Older cars most targeted by thieves

CHICOPEE, Mass. (WWLP) - You may think older, beat up cars are the last things a thief would target but their parts are the most valuable on the black market.

These are the top 4 most stolen cars according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau:

• 1995 Honda Civic
• 1991 Honda Accord
• 1989 Toyota Camry
• 1997 Ford F-150

They are the most stolen but David Laventure of Safe & Sound in Chicopee told 22News, they don’t have to be easy targets.

“If they do see that blue blinking light or red blinking light they're also not going to bother messing with it because they know that there is a security system installed," he said.

Alarms and systems that stall a car or allow it to be tracked are some of the reasons the number of thefts across the country are down 9%.

The simplest thing you can do to prevent your car from being stolen is to lock it when you get out.

Chicopee Police Chief Thomas Charette told 22News, “The biggest problem we're having in the city is people not security their property."

Although you may wake up in the morning with your car still in the driveway, anything you left in it may not be.

Chief Charette said, “Cars being left unlocked in their driveway are targeted by people roaming around after 11 p.m. probably checking doors in the driveway and if it's unlocked they'll open it and rifle through it.”