Hyundais and Kias were the most commonly stolen vehicle in San Antonio between January 2022 and March 2023, according to SAPD. Credit: Shutterstock / Daniel Judzura

Korean automaker Hyundai is holding an event this weekend where San Antonio residents can get anti-theft software added to their vehicles at no cost.

The San Antonio Anti-Theft Clinic, offered in collaboration with the San Antonio Police Department, will run 8 a.m.-6 p.m. on both Friday, May 31, and Saturday, June 1, at Gustafson Stadium. The clinic also will also run 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Sunday, June 2.

The event will be the fifth of its kind held in Texas. It comes as reports suggest Hyundais and Kia owners are uniquely susceptible to car thefts.

Indeed, Hyundai Elantras were the most commonly stolen car in San Antonio last year, according to SAPD data.

Experts attribute at least part of the rise in Hyundai and Kia thefts to a widely viewed TikTok videos showing how to start and drive away with those vehicles within minutes through use of a standard USB drive.

San Antonio car owners haven’t been immune from the trend. A North Side woman went viral on the Nextdoor app last year after complaining that her Hyundai Sonata had been stolen from her apartment complex twice in four months.

Even so, car thefts have declined 15.4% in San Antonio during the first four months of this year compared to 2023, according to SAPD crime data.

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This article appears in May 1-14, 2024.

Michael Karlis is a multimedia journalist at the San Antonio Current, whose coverage in print and on social media focuses on local and state politics. He is a graduate of American University in Washington,...