Car thieves have pulled off some creative moves over the years, but tying a stolen Porsche to the back of a pickup truck and just driving off with it belongs in its own category. That’s essentially what happened in North Hollywood this week, and the results were about as clean as you’d expect from a plan hatched at 6:27 in the morning.
Police say the whole thing started when someone spotted a man trying to steal a gray Porsche and called it in. By the time officers arrived, the suspect had already rigged up a tow setup between the Porsche and a black pickup truck. Rather than surrender when officers told him to stop, the driver decided to make a run for it, kicking off a pursuit down Tujunga Avenue.
Here’s where it gets rough for the Porsche. As the pickup hauled off at high speed with the stolen car in tow, the Porsche had no business being dragged that fast. Its front end scraped along the curb the whole way, which is not a sentence any Porsche owner wants to read about their own car.
Eventually physics won out. The tow bar connecting the two vehicles broke, and the Porsche came to a stop in front of a car wash, ironically about the last place it needed to be given the state it was in.
The Getaway Continued Without the Getaway Car
@nbcla A stolen Porsche pursuit came to an end in North Hollywood after the driver crashed onto a sidewalk and slammed into a sign outside a car wash. Police say the chase began after officers responded to a reported vehicle theft around 7 a.m. Thursday. The suspect was taken into custody. #nbcla ♬ original sound – NBC Los Angeles
You’d think losing the car you just stole might be a signal to pull over and reassess, but the suspect kept going.
Police continued the chase for roughly another ten minutes before finally catching up with him near Sherman Way and Canal Loop. He was taken into custody on felony evading charges, reported NBC Los Angeles.
What Was Left of the Porsche
Cellphone video from the scene showed the damage was significant. The hood and front bumper took the brunt of the abuse, which makes sense given the car was essentially being used as an anchor while dragged along asphalt and curb.
Porsches aren’t built to be towed at high speed with a makeshift hitch job, and this one is proof of that. Whatever body shop ends up with this repair has its work cut out.
A Reminder That Tow Jobs Aren’t Improvised
Legitimate towing setups exist for a reason. Flatbeds, proper tow dollies, and secured hitches are designed to keep a vehicle stable and off the pavement, especially at speed. A rushed rig job between a pickup and a Porsche, done in a hurry to get away from police, was never going to end with the car intact. It’s a good example of why professional recovery services use the equipment they do, even setting aside the small matter of grand theft auto involved here.
As of now, the identities of both the suspect and the Porsche’s owner haven’t been released. The investigation into the theft remains ongoing.