Interior Opening Gas Cap Cover

[THAW]

Siphoning was a thing in the 70s but as others have said it’s virtually impossible on a modern vehicle. During the “gas crises” in CA in the late 70s I did have someone siphon gas out of my 72 Chevy Nova. Probably about $2.00 worth of gas back then. My buddy and I (being young and dumb) saw him and chased him but he already was ahead of us and he threw the gas can and outran us.

I had gas siphoned from a 1998 Ford Explorer somewhere around 2010; I found the bulb in the street, and had trouble starting the vehicle (due to the nearly empty tank) until I rolled it onto flat ground. [Edit: I remembered this story incorrectly, it's actually 2 memories from a couple weeks apart blended together into one. I did find the bulb, but am not sure any gas was ever siphoned.]

A buddy of mine had a hole drilled in the gas tank of his Suburban during a summer uptick in gas prices sometime between 2010 and 2015. And, a guy I run into while walking my dog told me a work truck at the business where he's employed had a hole drilled in it's gas tank last summer (after the thief cut the chain link fence to get onto the property).

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[JL 2D]

Interesting idea I guess, but here’s my take. I can think of a hundred ways to sabotage a wrangler. Easy to get underneath, easy to get under the hood, nearly everything is exposed. Locking my gas cap or door is not something I’ll be doing.

 

[flyer92]

It's just a paranoid mindset that thinks this way.

I respectfully disagree because I have seen the results of this sort of vandalism several times over the last 50-ish years. Of course it's not common, but what's a mere $25 to prevent the possibility of thousands wasted on an engine replacement? The cost to benefit ratio is too obvious/cheap to ignore.

Perhaps you haven't witnessed or experienced this, but please respect the perspective of those who have and choose to do something about it. I'll assume your Jeep has never been stolen or broken into either, but does that mean you never lock it up when you park in a public lot?

So...OP isn't "paranoid," just prepared. And if you still can't respect that, at least respect the fact that OP's Jeep is his, not yours, and he can do whatever he wants to it. I don't know why people take pleasure in trolling with regard to this very specific issue, but this forum is clearly not the place for it. Our Jeep community is better than that. Do your own thing and happy Jeepin'....whether you lock it or not.

 

[SlickRicksWilly]

For the first question. I have no idea if this is available in the aftermarket.

For the second question. No, I would not welcome or want to pay for one.

For the third question. Probably, but IMO the heritage was based on simple, common, and readily available parts so that has been out the window for some time now, especially regarding lights and electronics.

Now for the why. My Jeep lives topless and doorless more than it does with the top and doors. So an interior release would just be an extra step for me to pump gas and I am so lazy I took the doors off so I don't have to open them everyday . It is a manual transmission, so if vandals want to vandal it's much easier to release the brake and put it neutral and push it into the closest thing (which has yet to happen but is a fear I have read about on this forum). All without top and doors; I have gone to events in less ideal areas of Dallas, Ft. Worth, Austin and various other parts of TX and OK, parked in parking garages, open parking lots, on the side of the street, in hotel parking lots. once I even parked in an area where I gave what appeared to a homeless person $20 to park in an area where I was sure the Jeep would not be towed or stolen when I got back (but low and behold it was there when I got back). The only time someone has rummaged through the Jeep, it was stupid kids in my neighborhood in my own driveway, but the only thing worth taking is the few bucks I keep in the center console but they didn't even see that so they didn't take anything. I thought insurance was for peace of mind And that is why I have it. I have all kinds of other things to worry about and some asshat screwing with my Jeep is low on that list. The way some of you talk, I have more fear of one of you guys messing with my Jeep, just to prove a point on the Internet, than I do of a random stranger messing with it.

TL;DR: Why would I need a fuel door when most of the time I don't even have doors. Insurance exists for peace of mind, Anything else is just extra.

 

[AndySpill]

What's your evidence?

Were you high when you wrote this?

