It's sad but true that if you want to know the real value of classic cars, the best place to turn is to criminals. After all, these crooks know exactly what to steal to get the most money to line their pockets and are always looking to make more money.

So you could say that the most stolen cars are also the most popular cars in some weird way. After all, if they weren't popular, criminals wouldn't want to steal them. So what are the most popular classic cars for criminals to steal? I'm glad you asked. The good folks at Hagerty Insurance put together a list of the top 10 most stolen classic cars. These guys make their money insuring classic cars so when they publish a list like this, they know what they're talking about.

Here's what they found from their own records:

1. 1966 to 1982 Chevrolet Corvette
2. 1964 to 1969 Ford Mustang
3. 1958 to 1967 Chevrolet Impala
4. 1968 to 1969 Chevrolet Camaro
5. 1963 to 1972 Chevrolet Nova
6. 1966 to 1973 Chevrolet Chevelle
7. 1970 to 1978 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
8. 1955 to 1965 Cadillac DeVille
9. 1950 to 1971 Chevrolet Pickups
10. 1975 to 1979 Mercedes Benz 450

Looking at the list, the first thing you'll notice is that criminals sure seem to love their Chevrolets. I just hope they're not stealing their Chevy automotive repair manual or Chevrolet auto repair manual to go with it. This is a pretty clear sign that you need to make sure that you keep your Chevy safe with extra security features and good insurance.

While some purists may argue that some of those cars are far too new to be considered true classics, it's still a pretty good representation of what criminals feel are the most valuable cars. Depending on who you talk to, a classic car can be anything older than 25 years old or it can be something far more detailed and specific then that. However, after having seen this list, the smart consumer might be inclined to get anything but a Chevy.

It's also interesting to note that the majority of these cars appear to be on the newer side. The oldest vehicle on this list was the 1950 Chevrolet pickup trucks but for the most part these vehicles appear to be from the 1960s and the 1970s. This may indicate that these newer cars are more popular, but it may just be a sign that there are more new classic cars on the road then really old ones so criminals are just able to find and steal them easier.

Whatever the case may be, I'm sure I speak for most classic car hobbyists when I say that nothing can be worse than having someone steal your vehicle. Hopefully this list gets you thinking on the security for your own classic car and how you can prevent it from being the next vehicle model to make it to the top of the list.

By Colin Graham

Colin is a freelance writer.

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