well, neither, actually. So maybe I can imagine a worse choice, after all. Still, the Crown Vic is not a good choice.
So if it’s not a good choice, what’s your theory on why departments all over the country keep sh choosing them?
Because Ford sells the police package models ridiculously cheaply, basically.
:-p
Cars kept at idle are typically done so to;
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Keep the battery from running down (there are devices that shut the battery off, but no battery that will keep the myriad electronic devices from completely draining the battery).
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Keep the car at the ready should an emergency arise. This is most true in the colder climates in the winter months and is just a practice that continues through the summer months because it’s something the operators are used to. In the summer, they should be turned off.
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Keep the car hot/cool for the operator.
Police cars don’t all have tracking devices, depends on the departments. Most DO have ignition lock outs, which is a button you push that allows you to run the engine without the keys. To put the vehicle in gear, you need the key. That’s why there aren’t stolen squad cars everywhere, because the people with either big enough balls or small enough brains to boost a squad are really only going to joyride anyway and that lockout makes it next to impossible unless you know how to bypass it without someone noticing that your legs are sticking out from under the dash of a running police car.
No emergency responders, at least in my opinion ought to be worried about operational fuel efficiency of the vehicle overall. Buy the biggest engine with the strongest chassis, frame and transmission you can afford to and keep it running well. The time you needed that extra horsepower or stronger frame or whatever could mean the difference between life and death.
Crown Vics are fast enough, roomy enough for prisoner transport, comfortable and everybody who makes the equipment for EV’s makes stuff for the Crown Vic. Plus, they’re going for anywhere from $10k to $15k depending on your state. That’s why they use them. The Chevy impala is worse than the Crown and the Charger, while nifty, is headed the way of the Intrepid police car which means, nowhere fast.
Now, Carbon Motors has come up with a decent vehicle, if, that is, they get the price within reach.
I just made a GD thread on this, if anyone wants to make a go of “The Worst Police Car”.
Mod moved the thread I made to IMHO.
Aha! Very interesting.
We have those on our ambulances, too.
That would help a bit, but would be more useful in comparing two police cars than in comparing a police car to a civilian car which didn’t contain this feature.
That doesn’t get you there.
Question then becomes why Ford didn’t attach a police package to another car and sell that one cheaply? (I actually think the Taurus is/was also sold with a police package.)
Correct, the Taurus was used as a patrol car by a number of departments, but I believe that when the Taurus went from 2nd generation to 3rd generation they canceled the police package. It was sold with a tweaked version of the Essex 3.8L V6, which is probably in contention for Ford’s worst motor…
Cleveland PD actually uses some marked 4th-gen Taurus with the stock (slow) engine, but those are not approved by Ford for police usage. No reason not to use them for detective’s cars, I suppose, and if they’re not getting used on the freeway, Cleveland congestion may keep chases slow enough that it doesn’t matter.
This isn’t a cite, only from watching shows such as “World’s Dumbest Criminals” on TruTV. Most police cars are stolen by DUI suspects and other suspects who have been placed under arrest and put in an officer’s vehicle. They somehow work their cuffed hands around front and continue their joyride in the officer’s vehicle. Most of them aren’t stolen by thieves who are probably sober and in their right minds, but by people more desperate to stay out of jail.
As discussed in the IMHO thread, part of the Police Interceptor package is increased coolant system function to handle the idling.
Cop cars up in my neck of the woods drive Chevys. Older cars are Luminas, some of the newer ones are Impalas. It always freaked me out… I used to drive a blue Lumina and it surprised me how many unmarked cop cars looked JUST LIKE MINE. Then I started paying attention to the body type and such of the typical white-and-black cars, and I realized they are Luminas, too! My mom drives an Impala and now I’ve been noticing that newer cop cars look like hers.
Used to be, the Chevy Caprice was a fairly common competitor to the Crown Vic. I’ve seen Impalas serve in that capacity as well, though it seems to be much rarer. However, I must admit that I’ve yet to see a Lumina with a police package on it.
Yep, they’re up here. A couple years back when I had the Lumina, my front axel broke, but I was still in traffic, so I had to call the cops and have a car block traffic. The first car to show up was one of their unmarked cars… another dark blue Lumina! It looked kinda funny, the two of us there. Then another car pulled up, this one marked… and we realized it was it was a Lumina, too! Aside from the fact that it was freezing and January in Wisconsin and I knew I’d have to replace my axel, it was a pretty funny situation.