As everyone know, cars tend to be a hot property among thieves and according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), 397,677 cars were pilfered last year alone. Fortunately, NHTSA says that increasing the use of marked parts, anti-theft devices and technology like coded keys, as well as heightened public awareness and improved law enforcement have help reduce this number steadily since 2001, bringing vehicle thefts now to their lowest rate since 1967.

Nevertheless, the FBI figures for every 555 members of the U.S. population one car was stolen last year which totaled at around $4.5 billion in annual losses.

Ironically, having a car that costs more might actually be less of a target as NHTSA’s data shows thieves become more practical in their vehicular tastes. Based on the number of thefts reported per 1,000 vehicles built, 2009’s most-stolen new-car list consisted of the BMW M5, Honda S2000, and the Mercedes-Benz CL, while the 2010 rogue’s gallery included mainly more affordable vehicles.

With the Dodge Charger ranking first on the top-10 list of most-stolen cars built and sold during 2010, the rest of the cars on this list include the following: the full-size Chevrolet Impala and Chrysler 300 sedans, Infiniti FX crossover SUV, Chrysler Sebring and Dodge Avenger midsize models, and the Kia Rio subcompact, along with the since-discontinued Pontiac G6 and Mitsubishi Galant sedans. One inconsistency of this list is the most likely out-of-production Lexus SC luxury convertible sports car, of which only one was stolen out of the 335 produced in 2010.

In terms of sheer numbers, the most stolen cars each year still tend to be older mainstream models like mid-to-late 1990’s Honda Accords and Civic, Toyota Camrys and Ford F-150 pickups, that are typically dismantled and sold off for parts by unscrupulous vendors. But when it comes to brand-new vehicles, they are usually pilfered with the intention of being re-sold intact, and given phony identification numbers and/or laundered titles.

Image courtesy of Seattle Dodge