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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:

2015 Australian Grand Prix all about grooves and trenches [spoilers]

We can't remember the last time 90 percent of the action in Formula One had nothing to do with cars setting timed laps. Yet that's was the situation at the Australian Grand Prix, continuing the antics from a scarcely believable off-season with blow-ups, driver and team absences, a lawsuit, and a clear need for some teams to get down and give us 50 pit stops. Nothing much has changed from a regulation standpoint, and at the front of the field nothing has changed at all. Lewis Hamilton in the Mercedes-AMG Petronas claimed the first position on the grid like someone put a sign on it that read, "Reserved for Mr. Hamilton;" teammate Nico Rosberg was 0.6 behind in second, Felipe Massa in the Williams was 1.4 seconds back in third. Sebastian Vettel proved that Ferrari didn't do another Groundhog Day routine this off-season, slotting into fourth. His teammate Kimi Raikkonen was not even four-hundredths of a second behind, ahead of Valtteri Bottas in the second Williams, Daniel Ricciardo in the first Infiniti Red Bull Racing, and rookie Carlos Sainz, Jr. in the first Toro Rosso. Lotus, now powered by Mercedes, got both cars into the top ten with Romain Grosjean in ninth, Pastor Maldonado in the final spot. However, even though the regulations are almost all carryover, in actual fact, everything has changed this year. Mercedes is even faster. Renault is even worse. Ferrari and Lotus are a lot better. Toro Rosso is looking like anything but a junior team. And McLaren is – well, let's not even get into that yet. Furthermore, this weekend was shambles: 15 cars started the race, the smallest naturally-occurring grid since 1963. Manor couldn't get its cars ready before qualifying. Bottas had to pull out after qualifying when he tore a disc in his back and couldn't pass the medical clearance tests. The gearbox in Daniil Kvyat's Red Bull gave out on the lap from the pit to the grid, and to give misery some company, the Honda in Kevin Magnussen's McLaren blew up on the same lap. When the lights went out, Hamilton ran away and was more than a second ahead of his teammate at the end of Lap 1. The advantage disappeared, though, because behind him, at the first corner, we got our first pile-up. As Raikkonen drove around the outside of Vettel at the right-hand Turn 1 it looked like Vettel, going over the kerbing, hopped to his left and bounced into Raikkonen.

Honda tunes HR-V, shows Baja Pilot pre-runner at SEMA

Honda has a lot more at the SEMA Show than just it's tough looking, Baja-prepped Ridgeline, but the automaker isn't really saying a whole lot about them. Even though the company has a massive gallery of photos showing off these aftermarket creations, Honda has kept details about their mods quite sparse. While the Ridgeline Baja Race Truck guns for the checkered flag, the Pilot Baja Chase Vehicle is going along for the ride in case any assistance is necessary. The crossover wears a similar Honda Racing livery as its turbocharged sibling, and the company outfits the machine with an LED bar, bumper guards, and off-road tires to get through the desert. Honda also wants buyers to know that there's tuning potential from their new HR-V. To show what's possible from the little crossover, tuners like Bisimoto Engineering, MAD Industries, Tjin Edition and Fox Marketing have some wild creations on display. The weirdest of the bunch definitely is the bizarre pink example above. The little CUV tries to look tough with a wide-body kit, new front bumper, big side sills, and a lowered suspension over metallic gold wheels. Other takes on the model make it ready for the track or to haul Honda's Grom motorcycle. Finally, the 2016 Pilot Elite Concept "Black Edition" wears production and concept components from Honda Genuine Accessories. Darkened parts for the wheels, grille, and trim give the crossover a handsome, monochromatic aesthetic. You can check out the whole SEMA cavalcade in the gallery above. Vehicles on Display in the Honda Booth at the 2015 SEMA Show Nov 3, 2015 - LAS VEGAS In additional to the Ridgeline Baja Race Truck announced today, Honda also showcased accessorized and customized versions of multiple new Honda models, including: Pilot Baja Chase Vehicle – a specially tuned 2016 Honda Pilot, in desert racing livery, which will operate as a support vehicle in Honda's SCORE Baja 1000 campaign. Pioneer 1000 – Honda's newest and most powerful side-by-side offering, also in custom desert raving livery, will accompany the Pilot Baja Chase Vehicle on the Baja peninsula to assist in the racing effort. 2016 Honda CR-Z hybrid sports coupe – making its North American debut and boasting new styling, upgraded equipment and features and a new EX-L Navi trim. 2016 Honda HR-V -- four custom-designed HR-Vs from top U.S.