... is that, in the USA, it is the most cost-effective anti-car-theft device available.

Are there any statistics on this? My wife and I have always driven sticks. Several of our neighbors have had theirs stolen, but we never have, and we always theorized that the stick may have made the cars less "attractive". We also club our cars when they are parked, which may help.

I recall reading some statistics a while back, but can't quote them now. It is true in my experience, and it also certainly true that the percentage of USA cars with sticks is steadily declining.

Assuming that thieves in general tend to be young, it is logical to conclude that the percentage of thieves who can drive a stick is also steadily declining.

As for the "Club", only those that lock the steering column to the brake pedal are any good. The rest are like cable bike locks: better than nothing, but not much.

I usually drive a Miata (manual transmission, any sports car that has an automatic transmission, well, that’s just wrong). On Sun I test drove a Prius. The salesman asked me if I drove a manual transmission (I kept dropping my hand to shift but the Prius is an automatic) when I told him I did he told me that there a number of people that specifically request a manual transmission so no one can borrow their car.