What's my evidence that devices which make it harder to effect a nefarious act decrease the chances of that act being committed on those who incorporate such deterrents?

Really? Human nature. Where’s your data to support such devices having little positive effect?

Now don't get me wrong. We each have different adversity to the risks these devices reduce the chances our being exposed to. But you're asking me if vehicles with locked access to their fuel systems are less likely to be subject to their compromise than those without such protections?

Maybe such acts are even rare, but when they happen do you actually think, even absent of data, that those with protective measures face similar exposure to those without?

Strap in Foster. Let me explain life to you. Most people up to no good balance the criminal act they are about to commit, along with its potential bounty, with the difficulty of committing that act, along with the possibility of getting caught. With me so far?

Deterrents make such acts more difficult to effect, (or course by no means impossible) which can also result in the additional time that increases the bad actor's exposure to justice. This makes them think twice if the act is personally revengeful, or consider moving on to an easier target if say, pouring bad stuff down someone's gas tank is some act for jollies on which the perpetrator has no personal connection to those being targeted.

Where's my evidence, my data? Right. Just for you Foster I'm going to park my Wrangler on the wrong side of town while I stand across the street, clipboard in hand and observe.

When someone passes by I'll ask, in my best Frasier Crane voice "my good man, were you just now contemplating violating my vehicle's fuel system, and if so, was my locking gas cap a deterrent for you? Now, now, rest assured, I have no intentions on reporting you, I'm just collecting sample data for Foster. Please, there's no reason for you to present that 10" knife. I'm just conducting research if you will."

And if someone actually does begin effecting such action my line of question shall be, again "my good man, rest assured, I have no intentions on reporting you but for how long would you continue these acts before getting frustrated and stopping? Please, do be specific: 10 seconds, 11 seconds? When would you stop, if at all? When might you move on to another potential victim?"

 

[AndySpill]

First you say that such deterrents @THAW have little value because, I presume, of the presence of anti-siphon mechanisms in fuel systems that might motivate instead a hole being drilled to get at the gas:

Let's forget for a second, as mentioned, that equal concern exists in preventing bad chemicals for the vehicle being poured into the tank. Let's just focus on your observation about that which can come out of the tank.

Locking gas caps and fuel doors have little functional value.

Most modern vehicles have anti-siphon filler necks. And, a thief who wants the fuel is more likely to drill a hole in the fuel tank (JLs have factory standard fuel tank skid plates, which are a slight deterrent).

Then you write that despite such mechanisms (your Ford had them) that they were thwarted and gas taken with no drilling involved.

I had gas siphoned from a 1998 Ford Explorer somewhere around 2010; I found the bulb in the street, and had trouble starting the vehicle (due to the nearly empty tank) until I rolled it onto flat ground.

Would deterrents have prevented this? Who knows.

Do deterrents make it less likely that those with them will be subject to attack, the bad actor seeking easier targets? Absolutely.

Feel free to personally like or dislike locking gas caps or flaps, including those actually from the vehicle's interior and/or at the location on the vehicle where refill is situated. We can argue the likelihood of tampering, the cost of such protection, the pain in implementing it, etc.

But your very experiences contradict fuel theft deterrents being unnecessary. And while we can argue their effectiveness, you cannot say they provide so little protection that vehicles with and without such deterrents are equally targeted or equally vandalized.

The absence of data here is not the absence of fact. Human nature tells us they dissimilarly defended targets particularly ones of similar value, are not equally subject to attack or successful attack. We lock things up for a reason: homes, vehicles, hoods, and sometimes fuel systems.

YMMV, I say quite literally as the tank which is compromised will get you less travel distance.

 

[mgroeger]

Haters come one come all to my utterly harmless question "this week."

It's not my guess that the answer to this question is "yes," but does anyone know of an aftermarket vendor that makes a kit that allows a gasoline cap cover on a JL to be opened only from the vehicle interior like so many other vehicles have? I guess it would be analogous to Lastfit's cabin controlled hood opening kit, only for gasoline.

