The latest findings from the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) show the top cars stolen in the US in 2024.
The data covers total vehicle manufacturing and model theft, year-over-year theft trends from 2020 to 2024, and state-by-state theft rates per 100,000 residents. Vehicle model rankings are based on the total number of thefts reported to law enforcement agencies nationwide
Top 5 Most Stolen Vehicle Manufacturers and Models of 2024
Hyundai has total control over America’s most storey list. Elantra led with 31,712 thefts, while Sonata isn’t too late at 26,720. Together, these two models account for more than 58,000 vehicles stolen in 2024.
“Partial model year Hyundai and KIA vehicles have become infamous after showing how easy social media challenges are to steal,” says Brian Solis, head of sales for the five-star car title loan. “Many of these cars lack immobilizers and can start off with just a USB cable. It’s a perfect storm of widespread ownership and weak security.”
The Chevrolet Silverado 1500 closes out the top three with 21,666 thefts. America’s bestselling pickup trucks become an attractive target for burglars who know they can quickly peel off valuable parts or sell the entire car.
“Pickup trucks like Silverado are burglardo Goldmine,” adds Solis. “The parts market is huge and these vehicles hold their value well. Stolen Silverados can be chopped up and sold for parts that are more valuable than the entire truck.”
Honda Accord (18,539 theft) and Kia Optima (17,493 theft) completed the top five. Both models share similar vulnerabilities with their Korean counterparts, using older security systems that do not support modern theft technology.
“The Honda Accord has been a theft favorite for decades due to its reliability and widespread component compatibility,” Solis said. “The Kia Optima falls into the same category as other Korean models. It’s popular enough to blend in, but it’s easy enough to make it worth the risk.”
The NICB said vehicle thefts exploded nationwide, rising 28% between 2019 and 2023. Other than that, security systems are outdated. And because their portion is worth serious money on the black market.
The trend of theft tells the story of crimes that have peaked dramatically and then dropped dramatically. Theft has steadily risen from 880,595 in 2020 to over 1 million people in both 2022 and 2023.
“The decline in 2024 is likely to result in better law enforcement responses and manufacturers ultimately addressing security flaws,” explains Solis. “When stealing a particular car became as easy as following the Tiktok tutorial, everyone was forced to take action.”
