Hood emblem thief worries - Page 3 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

pawoSD · #31 06-27-2009, 11:12 PM

Amazing that not long after this thread began, I went outside this morning and low and behold, someone had thrown some eggs at my car! Gross! Nothing else was harmed, looks like they threw a couple at it while driving by.

Egg smells disgusting in the hot sun.

If they take my star I will hold a stake out and catch them.

Wouldn't a hood star be covered by comprehensive insurance as vandalism?

cliffmac · #32 06-28-2009, 12:03 AM

I don't see how you can steal a star, what with the dual spring loading, off of the hood.. I took mine apart by accident and only upon attempted reassembly realized that there is really no way to rip it off of the hood/grill....it's a brilliant piece of engineering with built in theft protection. The only thing I can I see is that it's not built in idiot-owner proof who wants see how it works and then takes it apart and can't get back together again...I can't fault Mercedes for that....where I reside every third car is a MB and mine is the singular one without the star...but the grill is nice.... and they are only $35 anyway from the dealer....

pawoSD · #33 06-28-2009, 12:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cliffmac

I don't see how you can steal a star, what with the dual spring loading, off of the hood.. I took mine apart by accident and only upon attempted reassembly realized that there is really no way to rip it off of the hood/grill....it's a brilliant piece of engineering with built in theft protection. The only thing I can I see is that it's not built in idiot-owner proof who wants see how it works and then takes it apart and can't get back together again...I can't fault Mercedes for that....where I reside every third car is a MB and mine is the singular one without the star...but the grill is nice.... and they are only $35 anyway from the dealer....

It can be stolen by grabbing it and violently breaking it off the car....they're not indestructible.

cliffmac · #34 06-28-2009, 12:55 AM

yeah I know, I could tear a rear view mirror off a Mercdes if I wanted to but it wouldn't do me any good unless I wanted to put a chain through it and wear it like bling. If that's a problem I would either move to a different marque or move to a different town.....I never heard of anybody ripping off a Ford Escort badge....

pawoSD · #35 06-28-2009, 01:44 AM

So far none of our cars have fallen victim to star-stealing.....but two have been egged so far....and mine was massively keyed a few years ago. (they used a screw driver and gouged all the way to the metal from the front fender all the way along to the middle of the rear door...and made an extra big dent in the fender too) I hope the person that "screwdrivered" my car was (or gets) hit by a bus.

People like that.....if I had seen them I'd have gone after them with my 46mm wrench....ok end of rant.

cliffmac · #36 06-28-2009, 11:21 PM

idiots exist everywhere but I have found that the community that you reside in means alot...if everyone else cares about their stuff I believe they are much less likely to fool with your stuff...I hate to think like that but it's freakin true...if everyone has a Mercedes why screw with yours? It's a fundamental fact of life. And the damn stigma attached to the ownership of anything of quality that allows morons to be envious and therefore vindictive is even more suckfull...as a result, I endevour to place myself and my possesions in a place where that is less likely to occur...I like to be in areas where I have less then the surrounding denizens, yet can blend....a real game, gives me something to do in my advancing years.... kind of cool I think

JordaanDMC-12 · #37 08-26-2009, 11:31 PM

If you can't get it out, I don't think it will get stolen. My friend and I and his dad tried taking mine off of my 300E and DAMN we couldn't get it off. I'd love to see someone wanting to steal it try and do it.... :/

It's stupid too, cause they're not really worth that much, it's a waste of time trying to steal them...

cliffmac · #38 08-27-2009, 09:55 PM

the fact is, you cannot steal nor break a star from a Mercedes....off the car itself...just can't do it...

cliffmac · #39 08-27-2009, 10:00 PM

however, what you can do, as did I...is replace the grill and in the process remove the star assembly and then take it apart like an idiot and have it come all apart and then not be able to put it back together again....that you can do....but...the star assembly is only like $30....but there is no way to steal a star off the hood...it's much easier to take a BMW badge off...

babymog · #40 08-28-2009, 09:30 PM

I'd think a side-cutter would make pretty quick work of the soft cast-metal stem just below the chrome circle.

That having been said, when I had my first 'benz, a '91, I bought a spare ornament from the dealer thinking it would be stolen and I'd therefore be ready. Sold the car in '96, with the original ornament still standing proud. Six Mercedes later I still have that ornament in the box (knocking on wood).

Mercedes Guy · #41 08-28-2009, 11:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JordaanDMC-12

If you can't get it out, I don't think it will get stolen. My friend and I and his dad tried taking mine off of my 300E and DAMN we couldn't get it off. I'd love to see someone wanting to steal it try and do it.... :/

It's stupid too, cause they're not really worth that much, it's a waste of time trying to steal them...

It's really not that difficult to remove the hood star. If your 300E has the OEM star on it you only have to do a couple of easy steps. When you open the hood and look at the star from below you will see two tabs. Grab those two tabs, squeeze them together, pull down, and rotate 90 degrees. There are two recesses that the tabs will lock into, and then you just pull the whole assembly out. NOTE: You can only rotate the tabs 90 degrees in one direction (I don't recall if it's clockwise or counter-clockwise.) The direction is quite obvious, though, when you take a look at it.

Ian White · #42 11-24-2009, 02:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GermanStar

I've seen a flat badge replacement.

Where can I find a flat badge replacement for the hood star (mine looks like *****).

Jim B. · #43 11-24-2009, 02:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kitchenrat

recently some prison inmates were found to be hiding cellphones up their butts. if that hood emblem is that critical to the quality of your life you might consider following suit.

dhjenkins · #44 11-24-2009, 01:29 PM

Jesus, I thought they quit stealing mercedes symbols in the early 90's.

A flat badge replacement might look pretty sleek, though...

compu_85 · #45 11-25-2009, 09:42 AM

I don't like the flat badge. There's something about the way lights reflect off the star....

My friend had never had a star on his 76 300D, it was stolen off the car the day before he bought it. We finally put one on this past summer... there's just something special about driving a car with a star on the grille

-Jason