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Thieves still love older Hondas and pickups most, says NICB [w/video]

No one wants to have their car stolen, but a new study by the National Insurance Crime Bureau has some bad news for older Honda owners and pickup drivers. Fortunately, it has better news for drivers overall. The group is reporting that according to preliminary data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, thefts were down 3.2 percent in 2013 (versus 2012) to fewer than 700,000 cars. That's the lowest figure since 1967. That's also less than half of the peak of over 1.66 million thefts in 1991. "The drop in thefts is good news for all of us," says NICB President and CEO Joe Wehrle. "But it still amounts to a vehicle being stolen every 45 seconds and losses of over $4 billion a year."
Honda drivers might not find it such good news with older Accord and Civic models topping this year's theft study. Toyota and Dodge can't really celebrate, either, with two models each on the list, as well. Overall, this year's list was split evenly between foreign and domestic models, which were mostly pickups.
The 10 most likely vehicles to be stolen in 2013 were:

Ford’s Onboard Scales and Smart Hitch win the 2022 Autoblog Technology of the Year award

The 2022 Autoblog Technology of the Year award goes to Ford for the Onboard Scales and Smart Hitch hauling and towing features found in the F-150 lineup. This new technology, as tested in the 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning, is a boon to pickup truck owners. Not only will it make observing your truck’s maximum loads easier and more intuitive, but it will also ensure youÂ’re hauling and towing in the safest-possible manner. We began the process with a long list of features to test and whittle down. Technologies like MercedesÂ’ new electric turbocharger, GMÂ’s Super Cruise with added towing capability and many more went through the consideration process, but we finally whittled the field down to just three finalists. They are: the GMC Hummer EV with its flashy CrabWalk four-wheel-steer technology, the Genesis GV60 with its facial recognition/fingerprint start technology, and of course FordÂ’s trucking gear. As is the norm for our Technology of the Year award, three main questions are asked, and editors assign point values based on how well the technologies perform in testing. How significant is this tech? How well does it work? And new for this year: Consider the Wow Factor. With the scores tallied, the Ford tech earned 123 points, topping the Hummer (117 points) and GV60 (108). This is the second straight win for Ford, which won the 2021 TOY Award with its Pro Power Onboard charging feature.  Ford joins Tesla (2014, 2016) as the only two-time winner of our Tech of the Year Award, which dates to 2013. Kia, Cadillac, Tesla, BMW, Chevy, Chrysler and Audi technologies are among the previous winners. 2022 Technology of the Year testing View 16 Photos While systems that tow and haul may not seem to be the latest or most sophisticated tech, they remain essential and Ford uses things like the infotainment system, taillights and the Ford mobile app to create a forward-looking experience Henry Ford would never have dreamed of when the first Model Ts were outfitted with beds for farm and war duty in 1917. Even 10 years ago, integrating tech in this manner would have seemed futuristic, but Ford pulls it off. “FordÂ’s clever towing and hauling features earned our award this year because they are easy to use, easy to understand and simply make your life as a truck owner better,” Autoblog Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore said. “It was a competitive field this year, with HummerÂ’s CrabWalk and GenesisÂ’s Biometrics features both winning strong support.

Ford celebrating 80 years of Aussie utes as it prepares to shutter Oz manufacturing

Ford is ending Australian production after 90 years in 2016, and with it may go perhaps the most iconic vehicles in its auto market - the ute. Car-based pickup trucks like the Ford Ranchero and Chevrolet El Camino were always more of a curiosity than a true market force here, but in Australia, they have long proven hugely popular.
As the legend goes, Ford invented the niche after a farmer's wife had asked Ford Australia's managing director for a more utilitarian car. Her request was simple: "My husband and I can't afford a car and a truck but we need a car to go to church on Sunday and a truck to take the pigs to market on Monday. Can you help?"
Ford's design team came up with a two-passenger, enclosed, steel coupe body with glass windows and a steel-paneled, wooden-frame load area in the rear. The sides of the bed were blended into the body to make it look more unified, and to keep costs down, the front end and interior were based on the Ford Model 40 five-window coupe. Power came from a V8 with shifting chores handled by a three-speed manual. Within a year, the new vehicle was ready, and production began in 1934. Lead designer Lewis Bandt christened it the coupe-utility.