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Ford highlights new F-650 and F-750 with full-size Tonka show truck [w/videos]

Who among us hasn't been tempted by the prospect of buying a big yellow truck and painting the name Tonka along the side? Well apparently there were some folks over at Ford who were just as tempted, only they actually had the means to make that childhood fantasy a reality in the form of the truck you see here. Revealed at the NTEA Work Truck Show this week in Indianapolis, this Tonka show truck stands nearly 10 feet tall. It's painted bright yellow, just like the one you played with in the sand box (and probably still would given the opportunity and maybe no one else looking) and has a blacked-out nose treatment and special graphics. As you can see, it's also equipped with a working dump bed, and has a truly staggering 33,000-pound gross vehicle weight rating, built to showcase the Blue Oval's new line of medium duty trucks. Of course "medium duty" is a relative term, and the new F-750 is clearly a heavier piece of machinery than the company's own Super Duty pickups, but they're lighter-duty than a proper big rig. The new 2016 Ford F-650 and F-750 are just as tough as the models they replace, but they're now quieter and more comfortable to use. In fact, Ford says its 6.7-liter Power Stroke V8 diesel is now 25-percent quieter inside the cabin at highway speeds, 45-percent quieter at idle and 35-percent quieter standing outside in front of the grille. Ford notes that it's the only medium-duty truck manufacturer that makes its own engines and transmissions. That Power Stroke diesel comes with 270 horsepower and 675 pound-feet of torque as standard, but can be upgraded to 300 hp and 700 lb-ft or all the way up to 330 hp and 725 lb-ft. Commercial buyers will also be able to choose between Regular, Super and Crew Cab models with a straight-frame, dock-height or tractor-towing frames, meaning that whatever it is you've got to haul, chances are high that the new Ford F-650 and F-750 can be set up to get the job done.

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:

Next Ford Mustang to drop 400 pounds

The Ford Mustang is already the lightest of the current crop of muscle cars, at around 3,600 pounds for a GT coupe with the six-speed manual transmission. That's almost 260 pounds less than a Chevrolet Camaro SS and about 450 pounds less than a Dodge Challenger R/T, which means the Mustang has a pretty big advantage when it comes to handling, braking, accelerating and economy. More good news: The next Mustang will be even lighter.
According to a report from Edmunds, the sixth-generation Mustang, which is set to debut at the 2014 North American International Auto Show, will shed an additional 400 pounds of body fat. That 11-percent weight reduction will be thanks to lightweight materials, with a particular focus on using stronger, but less material in construction. Aluminum will feature heavily, but Edmunds' inside source warns that there is "nothing terribly exotic" coming to the original pony car.
The other big news is that the new Mustang will be smaller overall. It's going to be 15-inches shorter than the 188.5-inch Mustang on sale today, while it'll also be 6.5 inches narrower. Shorter overhangs, both in the front and rear, are also good signs for those that want an agile Mustang.