Grandma Takes a Joy Ride

If you've driven a new car in the last couple of years, you may have seen the latest keyless ignition systems that have been introduced. Called an electronic key fob system, the traditional metal key has been replaced by a fixed plastic switch where the ignition has normally been located. Instead of carrying the metal key around, a remote control (a little larger than a matchbox) is used to lock, unlock and start the car.  If the remote key fob is close enough to the car, it will start when you turn the fixed plastic ignition switch in the car.

What does this have to do with three Scottsdale police cars visiting my house the other day? Good story here. Please read further.

Susan and I were out of the country for a couple of weeks. Coincidentally, Susan's sister Peggy (who lives in Las Vegas) was also out of the country on vacation (not with us, though). Peggy has a new baby: Macen. Susan's mother - Pat - offered to care for the two-month old while Peggy was away. She is a wonderful grandmother. Considering she is on her own now, the gesture to care for Macen while Peggy was away shows you what a fantastic and loving person Pat is.

Pat's car is small and not so new. It's a two-door. So Susan offered to loan Pat her SUV for the time she would be caring for Macen. It would be much easier for Pat to get the baby in and out of Susan's mid-sized four-door SUV.

To make it easier on her other daughter - Peggy - Pat offered to fly to Las Vegas to pick up Macen just before Peggyʼs vacation.

So the story begins two weeks ago, with Pat dropping off her car and picking up Susan's SUV at our house. She drove to the airport and flew to Las Vegas to pick up Macen. She then flew back to Phoenix and started her loving-grandmother duties with Macen at her home in Sun City.

One small issue came up: Susan was supposed to have left a car seat in the back of her SUV for Macen to ride in. When Pat arrived back in Phoenix with the baby, no car seat could be found! Was it stolen? Was Susan so scatter-brained that she forgot to leave it for her mom? A few e-mails were sent back and forth across the globe between Pat and her daughters vacationing in Europe.  Where's the car seat?  Macen had to ride a few miles around with no car seat until Pat could buy a replacement! That's practically child abuse these days! The general agreement was that the car-seat had been stolen from the SUV while it was parked at Phoenix airport. After all, used car seats get stolen all the time, right?

Pat continued on with her loving-grandmother life - Macen in tow - around Sun City Arizona for another week. For her, life was busy but very grandmother-good.

Susan and I returned home last week. Pat arranged a time to return the SUV and pick up her car at our house. She arrived in the late afternoon last Friday. The baby was cuter than ever. Looked just like his dad. I recognized him in an instant. The SUV? Well, it did not look as familiar.

"Pat, where did you get this thing?"

"What do you mean?"

"Where is Susan's SUV?"

Pat's jaw hit the driveway. "You mean this isn't her car?"

"Nope. Look at the license plate. This thing is the same color but not even her make or model."

"I'd better sit down."

"You'd better. Have a soda, relax and get your story straight before the police arrive."

"Can't I have anything stronger?"

"Not a chance."

The white SUV in my driveway had been reported stolen to the Phoenix police seven days prior. Now, any time a stolen vehicle is involved, standard practice with the local police is to send three patrol units to the scene. Fortunately, all weapons were holstered when Pat met and began her explanation to five Scottsdale Police officers. They were very patient and all smiles. This was obviously the most interesting call they had all day.

Have you ever walked up to a grocery cart at the supermarket in the middle of your shopping and pushed around groceries that aren't even yours? I know a few of us have done it, because I sure have.

This is sort of what Pat did. She thought she was driving Susan's car for eight days. It was parked in the same area of the airport lot where she had left Susan's. Both were white SUVʼs - somewhat similar in style and Pat had really not driven Susan's car very much.

Of course the big question is: How did Pat start the vehicle? This is where the key fob system comes in. Both the "stolen" SUV and Susan's car use this type ignition security system. We talked to the owner later that day (who was extremely nice and understanding, by the way) and found out that they had lost their key fob (remote control) somewhere in their vehicle prior to parking at the airport. Essentially, the "key was left in the ignition" (with the doors unlocked) and Pat simply thought Susan's key fob was allowing her to start the car she was sitting in.

The key fob was in-fact, so lost that the five Scottsdale cops thoroughly searched the vehicle and could not find it. It still started, though.

No car alarm. No Lojack. But very much reported stolen. The police told her that had she been pulled over, two more cop cars would have shown up. All weapons would be drawn, and she would have found out first-hand how felony apprehension procedures are done in the state of Arizona. Remember also, Macen was still with her and both daughters would have been pretty hard to reach out of the country.

In all, the Scottsdale PD, and the owners of the SUV that grandma "jacked" were incredibly nice and understanding. We left them with a full tank of gas and a dozen apologies. One day Macen will enjoy hearing the story of how he and his loving grandma "stole" a car and cruised the greater Phoenix area for eight days.