Have you ever parked your car somewhere and couldn't remember where you left it?

One motorist in Frankfurt was faced with this scenario, but instead of the matter being quickly resolved, he spent 20 years trying to solve the mystery.

German newspaper Augsburger Allegmaine reported that the now 76-year-old motorist left his car in the garage of an industrial building in 1997. He reported its missing status to police after he failed to locate it.

Workers finally discovered the car during a planned demolition of the building. It had been left untouched in the same location for the past 20 years.

After checking their records employees found that the car had been recorded missing two decades previously and then informed the owner of its whereabouts.

Unfortunately the intervening years have been unkind to the car as accumulating rust has left it unsafe for driving. It was sent to the scrapyard and destroyed.

Unfortunately technological advancements have not completely eliminated errors by forgetful motorists.

Earlier this year a Canadian family were locked out of their car for two months after they lost the vehicle's keys. The high spec security chip within the keys was impossible to replicate leaving them without access to the car for weeks on end.

Thankfully, the family were finally able to get behind the wheel again after a hacker bypassed the Japanese car's inbuilt computer system. In all it cost the family $5,000 to be reunited with their Toyota mini-van.

A parked 2009 BMW 5 Series.
Kartenhauser / Wikimedia Commo