WhatCar? announces most secure vehicles

With car crime one of the most difficult offences to be solved, car buyers are searching for the most secure vehicles that make it as hard as possible for thieves to steal.

The British Insurance Vehicle Awards 2010 have unveiled the most thief proof cars after exhaustive testing procedures undertaken at the Thatcham motor industry research centre. Testers investigated how easily each model could be stolen or have items removed from them, by demonstrating techniques used by actual criminals.

The winner in the ever popular supermini category was the Volkswagen Polo with a five star theft rating. Runners up included the VW-owned Seat Ibiza Sport and the Skoda Fabia. Good news continued for the German manufacturer in the Compact MPV sector with its Golf Plus model coming a close second to the Citroen C4 Picasso, which proved difficult for the mock thieves to break into.

In the large 4x4 category, Japanese carmaker Toyota topped the leaderboard with their Landcruiser V8 proving impenetrable, whilst in the compact 4x4 category the Audi Q5 came out on top, beating the likes of the Toyota Rav and Vauxhall Antara.

Looking to the luxury end of the market, the VW Phaeton passed stringent tests to become the most secure luxury vehicle, with the cabriolet category being won by the Audi A5 open top model. Audi continued their string of wins by topping the performance car range with their S8.

Results of the tests show that German manufacturers Audi and VW have security as one of their top priorities. WhatCar? advises that such characteristics are paramount when choosing a new vehicle, saying: ''Cute styling, a natty interior and loads of creature comforts are all very well, but when your car is broken into or stolen, you might wish that security had been higher up your car manufacturer's list of priorities.''

Stuart Travis, Doncaster, Kia Sorento CRDi XS

Caron Dawson, Billingham, Smart ForTwo Brabus