Getting into a car, starting it and keeping it are separate problems in Grand Theft Auto VI. Vehicle security determines the equipment needed, while trackers and registration affect what happens after the theft. Fences are criminal contacts who unlock theft tools and services as you complete jobs for them. 1
These mechanics were described in TGG's Rockstar North preview. Our car theft and police-system report explains how theft connects to police pursuit.
Entering and starting a car
For parked cars, you can smash a window or use a quieter slim jim. Getting inside does not guarantee that the engine will start: some vehicles can be hotwired, while others require a key cloner. A suitable key cloner can also enter and start a vehicle without triggering its alarm. 1
Carjacking an occupied vehicle involves a quick-time interaction to pull the driver out, with passengers able to resist as well. 1
Checking security with Waink
The Waink phone app scans a target vehicle and displays its security level, required tool, tracker tier, registration cost and resale value. Those checks help distinguish a car you can enter from one you can start or afford to register. 1
Higher-tier trackers respond to speed: driving fast keeps them quiet, while slowing down makes them beep. Stay slow for too long and they transmit the car's position to police. 1
Fence work and keeping stolen vehicles
Fence jobs unlock theft equipment and services over time. During the preview, Rockstar's Rob Nelson stole a car but could not keep it because he had not completed enough fence work to unlock tracker removal. A fence also supplied a store-safe code by text during another robbery. 1
Garages provide storage, but storing a car does not make it yours. You can buy a garage, stash a stolen car there, then register it once you have the means to do so. The complete unlock sequence and registration prices have not been detailed. 1
Recovering a personal vehicle
Scooter Bros retrieves personal vehicles. If police recognise an abandoned vehicle as yours, they can remain near it before eventually impounding it. You can try to sneak back and retrieve it before then; after impoundment, you can pay more to recover it or steal it back from the impound. 1
Vehicle theft feeds into the wanted and Heat systems: a tracker can report a stolen car even when nobody saw the initial theft.
Why some parked cars are unavailable early on
The equipment needed for a parked car can be locked behind story progress. Older, less secure vehicles may need a slim jim, while modern prestige vehicles can require a key cloner. A car with a driver remains a possible carjacking target even when you do not yet have the tools needed for a comparable parked vehicle. 2
That does not make occupied cars effortless: the driver interaction and passenger resistance described above still apply. The useful distinction is between a tool-gated parked car and a vehicle you can attempt to take from its driver, not a promise that every attempt succeeds.
Selling a stolen car to a fence
A stolen vehicle's condition affects its sale value. Delivering a damaged car to a fence pays less than delivering it intact. Waink's value information therefore helps you assess a target, but is not a guarantee of the final payout after a collision-filled getaway. 2
Fences can also supply leads beyond an ordinary street theft. One example is an access code for a police impound containing cars that can be stolen and sold. This is separate from recovering a personal vehicle after police impound it. 2
A theft is not the same as ownership
Think of the process as separate decisions: scan the target, enter it, start it, handle its tracker, find storage and then arrange registration when available. Getting past one step does not establish that you can complete the rest. The phone reference explains Waink and Scooter Bros, while the Heat reference explains identifying clues that can survive an escape.
Resprays, repairs and police attention
Repairing a stolen car before selling it can protect its value at a fence. A respray serves a different immediate purpose: Pay'n'Spray offers basic repairs and colours to address vehicle Heat, rather than every customization option. Other modification shops have their own specialties. 1
Those services are not all available from the start. Fence work and story progression affect access, so a respray, tracker removal and registration should not be treated as interchangeable solutions to every stolen car.
