SlickS2k

I got a question for you SF guys-is it safe to park the s2k on the street? I'm looking for places (a couple in Portrero hill) and very few of them have garages- is it safe to park an s2000 on the street? I noticed a few tt convertibles, nice saabs, z3's and such, but what do you guys think about an s2k? Thanks in advance for any input!

sylvainsf

All depends on what part of potrero hill you're on. If you're on a REALLY steep hill you're fairly safe as most criminals are too lazy to walk up them. But even though portrero has some nice homes, There's some really bad housing projects on the other side. I wouldn't park it on the street unless you have a stock stereo, a cover over your shift knob, and a LoJack. Even then I wouldn't sleep well. I wonder when they're gonna come out with a bullet proof lockable car shell

DJ Qube

A few things to look out for. I've been parking on 7th ave a few blocks from Golden Gate park for about 3 weeks now. No physical damage / vandalism, but...

I do get hardwater spots from nearby sprinkler systems + high winds.

Not sure if they're doing construction in your area, but airborne dirt is even worse than hardwater spots.

Watching out for street cleaning days is a major hassle. Got a ticket already.

Putting that huge "Residency" sticker on your back bumper sucks.

Saw a transient walking down the row of parked cars, lifting the passenger door handles to see if someone didn't lock theirs.

UCrazyKid

It'll get the SF bumper Tatoo. Basically your front and rear bummpers will start missing paint from people trying to squeeze into and out of parking places using the bumper car method. It sucks but doesn't do any real damage that can't be fixed with new paint on the bumpers when you move out of the city or get a place with a garage. Other than that, don't keep any valuables in the car and don't miss an insurance payment.

andy

Sparky

Parking on the street in SF once in a while is fine. Compared to most palces, it is actually a very safe city. In the long term, however, expect some damage/vandalism at some point.

I used to live way up by Twin Peaks, in a nice neighborhood, etc. Most of the time, the damage was minor until someone stood on the roof of my car, trying to break in through the sunroof. They managed to lower the roof by about 3 inches, damage the sunroof hardware and dent the hood (probably climbing down - two obvious footprints), but did not break into the car.

In another instance, near SF State someone keyed an entire row of cars, including mine. Probably just for fun. Bastards. Wasn't very deep, touch up paint brought it back to near new.

In another instance, someone broke my right power mirrors. Looked like they were just messing up peoples mirrors, but they pushed mine in so far it broke the mechanism. Also minor damage, just annoying.

In another instance the car was stolen at the Safeway near Castro. Recovered one month later parked in a restaurant parking lot with no damage aside from the ignition. Police suspected it was used in a robbery. They didn't care enough to take prints since there was negligible damage.

All this happened with a relatively cheap and durable Saturn (love the plastic body panels, why hasn't anyone else adopted this!??!)

A garage would have cost WAY more than the cumulative damage, especially since insurance covered the roof thing. Other people that lived in the city expericned similar minor issues, but almost no major problems.

SlickS2k

hmmm.....the thought of having my car keyed/messed with sucks...but sparky, you may be right about how it might cost less to not get a garage, with garage fees at about 200 dollars a month!

VIOLATION

Ok, I cant remember which member it was or what thread I saw it in, but someone made a little metal plate next to their exhaust. This plate was screwed onto something and was right below the bumper. He placed his parking sticker on that. I thought it was a brilliant idea.

I believe the thread had something to do with the exhaust, probably in the s2000 Talk forum. Look for it, maybe it'll give you an idea of what you can do so you dont "vandalize" your baby with an ugly sticker.

SFDukie

Slick,
I goot my wheels/tires stolen overnight on 15th ave between Lake and the old PHS hospital in the Presidio, so be careful and make sure you have wheel locks if you do it.
Whe I work (Saturday ams to Sun ams once/month) at SFGH I park in the lot rather than on the street- when I had a beater 84 jetta I'd park on the street and had folks go through my car at least twice- but there was nothing to take. Where do you live on P hill?

djqube,
I live in the inner sunset. Saw a silver/blk on Irving between 9th 1nd 10th Thurs night with the front plate in the window and missing the plugs for the license plate holder in front. Was it you?
Don

redleader

oh man, if you can avoid it, try not to park the car on the street. I had my 94 prelude garaged for 6+years, up until I got my s2k. Then the prelude got kicked out of the garage. And in the 7 months that it has been parked out doors, it has aged drastically. Unless, of course, you're planning on cleaning it daily and putting the cover on it.

DJ Qube

[QUOTE]Originally posted by SFDukie
[B]djqube,
I live in the inner sunset.