Car theft is a serious problem in Los Santos, but it's turning out to be an even bigger headache for Rockstar Games.

A bug in Grand Theft Auto V is causing cars and car upgrades to disappear when players park vehicles in the game's various garages, which are supposed to be save points. As a result, Rockstar is warning fans not to use those garages until they can solve the problem.

"We have received some reports about problems with cars and garages, particularly after upgrading and then completing a mission, and are looking into this now. Unfortunately, we do not currently have a workaround to recover a car if it is missing," the developer said on its support page. "Please try to avoid parking a car in a garage, driving one already in a garage, or getting in a default vehicle, when playing as a character other than the one with your upgrades."

No one's quite sure what triggers the bug. Rockstar noted it may occur if you drive another character's vehicle (i.e. Franklin taking one of Michael's rides out for a spin).

In the meantime, the company is advising players to sign up for the Rockstar Social Club, which has a separate garage they can store cars in while doing missions. This does not seem to be affected at present.

Also, it appears that if you start a mission with a custom car and fail the mission by destroying that car or dying while you're in it, it can cause the vehicle to disappear. For vehicles lost during a mission, it suggests searching at the mission start point, your safehouse, the mission endpoint or the impound lot.

That's a lot of exploration to find a car, though. And while it might be tempting to buy some fancier wheels for your anti-heroes as you roll around in your post-heist cash reserves like Scrooge McDuck, it may be best to curb those impulses.

For now, at least, real estate seems to be the safer investment.

(Credit: Rockstar Games)