2020 is on another level

"Not a Sunburst Miata" (moezsayani)
06/28/2020 at 20:30 • Filed to: None

DISCUSSION (24)

Thisismydisplayname > Not a Sunburst Miata
06/28/2020 at 20:38

The thought has crossed my mind. I had read something about the hertz rental 350s that had some type of seal Or something on the engine to be able to tell if someone had messed with it.

WilliamsSW > Not a Sunburst Miata
06/28/2020 at 20:42

Lol you know that engine hasn’t had an oil change in 25k but good luck!

dogisbadob > Not a Sunburst Miata
06/28/2020 at 20:44

LOL at working on one of those vans being a simple job! You can’t even get to the spark plugs!

The Nissan full-size vans are the only ones with a real hood that can fit the entire engine under it!

BrianGriffin thinks “reliable” is just a state of mind > Not a Sunburst Miata
06/28/2020 at 20:49

I’m actually surprised this doesn’t happen more often. Especially with rental Corvettes.

promoted by the color red > Not a Sunburst Miata
06/28/2020 at 21:03

I want to believe this is a joke, but I’ve seen enough people self-incriminate on Facebook that I’m not so sure any more.

VW Max > dogisbadob
06/28/2020 at 21:04

Because they are panel trucks, not vans

ranwhenparked > promoted by the color red
06/28/2020 at 21:09

Why not? Nothing’s going to happen - y ou can tow a stolen ATM down the street with a diesel Volkswagen firing an AR-15 in the air, setting off fireworks and nobody’s going to stop you now .

dogisbadob > promoted by the color red
06/28/2020 at 21:09

Is there a link to the OP’s findings on Instagram?

sony1492 > Not a Sunburst Miata
06/28/2020 at 21:28

This is the lead up to rentals having locks for the hood

Demon-Xanth knows how to operate a street. > promoted by the color red
06/28/2020 at 21:35

I could see it as this would likely go undetected for a long period of time as they are externally identical and the 4.8 would have enough power to easily handle rental duties. It wouldn't be until major service has to be done that someone would notice a part not interchanging correctly.

OmerCarrothers333 > Not a Sunburst Miata
06/28/2020 at 21:56

Back in drag-racing's rowdy days in the early 1970s, if a team's car-hauler broke down, they'd call U-Haul to rent a truck, swap the drivetrain, and leave the U-Haul with the bad motor on the side of the road. They'd just call U-Haul and say the truck broke down.

McMike > Not a Sunburst Miata
06/28/2020 at 22:12

They used to do this with the Shelby Mustangs back in the 60s, but I doubt you could swap harnesses, CPUs, and everything that easily today.

I have heard a story about some dude renting four daily pickup rentals and stealing the full sized spare from each one until he got a new set of wheels and tires for hi s truck less than $200.

TheBlightOfGrey > sony1492
06/28/2020 at 22:12

Last Toyota Highlander I rented I couldn’t even figure out how to open the gas door.

Discerning > Not a Sunburst Miata
06/28/2020 at 22:13

Mout Chevy express 1500's came with the 4.3 V6 or the 4.8 V8, and I don't see u-haul springing for the better engine or bothering with the 2500. Though I could be wrong.

Roadkilled > Not a Sunburst Miata
06/28/2020 at 22:35

It’s got to be a joke.

Let’s suppose you work at U-Haul and you finally figure out that somebody stole the engine of of a van. The original post indicates that they put their engine in the van. That mean’s that U-Haul now has serial numbers on the block that can be traced to a vehicle, which can then be traced to the owner of that vehicle.

I don’t think you could swap two engines in two days and somehow return the U-Haul van without it throwing codes because something doesn’t match up. It wouldn’t take long for somebody to notice that there was a problem. Unless the van was rented with a stolen or fraudulent drivers license, more evidence is left behind.

Based on my experience with U-Haul, and the experience of other people I know, you wouldn’t even want to steal the engine out of one of their vehicles. I don’t know if it still the case, but they used to do a lot less maintenance on short-haul vehicles. My mother rented a truck to haul some stuff from Atlanta to St. Louis. It broke down in Tennessee and she called a local U-Haul office for help. They looked at the truck and told her that the Atlanta office should not have rented it for anything other than local use.

ranwhenparked > Roadkilled
06/28/2020 at 22:46

They’ve supposedly improved a lot since that scandal broke about them renting vehicles with faulty brakes and rusted through frames and the like, but they are definitely not well cared for. I think their current model is to replace vehicles more frequently rather than do proper scheduled maintenance, hoping that will prevent the bulk of the safety related problems. Run them into the ground and junk them young, basically.

bhtooefr > Discerning
06/28/2020 at 23:36

There was a while where the old 4.3 and 4.8 weren’t meeting emissions any more, so the 2.8 diesel and 6.0 were it, IIRC.

shop-teacher > Demon-Xanth knows how to operate a street.
06/29/2020 at 00:31

It would have to be a really major service. First gen LS truck motors all used the same external parts, the same crank shaft, and the same cam shaft. I could see this being pulled off if you swapped a first gen 6.0 and 4.8. You’d have to be doing something really major, like a head gasket. Stock LS truck motors aren’t exactly known for needing service like that until they’re old enough that they wouldn't be in a U-haul fleet anymore.

shop-teacher > Discerning
06/29/2020 at 00:34

Chevy dropped the 1500 completely a few years ago. They're all 2500/3500 now.

Tristan > dogisbadob
06/29/2020 at 03:23

I’ve done some heavy parts-yanking on LS-equipped Express vans in the junkyard. They’re pretty simple and straightforward, really.

Discerning > shop-teacher
06/29/2020 at 08:50

I forgot about that. But I'm fairly certain you could still get the V6 even in the 2500.

Discerning > bhtooefr
06/29/2020 at 08:53

There was a brief period where you couldn’t get the v6 or 5.3, but the 4.8 was available until both smaller v8's were dropped in favor of the V6 or 6.0l. I would be willing to bet that any express that u-haul has is either the 4.8 (pre-2018) or a V6.

shop-teacher > Discerning
06/29/2020 at 09:55

Not for several years. The 2500 was 4.8 or 6.0 for a long time. I bet most of U-hauls were 4.8s though, like you said. With a fleet that big, I’m sure some 6.0s made it into the mix. Now the new 4.3 V6 is the base engine, with the optional diesel and the 6.0. I bet they are mostly V6s now.

The story is likely BS, but it’s not completely impossible.

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > Not a Sunburst Miata
06/29/2020 at 10:48

Plot twist.

That van is also a 4.8 and he did all that work for nothin