How often are Priuses stolen?

I've yet to hear of a Prius being stolen.

But they have been vandalized for parts. The HID headlights specifically. A few have also been damaged intentionally with door dings, dent and once by a pedestrian intentionally kicking the bumper.

But I haven't heard of any being stolen. I think LoJack is a ripoff anyway. And it doesn't work everywhere.

There was no article on street gangs in Prii. That was an Urban Legend one of our members made up.

 

The only story I heard was someone was at a party and left their purse on a table. Someone took the fob, went out into the parking lot (this was at a club) and kept pressing the unlock until a car "answered." I don't know if it's apocraphical or not; obviously I don't even have a location where this was supposed to take place. Taking the fob (or finding a way to duplicate it) seems to be the way to go when stealing (other than lifting on to a flatbed). You can't hotwire it, at least not like your average car.

Than being said, the HID lights are a theft target. Once it gets to a chop shop, the parts (like the MFD) can be sold for below dealer prices and still make a profit.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Chris Hayashida @ Aug 24 2006, 01:16 AM) [snapback]308702[/snapback]</div>

I have not heard of any Prii being stolen either.

I just have to add that they are very easy to move unnoticed. No one notices me as I drive through a parking lot in stealth mode. That is, until I stick my head out of the window an ask/tell them to move.

 

Don't kid yourself, they will be stolen by the pros for the parts. We had a Civic hybrid stolen off our lot at the dealership even before it was sold!!! For example, how about a battery replacement for half price?
That alone will make the car a desired item for the pros. FishHawk

 

My husband and I contemplated getting LoJack as well. And then we started laughing as we were remembering our first introduction to the Prius during our test drive:

If a thief was able to gain entry into the vehicle, would he know how to turn it on? Much less drive it away?

Test driving the Prius was the very first time I had to be instructed by the salesperson how to actually get the vehicle off of the lot. :lol:

 

Sure a Prius could be stolen, but the Prius is not on the insurance industries list of stolen vehicles. I have had LoJack in several autos, but opted not to get it on the Prius. While the HID lights may be a target, LoJack will not be a benefit since the car will probably be right where you left it minus the lights.

My Insurance cost for the Prius is actually $100 per year less than for my 99 Lexus GS with LoJack.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(FishHawk @ Aug 24 2006, 07:35 AM) [snapback]308737[/snapback]</div>

Why would someone want to replace a perfectly good battery that lasts the life of the car?

Plus the fact that most Prius owners are going to have their cars serviced at a dealership that gets their parts from Toyota.

Don't kid yourself - thieves will look for easier targets.

Dave

 

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) web site has a series of reports on vehicle theft rate. The URL is:

http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/portal/site/nhtsa...7d9d1046108a0c/

In summary the theft rates per 1,000 Toyota Prius vehicles produced in the model year indicated is:

Year ----- Rate/1,000 cars
2001 ----- 0.4438
2002 ----- 1.0116
2003 ----- 1.1572
2004 ----- 0.4169

Although the rate is “lowâ€, it isn’t zero. Compare it to other vehicles on the list to find out if these numbers make you feel more or less secure.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(FishHawk @ Aug 24 2006, 09:35 AM) [snapback]308737[/snapback]</div>

Umm, didn't I see a CIVIC on the list of "most stolen" cars? Thieves probably didn't notice or thought that it would be worth more to them...

I'll bet you'll hear more Camry Hybrids being stolen then Prii.

 

If Prii are low on the stolen list then why is my insurance so HIGH??????

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(barbaram @ Aug 25 2006, 12:30 AM) [snapback]309204[/snapback]</div>

My guess would be because it's not about theft, it's about repairs. And the Prius is expensive to repair. Body work is the most expensive repair for a car.

 

there was a story in the local news here about a Prius stolen in the seattle area. there was no information on how it was done other than that the thief drove off in the car

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(barbaram @ Aug 25 2006, 01:30 AM) [snapback]309204[/snapback]</div>

The insurance on mine ended up being cheaper than the four year old pickup I traded in for it.

 

I had my Prius wheel (tire, rim, lugs, cap) stolen just the other day (in San Francisco). I was told at the dealership that it was the 4th theft of a Prius tire in a week. Hopefully the thief now has a set and will end his/her spree, but just in case, I just installed locking lugs. Anybody else heard of this? Is there some new market for Prius tires?!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(barbaram @ Aug 24 2006, 10:30 PM) [snapback]309204[/snapback]</div>

Could it be related to where you live? Have you shopped around, insurance rates vary a lot from company to company. Also in this state the insurance companies use credit scores to help determine your rates. If that is true in your state also be sure to check and see if they have the correct score, I think some large percentage of credit files have errors on them.

For comparison my previous car was a 7 year old Honda Accord and, same pleasant experience as Visith, my insurance actually went down when I bought the Prius.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(sfprius4 @ Aug 30 2006, 03:22 AM) [snapback]311498[/snapback]</div>

Did it have ths tock crappy tires? if so, that theif is an idiot... he probably could have found better tires on any number of cars on your block...

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(sfprius4 @ Aug 30 2006, 04:22 AM) [snapback]311498[/snapback]</div>

So people do steal them. I thought it was odd that my Prius came with locking lug nuts. I've had several new vehicles over the years and this is the first time I'd seen that. If I understand correctly, the rims themselves only fit Prii and a certain Scion model? So, they'd probably be stealing them for the tires..

Same question as you, why? :huh: