2014 Dodge Grand Caravan Avp/se on 2040-cars

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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:

Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat in the works

In Autoblog's recent First Drive of the 2015 Challenger SRT with the 707-horsepower Hellcat V8 we found its engine to be as brutally powerful as the numbers would suggest, even if it wasn't the best handler. However, the muscle-car-styling just isn't right for some buyers that need four doors and proper rear seats to haul around the family. It appears that Dodge has their backs, though, because the Hellcat is very likely on its way into the Charger in the near future. Imagine the looks on your passengers' faces when you stomp down on the throttle.
According to Road and Track, when Dodge submitted the Hellcat for engine power certification to the Society of Automotive Engineers, the company included the Charger on the paperwork. That showed that the automaker wanted the engine checked out for the sedan, too. R&T reckons the 707-hp Charger would hit the road about a year from now, clearing the Challenger for a year of exclusivity with the powerplant.
When the Charger SRT Hellcat does hit the road, it may carry a very special accolade. Assuming nothing beats it in the meantime, it might be the world's highest horsepower production sedan. Think on that for a second. Even a Mercedes S65 AMG only has 621 horsepower, though a good bit more torque at 738 pound-feet to the Dodge's 650 lb-ft. So while the beastly engine is getting put into other models, where else would you like to see it? The Ram? Grand Cherokee? Let us know in Comments.

Junkyard Gem: 1990 Dodge Daytona Shelby

Once Lee Iacocca took the helm at Chrysler and shifted nearly all car models to front-wheel-drive platforms — either members of the convoluted K family or descendants of the Simca-derived Omnirizon platform — he called up his pal Carroll Shelby and made a deal to help with the design of some Shelby-ized, turbocharged Dodges. This relationship resulted in the Shelby Charger starting in 1983 and the Omni GLH in 1984. For 1987, the K-based Dodge Shadow and Daytona got the Shelby treatment, and suddenly the roads of North America were awash in Shelby-badged turbocharged machinery. Most are long gone by now, but I managed to unearth this tattered and rusty '90 Shelby Daytona at a Denver yard. The Shelby Daytona stayed in production through the 1991 model year (when the car got both Shelby and IROC badging, and does anybody remember the IROC Daytona today?), but most of the examples I've found during my wrecking-yard explorations have been earlier models. You won't find many '90 or '91 Daytona Shelbys. Some junkyard shopper pulled the cylinder head and all the turbo-related goodness before I reached this car. That makes sense, because the 1990 Daytona Shelby's turbocharged 2.2-liter engine made 174 horsepower— way more than most previous turbo Chryslers. Maybe someone hot-rodded their Plymouth Caravelle with those parts. This car has the five-speed manual transmission, as it should. Note the New Car Scent Little Tree, which is the second-most common junkyard-found air freshener (after Black Ice). It's not hard to identify the main reason this car got discarded: catastrophic (by Colorado standards) body rot. 171,349 miles is pretty decent for a nervous turbocharged car from 30 years ago. I don't see many Colorado junkyard cars with brewery and/or skiing-related stickers that don't also have stickers from cannabis dispensaries, but here's one. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Pretty much just as good as the Porsche 911 Turbo, and $70,000 cheaper! Featured Gallery Junked 1990 Dodge Daytona Shelby View 21 Photos Auto News Dodge Automotive History Coupe Carroll Shelby shelby Junkyard Gems