Young Car Thief Acheives Dream After All
Earlier this week, we reported on a bizarre story in which a 5-year-old Utah boy stole his parents’ Dodge Journey to drive to California. His mission? To procure a Lamborghini for himself. As you already know, he was picked up by local authorities before making much headway, but he wound up getting closer to his dream than anyone imagined.
Adrian Zamarripa’s junior adventure earned quite a bit of media coverage, encouraging a nearby Lambo enthusiast to visit the family this week and give the child some quality time inside his black Huracan. The car’s owner, Jeremy Neves, said he was impressed with the child’s initiative and wanted to meet him.
“I don’t want to condone kids taking cars and getting in trouble or breaking the law but the success principles that he displayed were magnificent to me,” Neves told local outlet Fox 13 News.
A little research shows Mr. Neves as the president of a marketing firm and, as a Lamborghini owner, terms like “success principles” are to be expected. He wasn’t the only party that appreciated Adrian’s moxie, either. The outlet also reports that a company in California has offered to fly the child out to California so he can actually drive a Lamborghini — under adult supervision.
While this probably undermines any punishment he was supposed to receive for stealing the family automobile, showing that you can have something if you’re willing to go out on a limb and get it could be a good lesson. However, this isn’t a parenting website and your author has never boosted a car for personal gain, so we’ll hold off on issuing any opinions about child-rearing. We’re mainly impressed that a 5-year-old actually managed to drive on the expressway without hurting anyone — ultimately achieving the most-realistic version of his selfish goal.
Utah Highway Patrol also confirmed that no charges will be filed as a result of Adrian’s actions.
“It’s like [Adrian] planned everything, which is crazy,” his sister Sydney told the media.
The impetus for the event was a reportedly heated argument with his mother about getting him a vehicle. The boy reportedly spends hours watching Lamborghini videos online and has repeatedly asked for one. Unable to comprehend why that wasn’t possible, he attempted to take matters into his own hands by stealing the Dodge Journey while his mother was at work. State Troopers found him cruising below the speed limit on I-15, where he explained that he was driving to California to purchase an Italian supercar. His family confirmed that it wasn’t the first time he had expressed the plan.
“I’m happy he got to experience this,” his sister said. “Despite everything that is happening, he got it.”
[Image: Fox 13 News Utah/Youtube]
A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.
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....just noticed (how did we not see this before?). " ' i ' before ' e ' except after ' c ' " Or is Matt putting himself on the story's level so nobody will feel diminished? (still too high, Matt....)
When I was 5-6 I had an electric ride-in Jaguar, and had also driven gas-powered go karts by about then. I have no doubt I could have driven a real car just as well (I was a tall skinny kid until I went to college and er, "filled out"). Steering wheel steers, one pedal for go, one for stop, same as my little car. I would have gotten an epic beating for taking the family car for a spin, so I did not. There would definitely have been no hugs involved, and rightly so.