The Most Commonly Stolen Car Parts (and How to Pro...

Having your car stolen is a traumatic expertise—and a depressingly widespread one. Though car thefts nationwide are trending downward, there have been nonetheless more than 850,000 vehicles stolen in 2024. In case you’ve ever woken as much as discover your automobile lacking from its spot (and I’ve!) it’s not enjoyable.

However thieves don’t at all times goal all the automobile. It’s typically simpler and fewer dangerous to steal a particular half out of your automobile or truck. Many of those components are comparatively straightforward to entry, take away, and promote, and the revenue margin will be very profitable for a busy and arranged legal. In case your automobile is ever parked out within the open (particularly in a single day), it might be focused for a surprisingly lengthy checklist of particular components. The excellent news is you could defend each little bit of your car with slightly foresight and some safety devices.

Catalytic converters

Ever since catalytic converters entered widespread use within the Seventies, thieves have focused them. They’re an ideal storm for thieves: Accessible, comparatively straightforward to take away, and helpful as a result of mixture of valuable metals inside them (together with palladium, platinum, and rhodium). Thieves know they will get between $250 and $800 for a catalytic converter, relying on the car it was taken from. That’s why about 64,000 catalytic converter have been stolen in 2022 alone.

cease thieves: The most effective factor you are able to do is to put in an anti-theft machine like a Catstrap. It is a band of strip metal that’s adhered to the size of your exhaust system, making it nearly unattainable for thieves to cut through the pipes to steal the converter. You too can contemplate etching identifying information on the converter to make it tough to promote on the black market. The draw back of this strategy is that thieves might not discover the etching till after they’ve eliminated the converter.

Wheels

Your automobile’s wheels and tires are prime targets for theft. Tires will be stripped off your automobile in a really quick time period, and they are often offered very simply, particularly since tires—particularly high-end tires—can run as much as $1,000 each.

cease thieves: Your greatest wager is to put in model-appropriate locking lugnuts like these. These will make it very tough for thieves to make use of customary instruments to take away your wheels. With loads of effort and a few specialised instruments, they are often defeated, however chances are high your thief will simply transfer on to a special automobile with wheels which might be simpler to steal.

Batteries

A normal car battery in a gas-powered car isn’t value a lot—sometimes lower than 20 cents per pound. However batteries are additionally extremely straightforward to steal, so thieves will typically make a sweep of an space to steal as many batteries as potential as a way to make the payout value their time. The batteries in a hybrid car will be value extra, and the batteries in an electrical car will be very, very helpful—but additionally a lot harder to steal.

cease thieves: Including a battery lock bracket is straightforward, low-cost, and fairly efficient. Since battery thieves don’t make a lot per battery, any further barrier will in all probability deter them fairly successfully.

Tailgates

Sure, imagine it or not, thieves are after your truck’s complete tailgate. That is very true in case you personal a Toyota Tacoma, as a result of the tailgates on that mannequin are extremely straightforward to detach—they’re actually engineered to be eliminated simply. However any truck tailgate is a goal as a result of they’re all comparatively straightforward to take away, and nowadays your tailgate accommodates a bunch of high-tech gear (cameras, sensors, and many others.) that may be stripped out for resale.

cease thieves: You’ll be able to set up a tailgate lock to your make and mannequin (like this one for struggling Tacoma house owners).

Airbags

It’s estimated that about 50,000 airbags are stolen yearly within the U.S. They’re helpful, fetching as much as $200 on the black market, which makes them enticing to thieves. Thieves normally goal dealerships or different locations the place automobiles are left unattended in accessible tons, however automobiles parked on the road are additionally hit.

cease thieves: The most effective methods to cease airbag theft is to lock your automobile whenever you park it and park it inside a secured space, like a storage. If that’s not potential, utilizing a steering wheel lock utilizing the “club” design will be efficient, because it bodily makes it tough to entry the motive force’s-side airbag. This received’t cease thieves from grabbing the passenger-side airbag, in fact, however reducing their revenue in half would possibly encourage them to maneuver on.

License plates

Thieves steal license plates as a result of it’s a straightforward approach to cloak a car. Generally they’re placed on stolen automobiles, typically they’re used to evade tolls—however the truth that they’re typically straightforward to steal and really tough to trace makes them standard targets. In reality, the Nationwide Insurance coverage Crime Bureau (NICB) notes that license plate theft has been rising quickly—by 45% between 2019 and 2022 alone.

cease thieves: Swapping out the rusty, customary screws holding your plates on for some tamper-proof screws will do the job. These screws require a particular fastener to connect or detach, and the kits include screw covers to make it much more tough to entry.

Facet mirrors

You would possibly suppose your aspect mirrors are simply mirrors, and who would hassle stealing these? Ah, however modern-day aspect mirrors have loads of know-how inside them, particularly on luxurious automobiles, together with blind spot sensors, defrosting techniques, and cameras. Consider it or not, some mirrors can command upwards of $2,000 each!

cease thieves: In case your aspect mirrors are motorized, turning them in whenever you park could make it harder for thieves to entry them. You too can search for anti-theft mirror guards (like this one) to your make and mannequin, which add a layer of safety to the mirror to discourage thieves.

Third row seats

In case you have a truck or SUV with a detachable third-row seat, you need to know that it’s more and more popular to steal them. The rationale third-row seats are focused is the common motive something will get stolen: These seats value 1000’s of {dollars} to interchange.

cease thieves: The easiest way to stop theft of your truck’s third-row seat is to safe it with a motorcycle lock. The precise lock that can work will depend on how your third-row seat attaches and detaches, however all it is advisable to do is safe it in place. It removes among the comfort, however it’s so much higher than having your children roll round within the cab when you drive.

Badges

Individuals have been stealing automobile badges and hood ornaments for many years, typically simply to gather them or as petty acts of vandalism. However nowadays these emblems can really include loads of costly know-how. Trendy Volkswagens, for instance, typically tuck cruise control sensors into the hood emblem. That makes these badges much more helpful than you would possibly suppose, and thieves are positively conscious of their added worth.

cease thieves: It’s very tough to cease somebody from eradicating an emblem, badge, or decoration out of your automobile. In case you can entry the again the place it’s connected, you may attempt utilizing wire or zipties to safe it extra firmly—however in case you can entry it, so can thieves. Your greatest protection is to park the car in a safe space each time potential.