Honda, Toyota again top U.S. top 10 most stolen car list

For the 11th straight year, Honda and Toyota models remain the most stolen cars in the United States. But for the first time domestic cars overall were stolen more often than foreign manufacturers’ cars.

In its yearly report called “Hot Wheels,” the 1994 Honda Accord was the most stolen car in the country in 2010, following by the 1995 Civic and the 1991 Toyota Camry.

Hot Wheels is the only report that examines all theft data without regard to a vehicle’s insured status thereby providing a more complete view of the vehicle theft landscape.

For example, certain models of older cars and trucks are popular with thieves because of the value of their parts — but many are not insured against theft. Whereas newer, more expensive and insured vehicles are often stolen to be resold intact with counterfeit vehicle identification numbers or shipped out of the country.

Overall, vehicle thefts continue their decline. Preliminary 2010 FBI crime statistics point to a further 7.2 percent reduction over the thefts posted in 2009. Should the preliminary numbers hold when the FBI produces its final statistics later this year, 2010 will post the fewest vehicle thefts since 1967.

Improved technology is one of the keys to lower theft rates and the Hot Wheels statistics demonstrate that. Of the nearly 52,000 Honda Accords stolen in 2010, over 44,000 were models made in the 1990s, compared with fewer than 5,700 that were produced since the year 2000.

The top-10 most stolen cars in the U.S. in 2010

1. 1994 Honda Accord; 2. 1995 Honda Civic; 3. 1991 Toyota Camry; 4. 1999 Chevrolet Pickup (Full Size); 5. 1997 Ford F150 Series/Pickup; 6. 2004 Dodge Ram; 7. 2000 Dodge Caravan; 8. 1994 Acura Integra;  9. 2002 Ford Explorer; 10. 1999 Ford Taurus.