Car theft in New Zealand: The most stolen models and riskiest areas

Based on MoneyHub’s detailed Stolen Car Analysis, head of research Christopher Walsh isolates multiple trends for the six months ended December 20:

– Hilux thefts now average more than one a day.

– Toyota dominates: eight of the top 20 most stolen vehicles are Toyotas, including four of the top five. Nearly one in three stolen cars is a Toyota – 30.7% of all car thefts, with 1010 vehicles taken.

– Canterbury is the ute theft capital – the region is now the No 1 location for Hilux, Courier, Landcruiser, Commodore and Navara thefts.

– Northland remains the highest-risk region per capita:14 vehicles stolen per 10,000 people, nearly five times the rate of Southern (3 per 10,000).

– The average stolen car is 22 years old, the median age is 19 years, and 70% of stolen vehicles are 15-plus years old (pre-2010). Only 2% are newer than five years.

– Silver, white and black vehicles account for 64% of thefts – though this probably reflects their prevalence on the road.

– Monday is the worst day for car theft: 722 vehicles are stolen on Mondays, compared with542 on Saturdays.

– Thefts climbed towards year end: November recorded 823 thefts, the highest month in the six months surveyed.

Specific ‘non-standard’ thefts included:

– The oldest car stolen was a 1942 Ford Pickup – 83 years old – taken in the Bay of Plenty.

– 1971 Pontiac Le Mans and 1974 purple Ford Falcon XB stolen in Waikato – thieves going after classic “American muscle” in these cases.

– 1966 Holden Premier stolen in Waitematā – a 59-year-old Australian classic was poached.

– 90 BMWs stolen, the most targeted luxury manufacturer, followed by 54 Audis and 44 Mercedes-Benz.

– Three Porsches were taken, including a Panamera in Canterbury and two Cayennes.

– A 2017 Maserati Levante was stolen in Counties-Manukau.

– 26 Harley-Davidsons stolen, one every week on average.

– Six pink vehicles stolen, including a 1992 Toyota Corolla in the Bay of Plenty and a 2004 Honda Fit in Counties-Manukau.

– 27 Nissan Skylines taken – the boy racer favourite is still on the target list.

– New cars aren’t immune – five brand-new 2025 models were stolen, including a Toyota RAV4 (Auckland), Hyundai Tucson (Counties-Manukau) and MG ZS (Waikato).

New Zealand’s most stolen cars – average frequency and theft locations

As outlined by MoneyHub in its dedicated stolen cars report:

A warning from MoneyHub Founder Christopher Walsh

“If you’re financing any car, especially a high-theft model like a Hilux or Ranger, make sure your insurance payout would actually cover what you owe,” Walsh warned.

“A lot of people don’t realise there can be a gap between market value and their loan balance – and that gap needs to be paid by the borrower if and when a car is stolen, which can be significant.”

MoneyHub senior researcher Christopher Walsh. Photo / MoneyHub

Walsh said their analysis was grouped based on six months of police data, recognising that areas with higher populations have a correspondingly higher likelihood of theft.

“To add context to these figures, we’ve reported the riskiest and safest areas for car thefts in relation to population size.”