Shawn Marcoux loved his car more than he did most people.

It was a 1971 Chevrolet Chevelle SS with a 454 big block that he lovingly restored with his own hands.

"It would rank fourth in my life — I've got two kids and a wife," Marcoux said with a laugh.

That's why it hurts so badly that on Aug. 4, somebody stole his car from the parking lot of a Niagara region golf course and he hasn't seen it since. It was a centrepiece in his life, appearing in photos with his wife and kids, and a crowning achievement that he can't help but remember when he stares at the empty space in his garage where it used to sit.

When the cops came, I told them the only worse thing I could be giving you right now is a description of my kids. - Shawn Marcoux

Marcoux isn't alone in his pain. There have been four classic car thefts in the Niagara Region since March and one in Halton Region this August.

Far from the usual smash and grabs of pickup trucks and SUVs usually seen in the area, these are vintage, near-priceless vehicles (at least in their owner's eyes) that cannot be replaced by an insurance payout.

Here are the vehicles stolen from the area since March:

March 4, from Effingham Street, Pelham: a 1969 Chevrolet Camaro.

April 20, from Regional Road 20, Smithville: a 1950 Buick Sedanette.

June 14, from Niagara River Parkway, Niagara Falls: a 1976 Chevrolet Corvette.

Aug. 4, from Hwy 20, Pelham: Marcoux's 1971 Chevrolet Chevelle.

Somewhere between Aug. 19 and Aug. 24, from Speers Road, Oakville: a 1980 GMC Caballero.

No evidence of a link, police say

The average observer might look at these thefts as linked, but Niagara Regional Police aren't investigating them that way right now, Det. Sgt. Thomas Manney told CBC News.

"There's no commonality to link any of these vehicles right now," Manney said.

Some of these cars are worth a ton of money. The '69 Camaro that was stolen back in March from rural Welland was worth $100,000, owner Ed Wiens told the Welland Tribune.

Marcoux and Poulin's then 6-month-old son McKinley sits on top of the 1971 Chevrolet Chevelle that his dad hoped one day he would drive. (Tricia Poulin)

Wiens said he doubted the car would be dismantled and sold for parts because it's too valuable.

"They wouldn't strip that car. That car is very special and it's worth more when it's all complete," Wiens told the Tribune. "That car is probably headed for parts unknown in one piece."

Manney says it can be difficult for thieves to unload vintage cars like these. The classic car community in Southern Ontario is very interconnected, so selling online or at a classic car show is near impossible.

"Someone could recognize it quickly," he said. "But what we could see happen is a car sit in storage for several years until someone thinks it's not hot anymore."

"If all of this was the same person, they wouldn't be keeping them out in the open. Odds are they would be hidden."

Sadly, Manney says, it's "relatively rare" for police to recover cars like these.

'Deep down in my heart I hope it comes back somehow'

That's like a kick in the guts for Marcoux. "I guess deep down in my heart I hope it comes back somehow … but three weeks on, it's kind of a longshot," he said.

His car was last appraised at $30,000, but it's not really about the money. The insurance payout can't replace this car. On top of doing the restoration on his own, the Chevelle is actually the first vehicle he ever owned.

He bought it back in 1995, when he was just 15-years-old. Upon inspection, he realized that he had the guts of a great car on his hands. "I decided I was going to build the car I always wanted," he said.

This 1980 GMC Caballero was stolen while parked at a business on Speers Road in Oakville sometime between Friday Aug. 19 and Wednesday Aug. 24. It has an upgraded Corvette engine, 1960's red Corvette rims, a red interior and a Mexican Flag headliner. (Halton police)

That meant birthday and Christmas requests for parts, and drives across the border to pick up pieces when he was in university. He tinkered for 13 years, and finally decided it was ready for a big reveal in 2008, when he married his wife, Tricia.

The car was a centrepiece in their wedding photos, meaning he feels a tinge of sadness when he looks at those photos now.

He had big plans for that car for his kids, too — visions of using it at high school graduations, or lending it out to his son or daughter to really impress on a first date.

"It's one of my greatest accomplishments because I just didn't quit on it," Marcoux said.

"When the cops came, I told them the only worse thing I could be giving you right now is a description of my kids."

Shawn Marcoux (right) and his wife Tricia Poulin got married in 2008. The 1971 Chevrolet Chevelle SS in the background was a centrepiece in their wedding photos. It was stolen on Aug. 4. (Tricia Poulin)

adam.carter@cbc.ca