Spark plugs not for starting your car engine

Amigos:

If you have already read some of my posts you'll may imagine what kind of "uncommon" use you can find for certain objects you know quite well; in this case I'll describe how some bad guys use here in my country, for their benefit, a spark plug, that part you need to start the engine of your car every day.

There are in Lima some known corners, where you should be really aware of people walking (and looking inside) near your car when you are waiting for the red light to change, especially if you drive a shiny new luxury model of a Mercedes, Lexus, BMW, or so, and you carry a laptop, a pretty cell phone, a large package with a tempting something inside, etc. over your car seats; if you are not aware then any burglar, passing by, can throw a red-heated spark plug at the glass of your closed window, your window will explode in hundreds of tiny pieces and while you recover from the shock he will have taken your laptop, cell phone or package and rushed away with them in a split second! I have had the chance of seeing some of these guys with half of their bodies inside a car infront of mine and then rushing away with some valuables to the surprise and horror of an unaware lady driver.

Most car window glasses won't resist the effect of being hit by a red heated spark plug unless they are the security type of glass (armored type).

But then you'll think: is there any police in Lima to prevent and capture this criminals? Yes, we have many good policemen who do a decent job (but they are the exception), some of them seem to be coluded with burglars, bad judges, corrupted politicians, and so crime rate in some of the streets of Lima are less than poor so we have to be always alert.

We recommend to our customers:

• that they should be able to identify every risky corners in Lima (for this matter, everyone should know this in his own living area) and then
• trying to avoid stopping at their red lights, especially during night hours
• if they notice that the light of the semaphore is already going to change to red, then they should slow down their car as much as necessary so to avoid be waiting, at that risky corner, the light to change to green.
  
• never carry valuables over your seats inside your car (use the trunk for it always!)
• don`t let music, or a nice partner onboard, distract you from your surroundings.
• never put your car on a bumper - to - bumper situation; keep at least 6-8 feet with the car infront when in a traffic jam or a red light.
  

Shark's back fin mode assaults to car drivers

Amigos:

I don't know if there is another country where this way of assaulting car drivers is being used; in Perú it happens only once in a while, not only over some lonely urban roads but also, and specially, over the driveways between large cities: we call them Shark's Dorsal or Back Fin way, and I show here a couple of pictures of the "instrument" used:

This "fin" is an iron piece, ususally painted full black to minimize its detection, and is usually used during the nights on lonely stages of "long and windy" drives when drivers are less likely able to detect them protruding from the road, like the next picture shows (if you look carefully you will notice the "black fin" protruding some 2-3 inches form the road):

Well, what happens if you run with your car over one of this creative objects is that at least one of the tires of your car will be punctuated and a couple of hundred feets ahead you'll have to stop to repair o change a flat tire; so the criminals will have some men ahead and wait for any inadverted driver who "innocently" will stop in a perfect place to be victimized (to be robbed, kidnapped, etc.); of course the criminals had previously studied the best place to do it, so the surprise is on their side almost always.

What should you do to prevent this?:

• avoid driving alone, especially during the night over unknown or unprotected areas;
  
• be always alert, especially for dark plastic bags on the road (many times they cover the object with them)
  
• have your car's light system perfectly checked beforehand

Finally, if you happen to be at the wheel when it happens:

• never stop on a lonely or dark area ahead;
  
• you should turn as soon as possible backwards (a "U" turn) and forget about ruinning your possibly already flat tire and
• look for a protected and iluminated place where you can safely change or repair your affected tire (s)
• report as soon as possible the incident to the authorities in the area

JSR