Americans love big, V8-powered, rear-wheel drive cars. That includes Americans who don’t want to pay for them.
The Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat and Dodge Charger Hemi have repeated as the most-stolen vehicles in America, according to the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI).
“Theft claims for the Charger SRT Hellcat were more than 60 times more frequent than the average for all 2020-22 models, relative to their numbers on the road, while theft claims for the Charger HEMI were more than 20 times higher than average,” HLDI says.
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Relative risk
Two organizations report on car theft in America and use different methods to reach their results. The National Insurance Crime Bureau reports raw numbers. They tend to show that the most common cars are the most commonly stolen because there’s heavy demand for their parts.
The HLDI, however, reports on the relative risk of theft for each car. An arm of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the HLDI is funded by a consortium of insurance companies and builds its data from their claims reports.
The Charger and its 2-door Challenger cousin have been among the top five most-stolen cars every year since 2011, the HLDI says. “But the frequency of claims has increased at a stunning rate. For 2020-22 Charger SRT Hellcat models, there were 25 whole-vehicle theft claims per 1,000 insured vehicle years, up from about 18 for 2019-21 models. For comparison, the most-stolen 2017-19 model, the Infiniti Q60, had only two thefts per 1,000 insured vehicle years.”
A viral trend targeting some older Hyundai
HYMTF,
+1.19%
and Kia
000270,
-1.13%
vehicles that lack a common anti-theft device helped put four Kia models into the top 20 this year.
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EVs rarely stolen
What kind of cars do thieves avoid? Electric vehicles. The HLDI reports, “Six of the 20 models with the fewest claims for whole vehicle theft are electric vehicles.” That may be, the HLDI speculates, “because they are often parked overnight in well-lit and comparatively secure areas for charging.”
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The most stolen cars
| Rank | Model | Vehicle size/type | Relative claim frequency (100 = average) |
| 1 | Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat | Large car | 6,128 |
| 2 | Dodge Charger HEMI | Large car | 2,197 |
| 3 | Infiniti Q50 | Midsize luxury car | 878 |
| 4 | Dodge Challenger | Large car | 766 |
| 5 | Land Rover Range Rover 4WD | Large luxury SUV | 611 |
| 6 | Kia Sportage | Small SUV | 479 |
| 7 | Land Rover Range Rover Sport 4WD | Large luxury SUV | 460 |
| 8 | Kia Sportage 4WD | Small SUV | 415 |
| 9 |
Honda HMC, CR-V 4WD |
Small SUV | 409 |
| 10 | BMW X6 4WD | Midsize luxury SUV | 361 |
| 11 | Kia Rio | Minicar | 359 |
| 12 | Kia Forte | Small car | 357 |
| 13 |
Ford F, +0.08% F-350 SuperCrew 4WD |
Very large pickup | 349 |
| 14 | BMW X7 4WD | Large luxury SUV | 338 |
| 15 | Ford F-250 SuperCrew 4WD | Very large pickup | 337 |
| 16 | Honda Accord | Midsize car | 306 |
| 17 | Ram 3500 crew cab long-wheelbase 4WD | Very large pickup | 306 |
| 18 | Infiniti Q50 4WD | Midsize luxury car | 287 |
| 19 |
Nissan NSANY, -0.47% Maxima |
Midsize car | 284 |
| 20 | Honda CR-V | Small SUV | 270 |
This story originally ran on KBB.com.
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