Sponsored

Gas Theft and Skid Plates

EugenesAJeep

Well-Known Member
First Name
Jeff
Joined
Sep 23, 2020
Threads
0
Messages
98
Reaction score
318
Location
Palm Springs
Vehicle(s)
2020 Willys
Vehicle Showcase
1
So...one troubling and unexpected result of skyrocketing gas prices has been the dramatic increase in gas theft by idiots drilling holes in our vulnerable plastic gas tanks. As soon as I heard about this, I took a close look at mine and noticed the many possible places that one could easily drill into the tank, even though it has the standard factory skid plate. Obviously, plastic tanks are much more difficult to repair than steel or aluminum, and usually have to be replaced. To make matters worse, I checked on replacement tank availability with my local Jeep dealership, and they advised that the lead time is currently 12 days and rapidly getting worse due to typical supply chain issues. Should this trend continue, gas tanks will soon be as scarce as microchips.

Unfortunately, the few gas tank skid plates that I have seen are designed only to protect the underside from impact, and offer limited to no protection for the sides/rear, leaving them extremely vulnerable. This is reasonable, as they were designed for off-road protection, NOT a$$hole gas thieves who drain the life out of beloved Jeeps. A car alarm doesn't necessarily help in this situation, as the thieves will just run away after they drill a hole and trigger the alarm; even though they won't get your gas, you'll still be left with a hole in your tank. While thieves could feasibly drill through a metal enclosure or gas tank, the additional time, effort, and risk would probably be sufficient to just make them move on to another unprotected vehicle.

Just wondering if anyone has seen a complete enclosure, metal tank, or anything else that might discourage gas theft. Look forward to learning/sharing more with the group so we can protect our investments in both vehicle and gas!
Better order that gas tank, sounds like you have it all planned out.
I’m not going to worry about it.
Sponsored

 
OP
OP
flyer92

flyer92

Well-Known Member
First Name
Jeff
Joined
Feb 6, 2021
Threads
115
Messages
1,198
Reaction score
1,627
Location
Nevada
Vehicle(s)
'21 2-Door JL Sport, former '80 CJ-5 and '99 TJ
Vehicle Showcase
2
Used to be? I can remember in auto shop in the early 70's it being absolutely no no. The teachers then were saying if you had no other choice do everything you can to clean it then hook the fill neck up to an exhaust of a running car. Do everything you can to get the oxygen and fumes out.
I don't ever remember it being popular.
Professional? Any yo yo with a harbor freight welder can plug the hole, its do they want to see the next day.
A stainless or Ti skid would probably slow things down... but wait till you see the price.
OK...I won't debate our experiences with tank welding here. That wasn't my intent with this post, and was just trying to help our community out. Only reason I said "professional," was because many yo-yo's aren't necessarily thinking about purging fumes, and even those who are, may not do it sufficiently. Again...I agree that welding isn't as common today because most tanks are plastic....so can we please move on?
 
OP
OP
flyer92

flyer92

Well-Known Member
First Name
Jeff
Joined
Feb 6, 2021
Threads
115
Messages
1,198
Reaction score
1,627
Location
Nevada
Vehicle(s)
'21 2-Door JL Sport, former '80 CJ-5 and '99 TJ
Vehicle Showcase
2
Better order that gas tank, sounds like you have it all planned out.
I’m not going to worry about it.
To each his/her own...just trying to bring this issue to our community's attention so peeps can prepare if they choose to do so. Best of luck and hope it doesn't happen to you...or anyone, for that matter.
 

IQ_imbalance

Well-Known Member
First Name
Bob
Joined
Nov 8, 2021
Threads
29
Messages
225
Reaction score
265
Location
Maryland
Vehicle(s)
2022 JLU Rubicon 3.0d
I'm a little surprised the drills haven't done this, but then again a lot of them are brushless. I do love seeing the stories of the car falling on the CAT thief.
Good reason to take up smoking and casually throwing lit cigarettes at idiots drilling gas tanks...
 

Sponsored

No IFS

Banned
Banned
Banned
Joined
Nov 13, 2019
Threads
10
Messages
1,167
Reaction score
2,306
Location
So Cal
Vehicle(s)
JL Rubicon
OK, being the skeptic I am, I want to see the numbers.
Sure, it happens. But I think it's far less common than it's made out to be; the only sources I've seen is a few local news reports. Those are usually pretty sensationalized. Catalytic converter theft seems like it's more common. Plus, it's way easier to just move on to the next vehicle and siphon. Path of least resistance, target of opportunity, etc.

I've got an aluminum tank skid from Quadratec. it's good. I imagine removing the factory skid to completely replace will be a real pain in the ass. some of those bolts are in very blind areas.
The news tries to hide it as much as possible you know it does not fit their agenda. Bring your jeep to Los Angeles. Come check out what’s NOT happening here. Yep We’re all making it up. Lol Crime in Los Angeles is like the ocean, whether you believe it or not if you step in, you’re getting wet.
 
