Driver manuals really are a favorite target for car thieves
QLast Saturday I got a pretty nasty birthday present. My car was broken into. My policy has always been to fight that by having little of value in the car. Sunglasses and a half roll of quarters. And, oh, the car manual, which had my registration and insurance in it was also stolen.
It did not make sense that they would bother to steal the manual. So I googled “stolen car manuals.” You should too and I will bet that you will be making changes.
After replacing my registration and insurance cards, I recall reading that pictures on your phone will suffice. As I took pictures my wife said “Now you will lose your phone.” — NiallMacDonagh, Antioch
AWives sure have a way of getting to the heart of issues. Police will accept a cellphone picture of insurance cards but not registration cards, which need to be in the vehicle.
Manual thefts are increasing as they often list a special PIN num- ber, a valet key, your registration and VIN. Thieves will try to contact the manufacturer to get keys replaced, saying the car belongs to them. Then they’ll return later to steal it. Easy pickings say cops across the country. So keep the manual hidden and have a better birthday than Niall had.
QThere is a stop sign at Kitty Hawk Road and Isabel Avenue in Livermore that allows you to only make a right on to Isabel, and when you get to the light on Airway Boulevard, a U-Turn is disallowed if one wishes to get to Interstate 580. Caltrans has not provided a simple way to get to 580.
So, we end up making a left at the light, enter the parking lot of an office building and then a left to get back to the light at Airway Boulevard from where we can make a right to get to the freeway. This is very inconvenient and quite dangerous as it could cause an accident from impatient drivers who I have seen make an illegal left from the stop sign at Kitty Hawk Road to
AThis sounds like no fun. I’ve forwarded this onto Caltrans, but Bob- the-Livermore-Traffic- Man suggests, “An alternative that might be less inconvenient and doesn’t tempt drivers to make illegal maneuvers would be to head west on Kitty Hawk Road to access I- 580 at the Airway Boulevard.”
QWhile bicycle riding over the Dumbarton Bridge recently I came upon a couch that must have f lown off the back of something. This reminded me what a mess this multipurpose pathway is, full of grit, glass and trash. How often does this path get serviced? — Joel Greenia, Santa Clara
ASupposedly, three or four times a year.
Follow Gary Richards at Facebook. com/ mr.roadshow or contact him at mrroadshow@ bayareanewsgroup. com. Contact Gary Richards at grichards@ bayareanewsgroup. com or 408- 920- 5037.