Dodge Charger Thefts Are Getting Out Of Hand; One Michigan PD Reported 1,000 Stolen Cars In A Year!

Dodge’s performance vehicles are hot in multiple senses of the word. One police department reports that more than 1,000 Charger thefts have been investigated in Southeast Michigan in the last year alone.

That’s according to Saline Deputy Police Chief Marlene Radzik, who spoke to the Saline Post after another two Dodge Charger Scat Pack models were stolen from a dealership there on February 2.

Over 1,000 Stolen Chargers: That’s Not A Typo

That number sounded shockingly high to us, so we also reached out to the Saline police department, which confirmed the numbers to CarScoops. Indeed, a recently leaked internal Michigan State Police memo picked up by WXYZ Detroit suggests that thefts of Dodge Durangos and Jeep Grand Cherokees are also high.

The internal memo was written by the state police to warn local departments about the large quantity of Stellantis vehicles being stolen in Michigan as well as in Ohio, Kentucky, Georgia, Illinois, and New York.

Also Read: Gone In 18 Seconds: Keyless Entry Cars Are Shockingly Easy To Steal

Responding to the report, Stellantis wrote that its “vehicles meet or exceed all applicable federal safety standards,” in a statement.

“While such events are rare, they are not exclusive to any make or model of vehicle,” it continued. “Further, Stellantis uses industry-standard technology. Notwithstanding, we urge all motorists to take due care in securing their vehicles.”

According to the IIHS’s Highway Loss Data Institute, though, the Charger and the Challenger Hellcat were America’s two most stolen cars between 2016 and 2018. According to the institute, theft claims for those cars came in more than five times more frequently than the national average.

Reports of keyless entry vehicles, in general, being stolen have been rising recently. In 2019, a British consumer group reported that it takes little more than some cheap electronics equipment to steal a car in a matter of seconds.

Whether the Dodge Challenger and Charger are particularly susceptible to this kind of thing or are just desirable is unclear.