Not everyone's lucky enough to have their mate chance upon the stolen car in front of them just hours later either.

That's what happened to Jarrod 'Jagger' O'Brien - he left his car unlocked while running around the lake on Wednesday morning with his mates.

When they came back, the Holden Commodore was gone.

"I called the police, went to work - I work in insurance so I made the claim, I was getting on with my day - then I got a call from my mate James," Mr O'Brien said.

James Quayle, who in 2017 made a citizen's arrest after a drunk driver collided with parked cars in Alfredton, was working on a job site in Ballarat when he saw Mr O'Brien's car drive past.

He had just finished running the lake with his friend and witnessed first-hand the devastation of having the car stolen.

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"I dropped him home in the morning and I dunno, I just kept my eye out," Mr Quayle said. "The car drove right past me on the first job - I thought, that's the car!"

The car then parked in a nearby alleyway, and Mr Quayle seized the initiative, despite the three occupants sitting inside.

"I rang the cops real quick," he said. "I walked up to (the car), they didn't take off.

"I reached in, grabbed the keys, then sprinted off - they were going off their head."

He later returned to the car only to find the occupants had vanished.

Mr Quayle drove the car to a police station and a search of the vehicle revealed a knife in the car.

"I'm glad I didn't stick around," he said.

Mr O'Brien, meanwhile, received a "welcome phone call" from Mr Quayle.

"He said, 'mate, I'm sitting in your car'," he said.

"It's incredible - I'll be keeping my keys with me when I go for a run from now on, and every preseason training session will be with James Quayle.

"The same guy I went for a run with this morning, they literally pulled up near him."

Mr Quayle was modest about the whole event.

"It's just weird, I was with him when it got stolen, then four hours later I found it again," he said.

Police said the investigation is ongoing and there have been no arrests made yet.

Anyone with information is urged to phone Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.