Last edited:

RubiSc0tt

Well-Known Member
First Name
Scott
Joined
Jun 12, 2018
Threads
56
Messages
1,355
Reaction score
1,688
Location
Upstate NY
Vehicle(s)
2019 JLUR in Punk'n Orange
Build Thread
Link
Occupation
Turn Wrenches/ Write code
The news tries to hide it as much as possible you know it does not fit their agenda. Bring your jeep to Los Angeles. Come check out what’s NOT happening here. Yep We’re all making it up. Lol Crime in Los Angeles is like the ocean, whether you believe it or not if you step in, you’re getting wet.
I don't doubt your experiences, especially in a large city like LA. My question is frequency. A lot of shit like this gets overblown. Same thing has popped up at least twice since 2008, both times were far more exaggerated thanks mostly to local news and the internet. If i recall correctly it was some stupid disparity, like 3 cases of actual fuel theft vs. 25 of catalytic converter theft, per year, on average, or some crazy disparity like that. Far less than is being alleged. It's not like it's the Road Warrior, but there is an LA freeway joke in there, somewhere.
 
OP
OP
flyer92

flyer92

Well-Known Member
First Name
Jeff
Joined
Feb 6, 2021
Threads
115
Messages
1,198
Reaction score
1,627
Location
Nevada
Vehicle(s)
'21 2-Door JL Sport, former '80 CJ-5 and '99 TJ
Vehicle Showcase
2
I think the problem is spending $2K on a skid system to save the chance at losing $100 in gas...when insurance will cover a new tank and the gas stolen.
Agree, but the issue isn't due to the cost or who is paying for it. With the ongoing and foreseeable decline with the supply chain, it is more about the limited availability of parts. Dealership showed me a parking lot full of vehicles that couldn't be driven, due to the lack of parts that had been backordered, and many with no ETA. The associate said that most of the vehicles would end up being there for several weeks or months, due to shortages in some of the most mundane parts. After 26 years in the automotive industry, he characterized it as "unprecedented," and obviously not just limited to FCA products.

In short, just trying to avoid a situation where my Jeep is rendered indefinitely undriveable, simply because new gas tanks aren't readily available.
 

Sponsored

blnewt

Well-Known Member
First Name
Brad
Joined
Oct 8, 2018
Threads
96
Messages
9,876
Reaction score
23,795
Location
New Mexico
Vehicle(s)
2019 Jeep JL V6 SportS, (Retired 74 CJ-5, 80 CJ-7)
Occupation
Just ask @cosine he knows!
It is a nation-wide trend, not specific to my locality. If you hadn't heard about it from my post, you would have eventually heard about it elsewhere. In fact, there was a segment about it on the news last week, where they stated that gas theft is rapidly overtaking cat theft, given the relative ease in drilling into gas tanks vs. cat removal.
Maybe they'll leave our 2drs alone since our tiny 17 gallon tanks make it less worthwhile :)
 
OP
OP
flyer92

flyer92

Well-Known Member
First Name
Jeff
Joined
Feb 6, 2021
Threads
115
Messages
1,198
Reaction score
1,627
Location
Nevada
Vehicle(s)
'21 2-Door JL Sport, former '80 CJ-5 and '99 TJ
Vehicle Showcase
2
Maybe they'll leave our 2drs alone since our tiny 17 gallon tanks make it less worthwhile :)
LOL...I was thinking the same thing, but our gas tanks are so much easier to vandalize, as compared to other vehicles. Of the four cars in my family's household, the JL is clearly the easiest target.
 

blnewt

Well-Known Member
First Name
Brad
Joined
Oct 8, 2018
Threads
96
Messages
9,876
Reaction score
23,795
Location
New Mexico
Vehicle(s)
2019 Jeep JL V6 SportS, (Retired 74 CJ-5, 80 CJ-7)
Occupation
Just ask @cosine he knows!
LOL...I was thinking the same thing, but our gas tanks are so much easier to vandalize, as compared to other vehicles. Of the four cars in my family's household, the JL is clearly the easiest target.
I guess just do what you can to minimize exposure~park in well lighted areas with more people around, maybe get a dash cam, or make it look like you have one. Put a few 2A stickers on your window probably wouldn't hurt either :)
 

Zandcwhite

Well-Known Member
First Name
Zach
Joined
Sep 4, 2019
Threads
10
Messages
4,249
Reaction score
7,579
Location
Patterson, ca
Vehicle(s)
2019 jlur
May we only hope they use a drill and there's just enough arcing in the motor when the fuel starts flowing. If you're so desperate for $25 worth of fuel that you're willing to spill out the other 10+ gallons, ruin someone's tank, and take the risk I hope you burn up under there with it.
 

Nitehawk92

Well-Known Member
First Name
Mark
Joined
Mar 11, 2022
Threads
20
Messages
1,226
Reaction score
1,777
Location
Vandalia, Ohio
Vehicle(s)
23 JLU Reign Rubicon 14 Mazda, 22 Hyundia Santa Fe
Wow, where in Nevada is this an issue. I've heard of some catalytic converter thefts around here in California but no gas thefts.
It would be really hard to a steal gas or a catalytic converter because it is so low to the ground, but Jeeps are easy targets if people want to steal from you....
Sponsored

 
 



Top