Second question, would you welcome, pay for, or hate such a feature on a Wrangler? Do you feel it violates its DNA? I can't image that such a change would modify any exterior aspect of the vehicle when compared to those already running MOPAR are aftermarket gasoline cap covers.

TIA

This is a great freaking question!

I was just over on my "Thieves who don't give a $hit about other peoples property" forum and I showed them your question. They all agreed that if such a gas cap door existed for the Jeep Wrangler it would be HUGE deterrent and they would most likely move on to a Bronco or 4Runner to siphon it's gas.

Don't let the haters on this forum deter you from fantastic questions like the one you posted. Please keep them coming!!

 

[THAW]

Were you high when you wrote this?

Were you high when you read my post? You answered the wrong question.

 

[AndySpill]

As I stated above, plastic tank and tall enough vehicle to roll under. It's quicker and easier to stab the tank with a simple screwdriver and throw a bucket under the Jeep. Who cares if 15 gallons of your fuel pours on the street after they get their 5 gallons? And if it's really just to destroy your vehicle, skip the bucket and throw a match under there instead. In my opinon you're just encouraging more expensive damage with your $25 locking gas cap, which is why I can't justify it.

This is a fair point. It almost incentivizes making theft less likely to cause the owner damage, by not incorporating deterrents, a reasonable argument: especially if the thief is motivated and your vehicle the closest for quite some distance.

But the rub I see here is in the likelihood that your vehicle is often in the proximity of others. And that most people up to know good are opportunistic: seeking the easiest target with the highest value, bypassing your vehicle with a fuel deterrent for one without same.

 

[AndySpill]

Were you high when you read my post? You answered the wrong question.

Let's recap

I wrote, "When are you going to get it thru your head @THAW that, while I'm no genius, that I'm a whole lot better at this than you, and these attacks of yours make you look stupid, not me?"

Your wrote, "What's your evidence?"

Naturally I assumed your question to be about evidence that gas locks deter tampering. But if you're asking why you look stupid, and what is my evidence of this, I didn't answer that question because I did prior. To restate, anyone whose first reaction is to habitually attack questions, rather than say, 1) "in my opinion such deterrents aren't necessary,"

2) and completely seem to not realize that access to the gas cap is as much, if not more these days with anti-siphoning tech, about trying to prevent junk from getting poured into the tank than losing its contents, ends up looking stupid.

I didn't even have to point this out to you before someone beat me to it.

These brain farts are a pattern with you on the forum. I'm fine with bad actors that correct me. I'm fine with good actors that get it wrong. But both is where I draw a line.

 

[THAW]

Naturally I assumed your question to be about evidence that gas locks deter tampering. But if you're asking why you look stupid, and what is my evidence of this, I didn't answer that question because I did prior. To restate, anyone whose first reaction is to habitually attack questions, rather than say, 1) "in my opinion such deterrents aren't necessary,"

2) and completely seem to not realize that access to the gas cap is as much, if not more these days with anti-siphoning tech, about trying to prevent junk from getting poured into the tank than losing its contents, ends up looking stupid.

Here's my evidence you're deluding yourself:

With more than 60 posts in the thread, the entirely innocuous post that sent you into a mini hissy fit is the most-liked in your thread, having received 7 times the combined likes of all 10 of your posts.

 

[JL 2D]

 

[Terrymo]

 

[Wbino]

I just have a mouse but am getting tired of feeding him cheese.

 

[The Last Cowboy]

As I stated above, plastic tank and tall enough vehicle to roll under. It's quicker and easier to stab the tank with a simple screwdriver and throw a bucket under the Jeep. Who cares if 15 gallons of your fuel pours on the street after they get their 5 gallons? And if it's really just to destroy your vehicle, skip the bucket and throw a match under there instead. In my opinon you're just encouraging more expensive damage with your $25 locking gas cap, which is why I can't justify it.

That’s a very common way to steal gas around here. And a whole lot easier than siphoning. Happens more than most realize.

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