The National Insurance Crime Bureau is out with its 2012 list of the Top 10 Most Stolen Ford Mustangs and this list is important to owners of used Mustangs because a stolen car drastically affects the value of the car forever more when it gets branded with a salvage title.
The NICB, as the insurance group is more commonly known, reviewed Mustang data from 1964 to 2011 - the years the Mustang, one of America's most popular sports cars, has been produced. In that time, nearly 8.5 million have been sold (including new and used sales) and almost 8% of them have been stolen.
Once a car is stolen in a lot of states, it gets branded with a salvage title. That drops the used car's value immensely at first and creates a headache for the owner who either has to restore the title to its original non-salvage branding - not possible to do in all states - or invest a lot of time in proving to potential buyers that the car was indeed stolen and did not receive the salvage title for other reasons.
Even still, the salvage title creates a lasting stigma on the car, especially the more than 411,000 that were stolen in the last 30 years (from 1981 to 2011). What can you do to prevent your used Ford Mustang from being stolen? There are the usual steps of always keeping it locked and inside a garage at home. Equipping it with various anti-theft devices that warn would-be thieves and immobilizes the vehicle, could also prove helpful Also, devices such as Lo Jack and OnStar, which is available aftermarket, will help located your used Mustang if it does get stolen.
Top 10 Most Stolen Ford Mustangs
Here is the list as supplied by the NICB for the years 2001 to 2011 when a total of 45,421 Mustangs were reported stolen:- 2000 Ford Mustang - 7,085
- 1995 Ford Mustang - 6,790
- 1998 Ford Mustang - 5,394
- 2001 Ford Mustang - 5,103
- 2002 Ford Mustang - 4,226
- 2003 Ford Mustang - 3,966
- 1994 Ford Mustang - 3,949
- 2004 Ford Mustang - 3,234
- 1996 Ford Mustang - 3,045
- 1989 Ford Mustang - 2,629
Two Ford Mustang models, the 2003 and the 2004, made that list in spite of having less years of availability. That could indicate that those model years are most popular among current Mustangs on the road. Owners of used Ford Mustangs from those years need to be especially vigilant for theft.
Once your used Mustang has been stolen and recovered, you will need to work with your state's motor vehicle department (they go by various names) to determine the proper steps for titling your used car going forward. Keep all paperwork on the vehicle, including any police reports, insurance claims, etc., to document that it was a stolen car.
This becomes especially crucial if you need to move from one state to another with your stolen Mustang. Salvage titles that are moved across state lines are more suspect if the owner tries to clean them in any way. That's a tactic usually associate with weather-damaged vehicles (like flood or hail) that have been deemed total losses and branded with a salvage title.
However, if it's a collector Ford Mustang that you plan not to sell, you might want to avoid the hassle of fixing the title. However, keep in mind that whoever takes possession of it after you will encounter problems in attempting to register it.
Here's hoping you have no problems with your Ford Mustang and you always find it right where you parked it last.
