Freedom Automotive - January 2011 Newsletter

CAR FACTS

Which Are The Most Commonly Stolen Cars?

You would think that the most often stolen cars would be the fancy new models, but that just doesn’t hold true. According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau most of the most popular cars with thieves are 10 or more years old. The top ten include; 1995 Honda Civic, 1991 Honda Accord, 1989 Toyota Camry, 1997 Ford F-150 pickup, 1994 Chevrolet C/K 1500 pickup, 1994 Acura Integra, 2004 Dodge Ram pickup, 1994 Nissan Sentra, 1988 Toyota pickup and 2007 Toyota Corolla.

There are several reasons that these older cars are prime targets for thieves. There are still a lot of them in service because they have proven to be so dependable. That means that there is a ready market for used parts. The popularity also drives the used parts price up. Finally, most of these have pretty simple anti-theft systems if they have one at all. Newer cars all have immobilizer type anti-theft systems that make stealing the car more time consuming and difficult.

Which Cars Get The Most Tickets?

You might think that the little red Corvette Convertible is a ticket getting hot rod. Not so. The vehicle that gets the most traffic tickets is the Hummer. In both the H2 and H3 models the Hummer outpaces the ticket average by five times!

Also on the list of ticket catchers were three models of the Scion, not exactly a hot rod, 2 Toyotas, Subaru Outback Wagon and 2 models of the Mercedes CL series.
For some reason the list of the least often ticketed is dominated by GM products; Chevy Suburban, Tahoe, and Chevy and GMC pickups, along with a couple of Buicks and one Oldsmobile share the top ten with the Mazda 6 and Jaguar XJ.

Of course it is not the car that gets the ticket, so what is it about a Hummer, or a Scion, that attracts such aggressive drivers?

Are Men Or Women Better Drivers?

Women suffer under many stereotypes and perhaps the least deserved is that “Women are terrible drivers”. When looking at the statistics it becomes pretty obvious that the guys are undisputed as the worst drivers on the road.
Male drivers get 3 times as many reckless driving citations, 4 times as many driving under the influence, and throwing caution to the wind, 3 times as many seat belt violations. They also get twice as many speeding tickets and 1 ½ as many failure to yield or stop tickets.

Men also have slightly more accidents than women, about 5% more, but their accidents are more costly because they usually result from speeding or failure to yield.

The good news is that DUI violations for men is going down, about 20% over the last ten years. At the same time the ladies are getting caught tipsy behind the wheel 14% more often.

Are men really so much worse behind the wheel or are the women just getting caught less often?

DPS Stranded Motorist Hotline

A toll-free number was established in 1989 to get help to motorists whose vehicles are disabled on state and federal roads in Texas. The number, 800-525-5555, is printed on the back of all Texas driver licenses and ID cards, and is for motorists to use when reporting a need for non-emergency assistance. It is not a substitute for 9-1-1 and it is not a Customer Service line to answer Driver License questions or other routine matters for other divisions of DPS. It is for motorists who have a legitimate need for assistance on Texas roadways. Despite what some e-mails say, motorists who call the toll-free number are not provided a free yearly tow or a free voucher for fuel.

The Hotline is answered at DPS Austin Communications by operators who take necessary information from motorists. The information is then relayed to the appropriate police agency that will provide help or send a unit to check on the motorist's welfare until help arrives.

If a motorist is inside a city limits, the call is relayed to the police department with local jurisdiction.
If a motorist is in a rural area, the call is relayed to the sheriff's office having local jurisdiction.
If a courtesy patrol is available in a certain area, that number is provided to the motorist.
If other agencies cannot or will not respond, calls are relayed to the nearest DPS Communications facility.

Examples of when a motorist may call the Hotline include:

stranded with car problems
hazardous road conditions
debris in the roadway
suspicious activity at a rest area
obviously intoxicated or dangerous drivers

If the situation is an emergency, motorists should call 9-1-1.

To better assist personnel who answer the Hotline, motorists should have the following information readily available when calling:

Name
Cell phone number
Vehicle description when applicable
Highway location (mile marker is helpful)
County location or city location if inside the city limits

Customers of wireless companies, ALLTEL, Nextel, AT&T/Cingular, Verizon, Sprint, US Cellular, and T-Mobile, can also dial *DPS (*377) anywhere in Texas to report non-emergency situations. DPS and the Texas Highway Patrol have no control over areas of cell phone coverage and are not responsible if a motorist cannot contact the Hotline using *377 or 800-525-5555 because of coverage issues, defective cell phones or batteries.