Which Car Has Been Affected by Theft in SA the Most This Year: Get All the Answers

The top cars stolen in SA are primarily bakkies, 5-door hatchbacks, and family-sized sedans. Not only are these cars quite popular on the roads, but they’re also profitable because of their high demand for parts, durability, and how easy they are to strip.

There isn’t a single most stolen car part, but the parts that are usually targeted include wheels and tyres, airbags, batteries, tailgates, and headlights. Parts are usually stolen more than entire cars themselves because thieves can strip the parts very quickly, and reselling parts is far less traceable.

Bakkie tyres are the car wheels that get stolen the most, with SUV tyres coming in at a close second. These are the most targeted not only because of their demand, but also because of their ability to go untracked most of the time, and how quick & easy they are to strip from the car.

Yes, thieves do like to steal parts of a car because they’re easier to get ahold of (can be stripped in minutes), less of a hassle to move around, and not always very easy to track. Stolen car parts are also part of a lucrative black market industry, and thieves are typically looking for a quick buck anyway.

One of the hardest cars to steal is a brightly coloured car. According to statistics, thieves typically avoid bright cars because they’re harder to hide & resell, and they stick out like a sore thumb, making it easier for people to recognise. Other difficult cars to steal are compact cars with uncommon parts, because they aren’t profitable.

The most dangerous areas when it comes to car theft are the Johannesburg, Tshwane, and Ekurhuleni districts. Most of these locations are hotspots because of their dense metro populations. These areas are top targets because they have:

• Bad road conditions
• Poor lighting
• Congestion (general traffic and commuter routes worsened by bad roads)

To prevent theft when buying a car, you should avoid the colour white. It’s one of the most popular colours that’s the easiest to resell and also paint over/modify. Otherwise, other colours to avoid are neutral ones like grey, black, white, silver, and sometimes beige/champagne colours.

If your car is stolen, you should:

• Contact your car tracking provider first. This enables them to get started on the vehicle recovery process.
• Go to the police station. You’ll need to report your stolen vehicle, and you’ll also need a case number before going to your insurance provider.
• Report it to your insurance provider using the case number you’ve received.

Cartrack provides numerous solutions to prevent the theft of your car, including:

• Vision solutions, like Road and Dual Vision, which are simple dashcam options
• CarWatch, which is like a car guard in your pocket. You can keep track of your car’s position via the app
• Stolen Vehicle Recovery (SVR), when our team is on the ground and ready to retrieve your car.
• Jamming detection capabilities on the tracking device, as well as backup jamming technology, like the Cartrack Tag.

The most stolen car this year is the classic, mid-sized bakkie that’s used for tough tasks and off-road work. These cars are usually stolen because of their resale value, profitable parts, strong engines, and potential to blend into the cars on the road.

There isn’t a single type of car that’s never stolen, but cars that are least likely to be targeted include:

• Bright coloured cars
• Cars that aren’t being made anymore
• Cars that aren’t as popular or have very unique, very specific security features and car parts
• Electric vehicles

The most stolen cars vary by location, so there isn’t a definitive answer. But generally speaking, it’s pickup trucks (or bakkies), high-value SUVs, and sedans. All of these cars are targeted for their parts (which are in high demand most of the time) and because they’re opportunistic in nature (weaker security measures).