Best as I can tell, cops turn on their ignitions in the morning and turn them off at night. Even when they are outside of their cars for extended periods of time, with no plans to go elsewhere, e.g. directing traffic at accident or construction zones etc., they leave the cars on idle.
Why is this?
They get an emergency call while they’re having a coffee break.
“Damn, the car won’t start!”
That’s just my WAG.
No chance of the electronics (computer, radio) running down the battery that way.
Also, not their money for gas.
That way they can leave the air-con on. As SmackFu notes it’s not their dime.
I’ve always presumed it to be to avoid wasting time when an emergency comes up.
My question is why we don’t hear more about stolen police cars!
If the car has it’s lights going, they keep the car running to power them. That many lights will drain a battery quickly.
I asked the same of my Uncle the MA State trooper that very question.
Also, in inclement weather, it keeps the car warm/cold (as appropriate) so that their naps are as comfortable as possible. 
If you were going to steal a car, would you really pick a Crown Vic with vomit stains all over the back seat?
More is a relative term. Here is a recent story. http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2009/apr/03/police-car-stolen-after-officer-leaves-it-running-/ They all seem to end with some variant of: “Authorities haven’t released the name of the officer whose car was stolen or if he will face any discipline.”
ETA: Couple more:
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4188/is_20051217/ai_n15941555/
http://www.seattlepi.com/local/390294_policecar03.html
Omaha News, Weather and Sports - Nebraska News - KETV NewsWatch 7 (undercover vehicle; article notes that it’s illegal to leave a running vehicle unattended in that jurisdicition)
My experience with police is that they tend to take their time when emergencies come up. It takes maybe an extra 3 seconds to turn on the ignition, and these guys are not nearly that rushed.
I would guess that crooks are scared of it. Cops naturally tend to devote more resources and intensity to crimes against cops, which is also the reason the mafia tended to avoid going after the cops as well.
In addition, I think the chop shop fences would be afraid to deal with such cars as well. Not much plausible deniability there, you know, when a guy comes driving up with a stolen police car.
Where this does have big ramifications is in the used car market. There are a lot of police cars on this market, and while many people avoid them, there is also a school of thought which holds that the police package engines are worthwhile and compensate for the abuse the cars get. But at any rate, the odometer on a police car would not be much of an indicator as to how much the car was used, as compared to another car, since a very high percentage of the engine’s running time would be on idle.
I was once told by a mechanic at a Ford dealership that Ford engines in particular are damaged by idling for more than about 15 minutes (or maybe he told me 5 minutes - I’m not certain). Although it’s possible that the police package engines are designed to deal with this.
Perhaps your personal experiences aren’t very representative of the millions of police responses that happen every year.
Police motorcycles tend to spend a lot of time at idle, as well. As Harley Davidsons are air cooled, engine damage can occur at rather low mileage. An aftermarket resleeving of the pistons is apparently economical, though.
Thanks Exapno.
Keeping the lights powered; keeping the computer from shutting down; keeping the interior of the car under 130 degrees (in the Southwest).
If the car is being used to block traffic for an accident or a crime scene, it is self-defeating if the overhead lights shut off.
If the computer shuts down, it can take more than five minutes to re-boot, get the programs started and have the network come up. In the meantime, you’re tying up radio time asking them to repeat the address and suspect descriptions since you can’t read them from the screen.
Just a thought. I’m not saying every occasion of idling is critical, but, cop cars make great targets for criticism without knowing the specific facts. :rolleyes:
AZRob
One of my best friends is an officer in Northern Virginia, I just asked him about this. Their training is to act deliberately, i.e. don’t rush anything, especially in an emergency-- it’s far more important to radio/log in the event and arrange backup if necessary (all the police around here respond in pairs) than jump on the gas and go. Training in other police departments may vary, but he suspects it wouldn’t be much different given professional standards in 2009.
As for idling, he says it’s to keep the power running to all his electronics gear.
That would be why Ford Police Interceptor models from the last several years have both an odometer and an “hours” display similar to what one sees on a tractor.
“Standard on the 2006 is a redesigned instrument cluster, which now sports a tachometer, digital odometer with hour meter and trip meter features, and cross-compatibility with the civilian version’s various features (these are normally locked out, but can be accessed through wiring modification). Kevlar-lined front doors, which might be useful as protective barriers during gunfights, are optional on the Crown Victoria Police Interceptors for the 2006 Model Year.”
Cite: Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor - Wikipedia
Actually, in a standard Patrol Procedures class police are taught to turn the engines off, there is less chance of a stall after prolonged idling. And many PD’s require is.
Well it does happen from time to time. But you have to have some big old brass balls to steal a cop car.
Don’t they have tracking devices on them as well? I’d imagine that’s a pretty good deterrent against stealing a cop car.
In the interests of the environment, gasoline use, engine wear and increased need for maintenance and replacement, just very basic economy, you’d think that with the leaps and bounds in battery technology today, someone would have already created (or would be working very hard on) a battery pack that would handle the additional electronics on emergency responder vehicles of all sorts, perhaps one recharged from the motion of the vehicle (isn’t that how Prius batteries work?) when the car is in motion on patrol.
In this economy, with many localities hurting for money, and our current environmental state I cannot fathom that it is reasonable to meet our policing demands while having police cars running 24/7.
Well, if police departments were interested in fuel efficiency, they wouldn’t buy land barges. Beyond the handy-dandy body-on-frame design of the Crown Vic, which makes it easy to replace damaged panels, and squidgy ride*, I cannot imagine a worse choice of vehicle for police work.
*cops spend an awful lot of time in their cars, so I certainly don’t begrudge them a comfortable ride.
There is a big, long thread on this very issue, but in way of pointing out worse cars for police work, then would you consider a Suburban to be better? Or an Aveo?