April 23, 200817 yr With gasoline prices going up, up, up and headed for the stratosphere (crude oil touched $120 per barrel today, and will, sooner than you might think, reach at least $200......$8+ a gallon gasoline, anyone? ), gas theft out of one's gas tank will become a problem. While Sube's have a locking gas door, it can be pried open by a motivated, determined thief....and the costlier gasoline becomes, the more motivated/determined the thieves (and the greater the frequency of thefts!). Are there locking gas caps available for Subies which also are air tight(to prevent the "check engine" light from activating)? A locking cap would give an extra measure of protection against gas theft, no?
April 23, 200817 yr I haven't tried on a Suby but that fillerneck isn't exactly a straight shot. It's probably hard to siphon out of. Perhaps that golden fillertube is good for something. Perhaps someone will chime in. I have used my Pella to try and get gas out of a Volvo which has a similar fillerneck design and it didn't work at all. If it gets tough enough they will just resort to ice picks (or similar) to the tank itself. Dave
April 23, 200817 yr poking a hole in the gas tank and draining the gas into a pickle bucket one can cover is a lot easier and faster than siphoning it out. Reinforce the bottom of the gas tanks!!
April 23, 200817 yr I would not use a locking gas cap. I used a Stant locking cap on my 2000 Forester. I kept getting a CHECK ENGINE LIGHT; not all the time but once in a while. It was enough to be annoying. When the code was pulled it came back that it was the cap. My mechanic said that the way modern gas tanks are built it's even very difficult for him to get the gas out when he was to work on the tank. His suggestion was to get a REGULAR gas cap. I did this and the CEL problem went away. ~Howard
April 23, 200817 yr One thing on the locking caps is that I haven't seen one that will stop a large screwdriver or a pair of channel lock pliers if they want in. Also as one poster said the new thing is to just punch the bottom of the tank and drain it into a pan. So if they really want it they are going to get it, it just depends on how much damage they are going to do the the car in the process. Jim
April 24, 200817 yr Author Well, reading some user reviews for locking caps sure didn't inspire confidence. One reviewer wrote that he lost the keys for it so he easily removed the cap with a pipe wrench. Another wrote that he inadvertently turned the key in the opposite direction when trying to unlock it and pulled the whole feckin' lock out along with the key. Forget the locking gas cap; I'm just gonna weld the gas door shut....and surround the gas tank with 3/8" armor plate.
April 24, 200817 yr One thing on the locking caps is that I haven't seen one that will stop a large screwdriver or a pair of channel lock pliers if they want in. Also as one poster said the new thing is to just punch the bottom of the tank and drain it into a pan. So if they really want it they are going to get it, it just depends on how much damage they are going to do the the car in the process. Jim I'd much rather lose a tank of gas, than have to replace the tank! just my two
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now