Awkward situation
 

So, a year ago I had my winter tires & wheels swapped over at my favorite shop. They left the car outside for me, and asked what I wanted done with the winter tires & wheels. I said to just leave them beside the shop, and I'd pick them up later that night with my truck. They cautioned against it, saying there had been some theft in prior weeks. I said it would be fine, and I was comfortable with the risk.

Picked up my car after work. Went back after supper to get the tires... you guessed it, stolen that night. I was pissed, the shop was very apologetic, but without question it was my fault, my bad, my problem.

Anyway, for a while I scanned local classifieds and shops *just in case* they popped up, never did. Bought a new set of winter tires and rims for about a grand.

Fast forward to last night. I'm leaving the grocery store and see a very nice E320. Because I've programmed myself to do it, I check out the wheels. STOP. Distinctive marks that looked like mine. I do a walk around, looking for one particular mark that would definetly make them mine. There it was: a scrape and drill marks from where I had drilled out a broken wheel bolt. My wheels!

So I park beside it and wait for 20 minutes for the owner of the car to happen by. When I see a nice old lady unlocking the car, I get out and very politely ask her a few questions, saying I have a similar car, how does she like it, etc etc. Then I ask her about the wheels, does she have seperate winter & summer wheels.

Turns out her husband bought the car 3 years ago. They only had all season tires, and found it very hard to drive in the snow. This past winter, her husband bought winter tires and the guy at the tire shop also sold him the wheels. She didn't know what tire shop, and her husband died 2 months ago so she had no way of finding out. Once she said that, I didn't press the issue and didn't mention they were my wheels. Just wished her happy motoring and I hoped the car works out well for her. Turns out she might be selling her house, so we're going to stay in touch

odd one, eh?

someone padded there pocket
i wouldn't go back-

Sucks.

As soon as I was informed about the "recent thefts" alarm bells would have gone off in my head.

I think I would have been more surprised had they still been there that evening.

Wow that sucks. Yeah, I'd certainly be suspicious. Oh well, live and learn.

I'd go back and tell them that the 'theft' issue has been resolved. And that they could expect a visit from LEO.

Oh, looking back it looks like i was implying that my shop had something to do with it. I would bet another whole set of wheels & tires that they didn't. They are great folks, and I trust them 100%. There's no way they stole & sold them... not a chance. Someone drove by and grabbed them, then waited for a chance to sell them discretely

I just thought it was funny that I found them a year later, and didn't really feel I could do anything about it.

Then too bad you're out a set of wheels.

It takes a special kind of person to leave rims and tires in an unsecure location after the shop owner specifically tells them that there have been problems with thefts.

I'd had them leave stuff out for me many times in the past, without issue. I figured it would be OK for a few hours. Anyway, rest assured I spent plenty of time revisiting my anger about having the wheels pinched... especially where it was my fault.

I just thought it was funny that they turned up, a year later, on a nice old lady's car

Yeah, one who doesn't live in Philly :) Seriously, though, I've been around the areas where Jake lives - it's the kind of place where you still don't have to lock your doors at night, or your car in the parking lot.

"special type of person"? Yes, I do tend to be pretty casual about stuff like that. I don't even have keys to my house, and I constantly leave the keys in my car. In fact, in my truck I just have a switch to turn it on & off, so I don't ever have to find keys.

I'm willing to accept a certain percentage of loss, in exchange for not having to be hypervigilant and paranoid.

I'm very trusting, and find that generally people are BETTER than I assume. Now and then I get let down, but that's life. You take your kicks, and then it's upwards & onwards

That old lady sure thought fast! j/k...maybe.;)

Sorry to hear it Jake, but really there are several possible scenarios including:
shop sold your wheels to her husband
husband stole wheels from shop, lied to his wife
old lady really did think fast and gave her husband hell when she got home
old lady stole the wheels herself and sold you the Brooklyn Bridge:D

and so on.

We had the hardtop and jump seat from our 55' 190SL nicked one night while the car was on the driveway.

Some time later my father is at a shop that is known to specialize in hard to find Benz items and spots the jump seat.

Shop owner and my father have known each other for years and have done plenty of business in the past.

My father raises holy hell, wants to know where the hard top is. Shop owner claims no knowledge and gives my father the jump seat.

Year or so goes by and a casual associate of my fathers calls him to tell him he finally found a hard top for his 190 but there is something odd about it and can my father come by and offer some advice.

Pop goes, they have a nice dinner then head to the garage. Garage door opens and my father immediately tells the guy, good news, I know how to deal with that issue, bad news, that's my top.

Associate tells him he got the top from, you guessed it, the same guy who had the jump seat.

You should have asked the old lady is her husband ever brought home a winch.

stay in touch with the lady..
when you sell her house..
buy yourself 4 better rims & tires..

Rika

Yeah, it's a tough one, but I'm positive the shop wasn't involved. They felt terrible about it and even offered to give me a couple hundred, which I refused. They're a family business, they've been great to me over the years and stuff like that just sin't their style.

I think Shaun's right. The lady was too quick... I bet the old bag stole them herself.

Yep, my thoughts exactly.

Occam's razor.

Exactly... the old b%$c# stole my wheels!

I think you should have ruffed her up a little till she confessed.

Jake, I had a similar issue only in reverse. My shop parking lot had been robbed. They broke into a bunch of cars, and stole radio's, and contents of cars.
My conversion van/ race car tow vehicle was also robbed, and they stole my portable cd walkman and my whole music collection.
A couple of weeks later, I am inspecting a car which belongs to the son of one of my customers. He has a walkman plugged into the tape deck. The band sounds familiar, and sure enough , it is one of my personal cd's that I burnt myself, and has my own personal hand writing on it.
The kid was a junkie, and always in trouble. But I was pretty close with the parents, and just let it roll off, I did not want to get into, or start that pissing match with them. I am sort of glad that I did not , as the kid overdosed a couple of years later, and is no longer with us. Feel real bad for the folks, they are good people.