[fuzzfactor]

During the T-top days of the 1980's, thieves were stealing the removable hardtop panels from lots of Camaros and Corvettes and cars like that. These could not be pawned for much since it was unlikely that a buyer for that exact T-top would come in looking for that one any time soon. Unless the shop developed quite a collection. Eventually they would be unloaded to the used parts dealers.

I went to a police auction where a lot of the recovered stolen property which went unclaimed was being sold along with their surplus vehicles, office furniture, etc.

There were loads of T-tops and naturally the used parts T-top dealers were there to pick them up at rock-bottom prices. They all knew each other.

They knew exactly which car model each one would fit and this had become an increasingly more detail-oriented business.

When a theft victim showed up to a used parts dealer, if the dealer did not have the exact part in stock (or in his network) he would tell the victim that it would take a few days to come in.

Basically, when an actual willing buyer was identified, if the part was not available already, it would be stolen to order from a compatible vehicle by street thieves who had become more detail-oriented over the years themselves.