Posted on 11/23/2012 6:54:43 AM PST by KeyLargo
Car thieves avoiding Toyota Prius
By Zach Bowman RSS feed
Posted Nov 21st 2012 4:30PM
The National Insurance Crime Bureau has taken a closer look at how often car thieves target the Toyota Prius. As it turns out, the most popular hybrid on US roads has a very low theft rate, and when it does get stolen, law enforcement are quick to return the machine to its rightful owners. All told, 2008-2012 Prius models saw a theft rate of one in 606 vehicles compared to one in 78 for all models on the road from the same model year period. Just 2,439 Prius hybrids were stolen in the US between September 4, 2000 and June 30, 2012.
Not surprisingly, California holds the dubious honor of taking the lion's share of those thefts, with 1,062. Florida took second place with 127, followed by New York, Washington and Texas. Toyota has sold 1.2 million Prius models in the US, which means the vehicle constitutes more than half of all hybrid vehicles on the road today. You can take a look at the full NICB press release below for more information.
I chose a Prius when we bought our last car in 2006. It gets 45-55 miles per gallon, is dependable and has all the comfort features. We wanted to deprive the oil producing nations that hate us of as much income as possible.
We like the Prius and we will like it even more when Obama gets his way and gas gets up around $7 a gallon.
I guess the thieves are smarter than I thought...
“They don’t steal them as much because they might be thinking they’re just oversized golf carts.”
Yea, I think you’re on to something. Even thieves have a code of honor, and they know that they may get caught some day. I think they simply dread the conversation:
“what you in for?”
“Grand Theft, Auto”
“Cool, what’d you nab”
“A Prius...”
Pretty much assures that he’ll be the bitch of the block.
It’s true. They are cool cars and I’m always surprised how they get trashed by FReepers.
I wonder how many folks here have driven one. They’re fast and quiet. Excellent engineering, quite the opposite of the GM battery cr*p.
I have an ungodly commute and I bought a Prius almost a year ago to offset the gas prices, which were bankrupting me. I LOVE THIS CAR!!! It is the best car I’ve ever owned, and even with the huge amount of driving I do, I rarely go to the gas station. Love it! Go Prius! :-D
“I wonder how many folks have driven one”
Great question, maybe the critics can answer?
The reputation of the car with the owner ranks is quite excellent.
From the link:
Soon, Rucy Jason pulled up in a 2005 silver Prius plastered with a dozen-odd stickers, including three calling for the impeachment of President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.
According to ZabaSearch, there is a 67-year-old Rucy Jason living in Fort Lauderdale. So much for fuzzing tag numbers, LOL!
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