Have you seen a car like this? BMW is still looking for its stolen 7-Series. Photo Courtesy WXYZ-TV.
If BMW was hoping for an opportunity to demonstrate the benefits of its in-car infotainment system, it missed its chance. So far, an onboard tracking system designed to help it follow a stolen car and guide police to an interception doesn’t seem to be working very well.
The car in question is a $94,000 BMW 7-Series that was being used as a shuttle for company executives and journalists during the media preview at the annual Detroit Auto Show. With most reporters heading back home, the company was packing things up, overnight, rolling the big sedans onto a car carrier for the trip back to corporate headquarters, in New Jersey.
A valet had just pulled up in one of the cars, a grey sedan, license plate ZXY 19R, and was walking over to give the transport driver the keys. Before anyone could say BMW, witnesses say a pair of thieves jumped into the car and drove off.
That shouldn’t have been much of a problem, at least not if someone realized the vehicle had a BMW Assist system onboard. The stolen vehicle recovery system is linked to the car’s GPS and uses satellite data and a hidden transmitter to alert authorities and send out a homing signal they can use to intercept the car.
A day later, however, there’s still no sign of the 7-Series. Whether the BMW Assist system wasn’t activated, thieves figured out how to disable it, or the cops simply aren’t up to speed is unclear, at this point.
Authorities insist they’ll eventually find it, but those familiar with car theft practices say what the cops recover may not be worth very much. While some theft rings will keep luxury cars intact and load them into a cargo container for shipment to a country – like Russia or Serbia – where few questions are asked about the origins of a vehicle, most car thieves simply take their booty to a chop shop. There, the most worthwhile bits and pieces, which can include electronic components, airbags, wheels and tires and possibly the engine, will be stripped and eventually sold off.
What’s left could eventually show up along one of the deserted streets in one of Detroit’s now-abandoned neighborhoods.