There is a first time for everything, they say. And it is true. What had never happened before had a first start somewhere.
We like to make a big deal out of those “first times.”
First man on the moon.
First person to run a four-minute mile.
First telephone message.
First timee someone slipped on a banana. What a clown.
And on, and on.
Well, step aside, Grand Theft Auto. The first time a car was ever stolen was way back in 1896. It happened on this date, June 8, in Paris, France. A Baron named Etienne De Zuylen, owned a Peugeot. The Peugeot is the make of the car, and they are still around today. Well, not all of them. This one was stolen by the Baron’s mechanic from the manufacturer where it was undergoing repairs. Eventually, the mechanic-thief and the car were found at a nearby town. The Baron got his car back.
Car thieving is a big thing here in the United States. I’ve never had a car stolen, although it came close once.
The incident happened in high school. I drove a 1969 black Volkswagen Beetle to school and everywhere else. I parked it in the same student lot every day, nearly in the same space, if I was running on time.
After school let out, I walked to the back lot to retrieve my car and be on my way home. Unfortunately, the car was gone — nowhere to be seen.
I panicked. I ran back to the building, and the first person I bumped into was my basketball coach, Mr. Bill Cheslock. I told him of my misfortune. He was a real prankster, so he wanted to be absolutely sure I had not been pranked or that I had not made a mistake. Did anyone else have a key? Was I sure I parked it there? And on. We walked the entire city block of Chaminade-Julienne, looking for the car. Nowhere.
By that point, I was in tears, worried about telling my parents. We headed back to the building to call the police. As we entered the main office, my Dad came through the front doors of the school whistling and smiling. Mom dropped him off, and he had taken the car to be serviced. He was sure he had told me about the appointment.
All was fine and well, but I will never forget the feeling of having my car stolen. When it wasn’t.
Auto theft is prevalent in the United States. The FBI tracks such things, and their numbers include the theft of “automobiles, trucks, buses, motorcycles, scooters, snowmobiles and other vehicles” in their statistics.
They reported that about $6.4 billion was lost to motor vehicle theft in 2019. The average dollar loss per theft was $8,886. In 2019, 721,885 vehicles were stolen. That boils down to a rate of 219.9 per 100,000 people, so the odds are pretty good, really. But good thing for us, the trend had gone down over the past two decades, according to the FBI.
Here’s the Top-Ten Hit List.
1. Honda Civic – Number of Thefts: 38,426
2. Honda Accord – Number of Thefts: 36,815
3. Ford Pickup (Full-size) – Number of Thefts: 36,355
4. Chevrolet Pickup (Full-size) – Number of Thefts: 31,566
5. Toyota Camry – Number of Thefts: 16,906
6. Nissan Altima – Number of Thefts: 13,284
7. Toyota Corolla – Number of Thefts: 12,388
8. GMC Pickup (Full size) – Number of Thefts: 11,708
9. Dodge Pickup (full size) – Number of Thefts: 11,226
10. Jeep Cherokee/Grand Cherokee – Number of Thefts: 9,818
The states with the highest thefts were California, Texas, and Florida.
The lowest numbers were in Vermont, Wyoming, and Maine.
By country, Switzerland, Australia, and Sweden are the tops.
So there it is. And it all started with Baron de Zuylen in Paris, France. Another first time for everything.
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“Americans will put up with anything provided it doesn’t block traffic.”
― Dan Rather
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“The car has become an article of dress without which we feel uncertain, unclad, and incomplete in the urban compound.”
― Marshall McLuhan
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“Personally, I refuse to drive a car – I won’t have anything to do with any kind of transportation in which I can’t read.”
― Arthur C. Clarke, Report on Planet Three
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Keep your eyes on your wheels. Or it might be a first time.
