#LoJack

Independence Day probably marks fireworks, good food and better company on your calendar, but it’s also the landmark for car theft to hit high gear according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

LoJack released its third annual Vehicle Theft Recovery Report with plenty of interesting facts based on stolen vehicles and those recovered with the LoJack system. 

Often times we only hear the bad side of the story: cars getting stolen, thieves running off with your precious property, etc. But sometimes it’s nice to hear that there’s a happy ending to some of thefts thanks to Lojack.

You meet the nicest people on a Honda… until they steal it. Honda owners should remember that the tagline only applies to motorcycles, as their cars were once again the most stolen and recovered vehicles of 2010 according to statistics released by LoJack security systems.

The Honda Accord and Civic, as well as the Toyota Camry, were the most stolen among the 10,649 total cars recovered by LoJack this year—just as they were in 2009. While this reflects the bestselling popularity among consumers, older Hondas have always been popular with thieves; mid-90s Accords, for example, and the Civic and Acura Integra are frequently targeted by nefarious enthusiasts so they can mod them.

But thieves are moving on up to newer and posher cars, just like their English brethren: one of the most stolen is the Cadillac Escalade, which is up there with the Nissan Maxima and Ram pickup. And the most popular areas for car thievery? SoCal, Texas, and Florida, where the populations are large and the car is a necessity. Click the jump to see the full list.

Either stealing a car has become a lot more difficult or the thieves just threw in the towel and decided to try their hand at another career. One thing’s for sure – car thefts were down in 2009.