Stolen Hellcat Recovered

Discussion in 'Challenger HellCat Forum Engine & Performance' started by SRT-Tom, Nov 25, 2022.

  1. SRT-Tom

    SRT-Tom Well-Known Member Staff Member Super Moderator Article Writer

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    A Plum Crazy Challenger Hellcat was stolen, In September, from the William P. Hobby Airport in Houston. For a month there were zero leads. Some might blame the police for not looking hard enough, but if you look at the homicide rates in Houston, you will see why a stolen Hellcat isn’t top priority.

    The frustrated owner was forced to take matters into his own hands. Using his GPS, he tracked it down to a parking lot, just sitting there like everything was normal. Only, the Hellcat had obvious damage to the driver’s side and more, so it had been driven hard and probably crashed. This is pretty much our worst nightmare, other than finding a beloved car in pieces.

    Ultimately, the insurance company decided to not total the Hellcat and instead went ahead with paying for repairs. A long list of things needed to be fixed, including damage to the driver’s door, grille, front bumper, front fenders, tires, wheels, steering column, windshield, roof, rockers, trunk, rear quarter panels, and more. Considering how much Hellcats have shot up in value, it’s not entirely surprising that fixing all these issues was cheaper than totaling the car.

    Granted, this is a miracle of a story, so let’s keep that in perspective. This is why you should have multiple trackers. Thieves often will study where the OE unit is and how to disable it, so keep that in mind. Dropping an AirTag or other tracking devices in the nooks and crannies of your ride provides another layer of security. Granted, it’s not a foolproof way of getting your vehicle back, but nothing is.

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  2. Octane

    Octane Full Access Member

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    And those damages and repairs will always be on that carfax, and affect its resaleability. Even if they are done right, and were done on an expensive car.
     
  3. stingray

    stingray Full Access Member

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    If one plans on keeping the car the resaleability doesn't make a difference. Getting it fixed right is where it counts when you drive it.
     
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  4. Octane

    Octane Full Access Member

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    But to me a Hellcat would be a longterm investment.A collector car. If one wants to drive one daily, it doesnt matter I reckon. I would still hate to have that carfax record on such an expensive car tho. If I had one that got stolen and damaged, the first thing I'd do is sell it fast.
     
  5. stingray

    stingray Full Access Member

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    I can understand that, but the future of this HC is still unknown as far a collector car. Very few cars are great long-term investments. Those limited production numbers must be very low and unique to be a collector vehicle. There are many models of the Challenger as they all look very similar. I wouldn't bank on it especially since the car will be sitting like a garage queen and not enjoyed as it should be driven. There is still a cost to preserve it as not driving it is worse for the car. If you are saving it for someone else by that time who knows what the future will hold and the cost to run it and if the resources are available in 40+ years.
     
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  6. leadsled

    leadsled Active Member

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    the only way a carfax has the info is if the repair shop tells them so check you carfax maybe maybe its not on there best of luck
     
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  7. Octane

    Octane Full Access Member

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    I understand. My bro bought a 89 corvette, 14k and in storage since 1991.It has no damage, no carfax, and will sell for top dollar. Muscle cars will never have the value of the only great american sports car. But if I have one its record has to be clean. I sell any car that has been compromised.
     
  8. Octane

    Octane Full Access Member

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    Carfax info is also acquired thru police reports etc. A car owner that has it fixed out of pocket is much more likely to not have the damage on the carfax report.
     
  9. B5blueRT

    B5blueRT Full Access Member

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    I've heard that Carfax can also automatically obtain data from collision shops that are using certain software packages to run their business. I believe the shops get incentives for using the software such as a lower purchase price or even getting it for free provided they agree to certain terms.
     
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  10. Octane

    Octane Full Access Member

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    Anytime the bodyshop that I have used has done my repairs thru my insurance company, it goes on the carfax. Also, carfax will report some actual small amount of real damage as moderate and it can make it look like your car was damaged worse than it was. And a future buyer may think twice about buying it, as carfax also uses that scoring model. And that can make it harder to sell to a large part of the buying public.
     
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