Sand in my cam box!!!

fiatmonkey

fiatmonkey

Tim Hoover
So, I guess I really pissed someone off. I found the cover off my car this morning and the enginge hood not properly shut. I popped it open to find sand on the engine. Hmmm??? I haven't been to the beach in a while :( - I cracked open the oil filler cap and sure enough, I could see bits of sand in the cam box. Popped off the cam cover and found loads sitting just under where the oil cap would reside.

I cleaned it best I could but decided to take the cam off just in case. So far it appears to only have been in the cam box. I am shocked of course. I know all of neighbors pretty well including their kids and I can't think of anyone who would do this. Oh well. What goes around, comes around I always say.

Anyway, I am going to put the cam back together and get it on the car this afternoon. Oil change as well of course. Hopefully all goes well.

-Tim
 
A real paranoid...

... would check the fuel and coolant too. Their fillers are sitting right there and vulnerable too.

It's unlikely that you've pissed someone off or that this was aimed at you personally. More likely, vandalism from some poor loser of a local kid... but if so, it'll keep happening and escalating until he gets caught.
 
Man, that sucks --

But at least you didn't start it! I have a tendency to jump in my car in light it off first thing. I might not have noticed the hood wasn't closed.

Hope all goes well with it.

-- Mike
 
New meaning to the phrase "sanding the car"?? That really sucks that someone would do that. Especially going to the trouble of removing the car cover to get to it. I take it you don't have your engine lid latched? I hope you can get it all cleaned up and back together soon.
 
Well that sucks

Guess you will need to start locking the car and the engine/trunk latches.

I hope you can get it all cleaned out fairly easily.
 
Did anyone else in your area have the same thing happen to their car? It could be more than one was done to make it harder to tell the intended target.
 
I have a locking gas cap and it doesn't look tampered with but I didn't think about checking the expansion tank! That will be tomorrow I think.

I inspected the head with with cam box off and I dont see any sand. I drained the oil as well and no sign but I didn't expect any there really since I never even started ran the car.

DaveR said:
Did anyone else in your area have the same thing happen to their car? It could be more than one was done to make it harder to tell the intended target.
Click to expand...

Turns out a Honda 2000 just a few doors down was "keyed" with scratches down both sides. Another guy would typically doesn't park outside but had company over last night so let his friend park his vette inside.

He and I both filed a police report. Pretty crazy.

Anyway - let's see what tomorrow brings.
 
Sand

Tim:

It's not that our Fiats don't have enough problems without acts of senceless vandalism. Sorry to hear about your problems.

Bill
 
Interesting

It would have been someone who knew how to open an X1/9 engine cover. Not like that is intuitive unless you knew the car, saw it done, or looked it up because you were targeting that specific car.
 
Sounds like someone dislikes sports cars and is targeting them...probably some hill billy retard that is acting out of his latent homosexuality in a jealous destructive way because his dad "Clay" wont let him drive a miata and wear panties :brow: Its just sad. Hope you get it fixed soon, sorry you have to deal.
 
Sorry to hear this Tim...

The world is just full of THEM, huh!

Makes this site and the folks I've come to know because of it, even more precious!
 
Sucks Big-Time

Sorry for your situation:mad::mad::mad::mad::sad:

Just wondering if your insurance policy covers vandalism, and whether your policy stipulates indoor/locked storage. I can't imagine some sand not getting somewhere into the engine no matter how you tried to remove it from the top, so if coverage it may pay for partial engine disassembly to ensure a full clean up.
 
What if anything have the Police said? Just the typical "shinning on" of "..we'll file the report and if anything like this happens again call us and we'll come rite out" Will your insurance cover any damages/repair/parts needed to fix this? Maybe you could somehow hook a live wire to the car so if anyone touches it they get hit with some amperage :headbang:
 
Be nice to setup a little webcam that records when motion is detected, eh?

How did they get into the engine actually? Was the engine cover not secure? Doors unlocked?
 
ryan said:
Be nice to setup a little webcam that records when motion is detected, eh?

How did they get into the engine actually? Was the engine cover not secure? Doors unlocked?
Click to expand...

If daylight allows, I am going to install a motion detector flood light that I got a weeks ago. I also have a SageTV server (sort of a DVR made out of a PC) and I plan to add a PC camera that will snap pics whenever the lights come on. Ok, flood light first :)

I for some stupid reason tend to just leave the cover un-clicked but closed. It doesn't have the prop bar installed otherwise I would have to make sure it "clicks" to keep it closed.

Police came by today while I was wrenching on the car and said 3 other cars where hit the same night! All of them keyed but one had sand in gas tank. I am ready to move. I love this town but last year my Honda and my wife's Jetta both were broken into and my Honda was in the driveway!. Living near the beach is great and all but not worth the hassle of the crime (where I live).

I have Hagerty insurance. I don't plan on calling them unless I find the engine is in bad shape (so far its not). They do have a stipulation that the car must be parked in a locked garage however I think I have a case that the car was on my property. I don't think it will go that far (hoping)

Thanks all for the words and the help.
 
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