding a home in the ‘burbs with a nice, locking garage…

  • Anonymous

    About a year ago I had one of the wheels stolen off my Ford Taurus while it was parked overnight in Seeley between Wilson and Eastwood. Do the police patrol at night?

  • http://twitter.com/ChrisLKeller Chris Keller

    Kris – Very interesting to hear about you experience and just blocks away. Am I crazy for wanting to walk the streets to keep on eye on all the little Hondas in the neighborhood?

    I mean I know the CPD has larger crime to worry about — seriously, double digit shootings night in and night out — but these are the sorts of things that community policing are supposed to prevent.

    George – A couple neighbors along Pensacola mentioned the same thing to me yesterday. I always thought it was a safe little street – off and away from Montrose.

  • Anonymous

    YA, unfortunately that’s my mom’s silver car we traded for a couple days. I woke up to this this morning. It’s costing me $3,100 almost. Hopefully insurance will reimburse most of it. Definitely getting wheel locks now.

  • Anonymous

    It sucks because that silver car is my mom’s car.

  • http://twitter.com/krisdresen kris dresen

    Chris – I know the feeling. I’ve been walking around the neighborhood seeing if the Fits have wheel locks. All I have seen do. Mine didn’t – it was a sitting duck. I guess I was lucky to haven’t lost them sooner (I bought the car in spring ’09) I have the locks now and I know they are only a deterrent at best – going out to my car in the mornings since I had the wheels replaced is a nerve-racking ordeal.

    I like the neighborhood, but it seems to be targeted at times for such crimes. Last winter as I drove down the side streets towards Foster, I saw 4 SUVs that had their spare tire covers thrown in the street and the spares themselves stolen.

  • http://twitter.com/krisdresen kris dresen

    So sorry to see that that’s your mom’s car. It’s a truly awful crime.

    Minus my deductible, my insurance covered everything except the cost of the wheel locks – $65.

  • http://twitter.com/ChrisLKeller Chris Keller

    I’m so sorry to hear that…

  • http://twitter.com/ChrisLKeller Chris Keller

    Did you get wheels locks for each lug, or just one per wheel?

  • http://twitter.com/krisdresen kris dresen

    One for now. Looking to go get a second, different brand set of the other 3 lugs on each wheel. Make those jerks work for my wheels. :-)

  • http://twitter.com/ChrisLKeller Chris Keller

    Gotcha… At this rate, the three of us could each buy a different brand and trade off wheel locks so we have four different ones on each tire…

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_SQRLBM3GIICCUIJL54DRNTM2VU Dima

    My sister-in-law has a 2008 Honda Fit, she called me yesterday to tell me that she woke up to her car with no wheels. They live near Foster and Sheridan. I have a Honda Fit as well, and even though I don’t live in Chicago anymore, I’m getting locks for my wheels.

  • http://twitter.com/ChrisLKeller Chris Keller

    Any word back on damage estimates? Just got mine back today, a week later. Promptly went to Just Tires and had em put wheel locks on each lug of every tire. The guy laughed at me and cautioned me about losing the keys, and this and that. Whatever. You gonna get these wheels again? You are gonna work for them.

  • Anonymous

    Um the field advisor quoted almost 2000 I definitely dropped down 3100 because I ididnt want to wait. Still seeing what other damage has been done wit the censors and some dents.

  • http://twitter.com/nshafer2 Nathan shafer

    I had my tires from my 2009 Honda Fit stolen on 10/4/10. A neighbor heard some racket late at night and saw a Blue Honda Fit speed away with my tires. I am definetily going to invest in some locking lug nuts after reading this.

  • Anonymous

    Another one last night 10/15/2010. 4600 block of Hermitage and saw one last week 4700 block of Paulina. This thief better watch their back.

  • http://twitter.com/rta2 richard alvarado

    4400 Block of maplewood 2 tires from driver side Sat. night Sunday morning 10/24/2010.

  • Anonymous

    I had the same thing happen to me today on Lyndale and Campbell. Front and rear driver’s side wheels stolen. 10/26/10 This is ridiculous.

  • Anonymous

    We had two stolen off our 2007 on 10/30/10. 4300 block of Hermitage at Montrose.

  • http://topsy.com/trackback?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.centersquarejournal.com%2Fnews%2Ftires-stolen-off-honda-fit-a-recurring-trend%23comment-92998944&utm_source=pingback&utm_campaign=L2 Tweets that mention Tires Stolen Off Honda Fit: A Recurring Trend? – Updated | The Center Square Journal — Topsy.com

    [...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Samantha, CenterSQJournal. CenterSQJournal said: We just got word of more tires stolen from Honda Fits in the neighborhood. Anyone else noticed this problem? http://ow.ly/33dDj [...]

  • Anonymous

    If you are going to invest make sure you go above and beyond and get 4 wheel locks for every tire. I had One wheel lock per tire and they still got away with all 4 of my tires

  • Anonymous

    When I had all 4 of my tires stolen it cost me $3,500 out of pocket only because where they put the cinder blocks on my car they crushed my body kit and they put a hole in my exhaust pipe.

  • Anonymous

    Insurance does pay for most of it.. but I got stuck with the $500 deductable.. which I don’t think it right!

  • Beth Juhas

    Two off a Honda Fit Sport last night at Argyle and Washtenaw. Both passenger side tires. 

  • http://twitter.com/LeashWeCanDo LeashWeCanDo

    2 passenger side tires at Foster and Magnolia last night. Have had the car for 3 years and they waited until now when I had a baby, have her appt to go to and received UNPAID maternity leave. FML. Oh, and city sticker is due. Chicago, you hurt me.

  • http://twitter.com/ChrisLKeller Chris Keller

    Man oh man… They are back… I got call today from Derrick Blakley at CBS2 who said he was working on a story about the wheel thefts.

    I suggested he maybe post his contact information on this thread in case anyone wanted to talk to him?Once in the news biz, always in the news biz.

    Chris K.

  • Anonymous

    The driver side wheels were stolen off my Honda Fit last night on LeMoyne & Bosworth. The man who came to tow said that he’s in the area a few times a month picking up cars without wheels, and it’s almost always a Honda. Wish I’d known this fun fact while I was car shopping.

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=32810446 Brittany Katherine

    this happened to my 2007 lexus in the bucktown neighborhood. I have a locked nut for each tire right now but am thinking about getting more. I’m nervous to park my car on the street now.

  • Anonymous

    My 2 driver side wheels on my 2010 Honda fit, stolen on 10-10-11. $2500.00 to fix. Was parked on 5000 block of North Ravenswood.

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