The humble Holden Commodore has topped the stolen vehicles list across Australia for 2017, accounting for one in every 10 thefts reported.
New data released by the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council this week shows that car theft remains highly prevalent in Australia, though thieves appear to be targeting older models thanks to the advent of alarms and immobilisers.
Overall, vehicle thefts fell 7.1 per cent compared with 2016, with 41 per cent of thefts concentrating on vehicles worth less than $5000.
The Commodore featured strongly across the statistical data. Of the 42,592 passenger cars and light commercials that were reported stolen across Australia last year, 3280 were Commodores.
A total of 908 VE Commodores were reported stolen, suggesting that older models are an easier target. The same can be said for older models of the Nissan Pulsar (747), Toyota HiLux (596) and BA Ford Falcon (577), which completed the top four in the rundown.
A further 8038 motorcycles were reported stolen.
Victoria remains a hot spot for opportunistic thieves, accounting for one in three thefts, while the southern Queensland areas of Brisbane, the Gold Coast and Logan were identified as popular destinations for thieves.
Profit-motivated thefts – where thieves target particular models for a return – increased 1.2 per cent overall nationally. That figure comprises an 8.7 per cent rise in NSW.