They’re not picky about the F-Series they take, either. If you have an F-150 or Super Duty, do your best to keep it from becoming a statistic.
There’s no denying that the Ford F-Series line of trucks is popular. When a lot of people think “pickup,” they mentally picture a Ford F-150 or Super Duty. There’s a dark side to that popularity, though. Car thieves love F-Series trucks, too. They particularly enjoy the ones that don’t belong to them, especially down in San Antonio.
Citing information from the San Antonio Police Department and the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office, KSAT 12 reports that the Ram 1500, Chevrolet Silverado, and Ford F-150, F-250, and F-350 are the top five most stolen vehicles in San Antonio (that’s one streak that we’re sure Ford’s not proud to be on).
One couple’s video doorbell caught a brazen thief in the act of stealing their 2004 Ford F-250 Super Duty in broad daylight (pictured below). Luckily, they found it three hours later in front of a gas station. The bad news (there’s more) is that the couple had to spend $500 to fix the damage the thief inflicted on the truck. According to KSAT 12‘s Deven Clarke, “Anti-theft experts say trucks like those are often targeted because some of them don’t require programmed keys with a chip to start them.”
Police are doing their part to make stolen vehicles a little less appealing on the black market. Concerned truck owners can take their rigs to the San Antonio Police Department to have their vehicle’s VIN number etched onto its windows. Detective Sandra McCormick of S.A.P.D.’s Regional Auto Crimes Team said, “It’s a lot harder to part out these vehicles with your VIN number etched in several locations.”
Another deterrent is getting an alarm system with GPS tracking that you can sync up with your phone. Holding up the box to a Viper system, Clarke said, “This one will cost you about 250 bucks and about a hundred dollars for a 36-month subscription.”
If you have an older Ford truck, it may have its own built-in thief repellant: a manual transmission. Believe it or not, there are some car-hungry thugs out there who can’t drive stick.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
